The World’s Biggest Name in Cryptocurrency is…Lithuania??

One great thing about the cryptocurrency market, a major advance in mobile payments technology, is that it’s brought a substantial quantity of surprises along with it. Yes, we’ve seen some bizarre new developments, but one of the strangest was a report sent our way about Lithuania’s unexpected primacy in the field.

Yes, Lithuania, that tiny little slice of Eastern Europe, actually leads the world in initial coin offerings (ICOs) per capita. This is actually a strange distinction to have, especially in a field that seems pretty enthusiastic about restricting people’s access to cryptocurrency. Whether it’s Japan’s new push for anti-money laundering efforts or South Korea’s latest bloc of regulations, the legislation that’s at least somewhat anti-crypto is taking hold all over.

Lithuania, however, is taking much the opposite approach. It’s opening up many of the processes involved by routing some features directly through its central bank. The Bank of Lithuania offers a simple online form for financial licenses, and issues those licenses in an average time frame of three months. It can take as much as a year to get a similar license in other European Union countries, and that gives Lithuania a significant advantage in luring new ICOs to its doorstep.

Moreover, it’s offering one of only three Blockchain Centers on the planet, a centralized facility that allows developers and investors a place to readily connect and, ultimately, deliver better products.

It’s long been said that, you get more of what you subsidize. While Lithuania isn’t directly funneling cash into the development of ICO and blockchain projects, it’s offering plenty of help. It’s making the laws easier to work with-while at the same time providing a legal structure that will likely help clear up any doubts about security or potential risk to the buyer. In a market so full of restrictions, it’s good to see at least one place that’s opening up the floodgates rather than setting up speed bumps.

Supporting blockchain and cryptocurrency efforts may prove better than restricting them in the long run. It will be interesting to see the impact Lithuania’s new status as leader of the world’s cryptocurrency has on the country in general.