Recommended: Millennials Taste The Forbidden Fruit Of Blockchain | HuffPost (huffingtonpost.com)
Anyone up to date with the latest financial news, or rather anyone who reads the average morning paper, would probably agree that blockchain technology is taking over the world with its breakthrough transparent and decentralised nature that promotes trust and honesty.

Millennials, also known as Generation Y and Z, represent the demographic with birth years starting in the 1980s to the mid-1990s and early 2000s.


Although characteristics of millennials vary by region, the generation is generally marked by an increased use of communication, media, and digital technologies, as well as a liberal approach to politics and economics.

Generation Y grew up with personal computers, cell phones and video games, while Generation Z has grown up on tablets, smartphones and apps.

Although their familiarity with technology might differ slightly, the common ground between Gen Y and Z, is their (lack of) financial knowledge and engagement. Most millennials don’t understand how to pay a mortgage or invest their money smartly.


As a result of this, millenials are the generation that has suffered the hands of credit loans and ever-growing debt. Blockchain, the hottest technology on the market, will soon become the savior for millennials, a group that will benefit the most from the transparent, decentralized nature of cryptocurrency.


The first indicator that there will be a strong relationship between the blockchain and millennials is based on the fact that 85 million millennials will represent 75 percent of the workforce by 2025. That means, that based on current trends three quarters of the workforce could not only be in debt in less than 10 years, but also have little to no understanding of how to get out of that debt.


The second lies in the lack of trust and loyalty millennials have towards intermediaries and third parties who control their money and other assets. Banks charge millennials high fees for slow and unfair transaction rates, creating a lack of trust between financial institutions and a large sector of society.

Growing older means that you’re supposed to get more financially disciplined, and still, most millennials can confidently say they’re not there yet. Take for example the term, “Fast Swiping,” which represents the fact that millennials swipe their credit cards at least once a day, often for large purchase they don’t really need.


The need to fill these massive urges by buying goods, has led millennials to a hole they can’t quite dig themselves out of. That is until Blockchain came around.

The blockchain, a distributed technology that powers bitcoin and so many other cryptocurrencies, can provide escape for more than one quarter of the world’s population. But how? The blockchain provides real solutions for the issues millennials are faced with when it comes to finance, travel, media etc.


TRAVEL


Check your latest Instagram feed, and you’ll realize easily that millennials have come to be the main consumers in the travel industry. From backpacking in Peru to dog sledding in Iceland, millennials definitely love to travel and get all the insta-worthy snaps they can.


It’s great that millennials want to travel the world, try new foods, meet new people, and experience a new culture, but all those travel expenses definitely add up. A tool that potentially can ease the anxiety that comes with booking a vacation, is new blockchain technology emerging everyday.


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Winding Tree, for example, is a blockchain application that proposes to decentralize travel, by removing third party intermediaries, in order to bring innovation back into the travel industry, while at the same time significantly reducing costs for consumers.


Winding Tree is a peer-to-peer platform, that allows any travel company to list its content and sell inventory without any barriers or fees, as well as enjoy from the open source, distributed governance of the platform.


Winding Tree will be a cheaper and more secure travel option for customers, as it eliminates transaction fees and intermediaries.


Recently, Winding Tree announced a partnership with Lufthansa, meaning in the future any traveller wishing to book a flight on the German airways can do so on Winding Tree, without having to worry about high fees that sites such as Priceline and Expedia impose. Travel addicted millennials won’t need a vacation from their vacation when they plan it through Winding Tree.

MEDIA


The incredible growth of Internet access around the world effects and is even perpetuated by millennials the most, as they were the ones born and alive during the rise of live news with Twitter, 24/7 news reports, and viral stories spreading on Facebook.


But as great as the instant spread of breaking news has been, it has also led to the rise of fake news. Whether it be another Kardashian pregnancy or claims that Obama isn’t really American, fake news tends to easily find its way into our precious digital media space.


While the dubious headlines attract readership, what can we do as a society to make sure we are consuming high quality content rather than misleading facts?




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PUBLIQ



answers back with its platform that aims to fight fake news with its blockchain based media platform. This nonprofit foundation introduces a peer-to-peer distributed network that implements a new vision and approach to the media industry.


The PUBLIQ team is building the future media ecosystem based on blockchain technology combined with analytics and artificial intelligence (AI).


PUBLIQ employs blockchain to institute universal trust on the platform, as well as to enhance in quality of PUBLIQ content, and to safeguard the independence of the PUBLIQ community.


By rebuilding trust in media and empowering authors and readers to be part of a safe, impartial and fair ecosystem, Millennials are undoubtedly one of the target populations that the company would love to see on their platform.


APPS


Everyone uses apps, but different age groups have different preferences and a different level of addiction to them. A generation that is one of the main contributors to the market of mobile applications is millennials, who often make up the many teams and companies popping up in Silicon Valley and competing among each other to make the next hottest app.

Among all the apps out there, messenger apps have become the most popular and widely used, and now blockchain is here to make our messaging apps better.




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Status, an open source messaging platform, has created an ecosystem that serves as a gateway to decentralized apps (DApps) and services built on Ethereum.


As a base offering, Status, currently in alpha for both iOS and Android, allows users to send and receive encrypted messages, browse, chat and interact with decentralized apps and chatbots, as well as store and control crypto assets in the built-in Status wallet.


It’s an open source platform, that provides users with a real voice and ability to influence the way the product develops. Status crowdfunded an incredible amount during its token sale a few months back, with $100M raised in less than three hours.


Status is building a community where everyone is welcome to join and contribute, and that means millennials too.

Did you know that millennials make 20% less money than baby boomers for the same work, at the same age? Well, there are now blockchain based apps that allow millennials to make some extra cash in a safe way.


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Vany where is a skill sharing platform, that enables anyone with a marketable skill to capitalize on their knowledge and talent, by sharing their expertise with those who need them.


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By running the platform on blockchain, users can be instantly connected with people who seeking or offering skills. Now instead of reading content online, you can pay by the minute to talk face-to-face with a person who has the exact skills that you need.


It’s like FaceTiming with someone who can help you cook a meal, style an outfit, fix your smartphone, or more.


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Another company that addresses the mobile market is SIRIN LABS AG, SIRIN is now developing the world’s first blockchain phone, the Finney. Finney will be the only smartphone in the world that is fully secure and safe enough to hold cryptographic cons. SIRIN’s goal is to bring the most secure consumer electronics devices to market.

FINANCE


One thing is clear, millennials are currently skeptical about financial services and there is a pretty good reason for that.


Millennials are the generation that often suffer the most at the hands of credit lenders, as Centralized financial institutions like to offer credit to many of their richest clients—those who have well established and pristine credit histories.


Between low employment rates, mounting student debt, and high housing costs, millennials are left with little spare cash to save.


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Celsius is a non-profit organization, whose approach is designed specifically to meet the needs of vulnerable millennials who struggle to manage their finances. The company provides millennials to access an ecosystem of credit lending, that is peer-to-peer based.


Meaning that rather than asking a big bank for a loan, members can borrow money from their peers, whether it be for a short-term loan, to help pay off existing credit cards or student loans at much lower rates than existing credit cards or consumer credit lines provide.


Celsius incentivizes on-time payments, unlike the big banks, which offer higher interest and larger monthly payments when payment is late. The more on-time payments a user has, the lower his/her interest rates will be and the higher their credit limit will be increased.


Alex Mashinsky, founder of Celsius adds that, “The banking industry as it is currently formulated fails to offer any real solutions to the current consumer credit and high-interest student debt crisis. Banks have no incentive to fix the problem, as the majority of their profits come from these loans.


Celsius offers a real solution and is helping to build the future of consumer credit.”

SAVVY SPENDING PATTERNS


All millennials have monthly expenses and bills to pay, and there’s no reason to pay more than they need to. Some of the most common bills are for health insurance, monthly rent, and a car bill.


Since many millennials generally rely on a car (and often times an older model or a used car!) as their main mode of transportation, they also have to spend their hard earned cash on maintenance and insurance costs, which tend to be pricey!


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CarFix, the Moscow based startup operating on the Ethereum BlockChain, has developed a platform that prevents people from getting ripped off by auto mechanics and taken for the “proverbial ride”.


CarFix offers people fixed prices for their auto repairs, via a prearranged hourly price which the platform has already negotiated with the repair shops in their network, which prevents people from overpaying for services.


Don’t get ripped off next time you need a quick oil change or you got a flat tire, check out the prices of CarFix first to make sure your local garage is not scamming you!

Blockchain has the ability to provide millennials with a feeling of security and trust in many areas that can be stress inducing, from financial matters and student loans, to car trouble and the latest viral news storm.


Giving consumers the power over their own data, with a platform that enhances trust and respect between consumers and business, puts millennials on the correct path towards financial prosperity.


Blockchain is here to stay, and with more and more millennials entering the workforce daily, they will inevitably be the ones that benefit from this exciting technology the most.

Visit our site Voyager – imvoyager.com

Discover more on Huffpost here: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/millennials-taste-the-forbidden-fruit-of-blockchain_us_59f2ea16...