During the inaugural day of Token2049 event in Dubai, a powerful chat between Raoul Pal and former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) ensued where the two discussed how blockchain is quickly expanding beyond just finance.
In a fiery discussion with CZ, Raoul kicked things off with a strong prediction:
“Everything that can be digitized will get digitized.”
CZ agreed, saying that while crypto started with trading, it’s now moving toward real-world uses that can make a real difference. “The crypto industry… they’re all chasing short-term gains,” CZ remarked, adding that his focus has shifted to helping early-stage builders: “I like to see products built that a lot of people use.”
He pointed out that while Europe is mostly absent in this movement, Montenegro stands out as an exception. “We have an active dialogue with the Prime Minister there,” CZ shared, calling him “a very forward-thinking person.”
When asked about the future beyond DeFi, CZ noted several promising trends. He emphasized the rise of RWA (real-world assets) tokenization and hinted at major potential in non-financial blockchain applications, especially at the government level. “Land title rights, decentralized IDs… these are just pure blockchains for efficiency and transparency,” he explained.
CZ spoke about the untapped potential of blockchain in non-financial areas, especially in solving real-world inefficiencies. He pointed out how even in developed countries like Japan, land ownership is still tracked using outdated systems like paper documents with scratch-off codes. “If you lose that piece of paper, it’s actually quite difficult to replace,” he said.
He added that in places like Africa and even parts of the U.S., land records are poorly maintained or not digitized at all. To help address this, CZ revealed a recent investment in a company called Sign, which is building decentralized digital IDs and Layer 1 infrastructure for governments.
Interestingly, CZ revealed investments in projects tackling these very issues, such as Sign, a platform building decentralized identity infrastructure for governments.
Despite the noise in the space, CZ remains committed to supporting visionary founders. “We gotta help those founders be more vocal, more active… help them raise money and design proper long-term token economics.”
As Raoul put it best, the world is moving toward a digital future, and blockchain may just be the invisible engine behind it.
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