Starbucks Chairman Is Hot on Blockchain, Cold on Bitcoin
Starbucks Chairman Howard Shultz said the coffee chain plans to incorporate blockchain technology and digital currencies into its long-term payment technology strategy, and hopes to “expand digital customer relationships.”
Shultz does not, however, believe that bitcoin will play a role in this strategy, remarking that he didn’t believe the original cryptocurrency would “be a currency today or in the future.”
He clarified that Starbucks is not developing a digital currency or announcing an investment in blockchain or cryptocurrencies, but would like to use its stature to lend credibility to these technologies.
Shultz made the remarks in the company’s quarterly investor call, which were subsequently reported by
According to the report, he said:
“I believe that we are heading into a new age, in which blockchain technology is going to provide a significant level of a digital currency that is going to have a consumer application.”
Starbucks, he added, is uniquely positioned to take advantage of the changes.
“We think we have something to offer the companies that are chasing this, because we are in a position to create the trusted legitimate place in which this could be accepted and possibly take advantage of the mobile payment digital platform that we have created.”
The platform Shultz referred to is Starbucks’ mobile payment app, launched in 2015, which enables customers to pay and order in-app, while accruing rewards.
Mobile payments constitute nearly one third of Starbucks’ U.S. transactions, and as a result, Shultz said Starbucks is considering implementing cashless stores in the U.S.
Starbucks has a history of embracing leading-edge payment solutions. It adopted as the exclusive processor of all of its debit and credit card transactions in the autumn of 2012, though the relationship later .
image via Shutterstock
The leader in blockchain news, CoinDesk is an independent media outlet that strives for the highest journalistic standards and abides by a . Have breaking news or a story tip to send to our journalists? Contact us at news@coindesk.com.
‘bitcoin Day’ Celebrated in Argentina Where Wine Coins are Mulled Argentina, a country that suffers from chronic inflation at 25%, is a natural market for bitcoin to blossom. A number of enthusiasts have thrown the […]
THE FIRST DECENTRALIZED LEAD GENERATION PLATFORM | SNOVIO ICO Check out Snovio: http://bit.ly/2gXu1Qr Join the secret FB crypto group: http://bit.ly/2GabLBd Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/hackdroidcrypto Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/stvmcg/
, an Ethereum production studio based in Brooklyn, NY, is launching a $50 million venture arm, and it has picked Kavita Gupta to run it. Gupta’s job will be to oversee the new venture and help structure deals with the startups.
It is not uncommon for companies with investment capital to form their own investment arm. For the most part, the goal is to fund startups that could drive value for the parent company down the line. And, as a strategic investor, ConsenSys Ventures will be actively involved in developing startups from an early stage.
bitcoin Magazine spoke with Gupta on the phone earlier this week. She was in New York getting ready to dash off to San Francisco. ConsenSys has offices in Brooklyn and in San Francisco, and Gupta will be splitting her time between both of those offices.
She explained she will be working closely with Joseph Lubin, the founder of ConsenSys and one of the early founders of Ethereum. And, she added, naturally, ConsenSys Ventures will be looking to invest in Ethereum-based startups.
“We are looking at companies already, and we are going to deploy this as soon as we get green signals from a lawyer on the structure. Everything else is place,” said Gupta, who will be talking more about the fund at on Monday.
When asked about the overall goals of the venture, she responded, “I think, to Joe, being one of the co-founders of Ethereum, what really matters is how to basically accelerate this revolution. He wants the smartest entrepreneurs to create applications on it, to use it and start ingraining that work into our ecosystem to create companies.”
To that end, ConsenSys Ventures will be looking to invest in pre-seed, seed, and equity stage companies, she explained, adding that the fund will also be investing in pre-token sales, if the entrepreneurs decide to go the initial coin offering (ICOs) route.
Gupta described her role as overseeing the entire process while also being deeply involved with structuring deals. “Like any managing partner, I will be basically doing due diligence, looking at the companies, and structuring the deal. And, at the same time, making sure all the fiduciary duties are done,” she said. “With respect to making the decisions, it is going to be me and Joe working very closely.”
She indicated, finding good startups to invest in would not be an issue. “Once you are in ConsenSys, which is pretty much the center of the blockchain space, you don’t really have to go out looking for great companies,” she said, adding that the team was currently “looking deeply” at four to five startups, but nothing had been finalized yet.
She said she will leave the decision as to whether or not a startup should launch an ICO, up to the entrepreneurs themselves. “We help them create a business. We help them create an idea. I don’t think we are really pushing or saying that every company has to go for token sales. It makes sense for some companies, and for others, it doesn’t make sense. We want to support the entrepreneurs in whatever they do.”
Strategic funding is different than straight venture capital funding, she emphasized. “We want to believe that it is different than the traditional investment because it is sort of like a VC hedge fund. All of the companies are coming to you at a very early stage, and we want to be involved in shaping the company, with respect to business, operations, hiring, and how they are going to make money.”
As part of that, the ConsenSys Ventures will offer a range of support. “We also work as a strategic investor, helping you out both with respect to the technology solutions, because we have access to the ConsenSys ecosystem, and also to deliver the company, because a lot of people forget they have to deliver the company after that.”
She also pointed out that ConsenSys Ventures was part of a natural evolution. Two years ago, ConsenSys launched as a way to build out ideas on top of the Ethereum network. Earlier this year, ConsenSys launched ConsenSys Academy to start training engineers in how to do that work on their own. Now, ConsenSys Ventures is sort of a middle ground, offering support, but still letting entrepreneurs do their own thing.
“Now across the world, entrepreneurs are capable of building and designing — coding their own systems on Ethereum. They don’t necessarily need ConsenSys 100 percent, so how do we collaborate with them? I think Consensys Ventures is the best way to do it.”
A native of India, Gupta is a 2015 recipient of the U.N. Social Finance Innovator Award. In addition to working at the World Bank, where she headed the organization’s youth innovation fund, she has more than 10 years of experience in impact investment across a variety of companies, including McKinsey, HSBC and
She has worked in the U.S., the Middle East, South Asia and Africa. She most recently led mission investing for the family foundation of executive.
