{"id":18160,"date":"2025-05-29T23:55:04","date_gmt":"2025-05-29T23:55:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstriumphs.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/29\/experts-canada-at-crypto-crossroads-as-opportunity-meets-adoption-challenges\/"},"modified":"2025-05-29T23:55:04","modified_gmt":"2025-05-29T23:55:04","slug":"experts-canada-at-crypto-crossroads-as-opportunity-meets-adoption-challenges","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstriumphs.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/29\/experts-canada-at-crypto-crossroads-as-opportunity-meets-adoption-challenges\/","title":{"rendered":"Experts: Canada at Crypto Crossroads as Opportunity Meets Adoption Challenges"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n

One of the most anticipated panels at this year\u2019s Consensus event, held during the Toronto-based Canada Crypto Week, shifted the focus from traditional crypto hubs like New York and Silicon Valley to Toronto. <\/strong><\/p>\n

Moderated by Alex Tapscott, founder of the Blockchain Research Institute, the panel explored how Canada can regain leadership in crypto and featured expert insights from Jelena Djuric, CEO of Noble; Jean Amiouny, CEO at Shakepay; and Lucas Matheson, CEO of Coinbase Canada and a prominent Canadian crypto advocate.<\/p>\n

\n

Crypto moment for Canada? <\/h3>\n

\u201cWhen you think of the opportunity for Canadians to embrace digital assets, 80 percent of wealth in Canada is managed by professional money managers and investment advisors,\u2019 he explained.<\/p>\n

\u2018If we want to create economic growth in Canada, I think crypto assets and digital assets can help drive more efficiencies for Canadians in everyday payments, from lowering costs for banking fees, increasing revenue from businesses that are accepting cryptocurrencies or stablecoins as payments and minimizing fees within the system,\u201d he continued, adding that digital assets and blockchain technology can create cost savings for businesses and governments alike. <\/p>\n

\u201cUltimately, I think Canadians want to see our government spend less, and to do that, we need technology \u2026 like artificial intelligence (AI) and crypto, to help us stay competitive with the rest of the world.\u201d <\/p>\n

However, regulatory hurdles must be overcome before true mainstream adoption can take hold. Consensus panelists identified Canada\u2019s regulatory environment as a key element that is creating delays. <\/p>\n

\u201cI know that (in) Canada, if we have the will, we could make it happen,\u201d Djuric told the audience. \u201cBut for some reason, we\u2019ve been very slow. And in fact, we\u2019re treating these assets as securities.\u201d <\/p>\n

While regulation remains a sticking point, the panelists also pointed to deeper structural issues. <\/p>\n

\u201cI also think there\u2019s just a significant gap in the quality of financial infrastructure that we have here in Canada, and a huge opportunity for us to leverage technology like crypto to actually provide more efficient mechanisms for Canadians to move money around, but also to store, preserve and invest their wealth,\u2019 noted Djuric. <\/p>\n

A generational shift is also fueling adoption from the bottom up. <\/p>\n

Djuric noted that while many Gen Zs are engaging with cryptocurrency platforms, far fewer understand traditional credit, a sign that young users are entering finance through digital assets first.<\/p>\n

Stablecoins in particular can serve as a foundational component of that shift by improving settlement times, lowering costs and supporting entirely new financial use cases. While stablecoins have exploded in popularity in the US, adoption rates for a Canadian dollar-backed stablecoin have been slower.<\/p>\n

Leading up to the event, Matheson announced a C$2.5 million deal between Coinbase\u2019s venture capital arm, Coinbase Ventures, and Stablecorp, the issuer of QCAD, which is backed by the Canadian dollar. The partnership\u2019s goal is to enhance features and structure to grow QCAD and further integrate it into the global digital asset ecosystem.<\/p>\n

Looking at the broader regulatory landscape for digital assets, Matheson pointed to yield-bearing stablecoins and access to instruments like derivatives and perpetual futures as key components of a competitive ecosystem. <\/p>\n

\u201cMillions around the world are earning 4 to 4.5 percent on USDC today \u2014 Canadians aren\u2019t allowed to,\u201d the expert noted, emphasizing that tools like leverage and futures aren\u2019t just speculative products, but are essential for portfolio diversification and modern risk management. \u201cAnd so the opportunity for us is to really think about how to introduce these products safely and compliantly here in Canada.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Canada\u2019s energy advantage <\/h3>\n

Despite growing interest, Bitcoin adoption in Canada remains limited. Panelists noted that Canadians still can\u2019t hold Bitcoin in registered accounts, and major financial institutions offer little direct support. <\/p>\n

The regulatory gap, combined with a lack of retail incentives, has kept mainstream adoption rates depressed.<\/p>\n

As the US continues to back its crypto sector, speakers at Consensus emphasized that Canada must find its own voice and actively promote the innovations and companies shaping its digital future. <\/p>\n

\u201cHash rate, which is produced from data centers for AI and mining, could be one of the future large commodities in the world,\u201d he said, citing a projected C$100 billion in potential investment in the province. <\/p>\n

\u201cCanada has a really unique advantage and an opportunity to build a thriving ecosystem of data centers (here) \u2026 we can use our clean energy in Canada to power crypto around the world,\u2019 he said. <\/p>\n

\u201c(Alberta Premier Danielle Smith\u2019s staff) are some of the most educated \u2026 in the government that I\u2019ve had the privilege of meeting with, because they understand the opportunity for their province to capitalize on the opportunity they have to monetize energy in the province,\u2019 Matheson noted.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s just an incredible opportunity that\u2019s timely, and Canada needs economic drivers right now to build our economy. And I think it\u2019s a great opportunity for Alberta and other provinces to explore accelerating the regulatory red tape to get permits and energy and land to build data centers that can power global demand.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Investor takeaway <\/h3>\n

Matheson\u2019s optimism was shared with the other panelists, who believe Canada has both the potential and the necessary resources to become a leader in the digital asset space. Separately, Matheson said he is excited to work with Prime Minister Mark Carney\u2019s cabinet, citing his deep knowledge of monetary and fiscal policy.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe expect that his team will have the opportunity to learn about what governments all over the world are doing to embrace this technology and to define strategic priorities at the federal level,\u2019 he said. <\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cI think now\u2019s a great time for our new government and a new mandate to embrace technology to drive economic growth in Canada, and we expect crypto to be a part of that plan.\u201d<\/p>\n

With the right framework and utilization of its unique resources, industry members agree that Canada is poised to significantly bolster its economy through cryptocurrency and digital assets.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Securities Disclosure: I, Meagen Seatter, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article<\/strong>.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p>\n

This post appeared first on investingnews.com<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

One of the most anticipated panels at this year\u2019s Consensus event, held during the Toronto-based Canada Crypto Week, shifted the focus from traditional crypto hubs like New York and Silicon Valley to Toronto. Moderated by Alex Tapscott, founder of the Blockchain Research Institute, the panel explored how Canada can regain leadership in crypto and featured […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":18161,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18160","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-investing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstriumphs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18160","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstriumphs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstriumphs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstriumphs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18160"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/businesstriumphs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18160\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstriumphs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18161"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstriumphs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18160"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstriumphs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18160"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstriumphs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18160"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}