The Future Is Green with Eric Benz

My guest today is my good friend Eric Benz, serial entrepreneur, advisor, and thought leader. Eric has over 15 years of experience working in and around innovative financial technology. He has delivered SaaS systems for some of today’s biggest institutions around payments, identity, and banking and blockchain. Eric is currently a partner in MYNT.vc and has been in the Blockchain space since 2012 participating in a number of blockchain and fintech businesses as an investor, board director and founder. These businesses include GoCoin, Uphold, Cryptopay, Changelly and Bitcoin.com Exchange. Eric is also currently a contributor at Cannadao. Cannadao is a decentralized, member-governed platform for cannabis growing and operations. Governance is managed on the NEAR blockchain with a cross-chain bridge to other decentralized communities Eric was the CEO of Changelly, which has been operating since 2015. Changelly is considered to be the most reputable and efficient non-custodial instant cryptocurrency exchange service on the market with over 140 digital assets available to swap. Eric also serves on many boards and acts as an advisor to many of today’s most prominent blockchain and fintech related businesses. We discuss a variety of different topics in the interview including DAOs, the future of the crypto space, the Near protocol, Cannadao, the marijuana industry, and much more. We begin our conversation by discussing the cannabis industry. Eric begins by breaking down how the cannabis industry has evolved over time and the stigma it has developed. Eric details the various government propaganda that has negatively labeled the cannabis industry and how things are beginning to change. Our conversation transitions to discuss Cannadao and the future of the cannabis industry. Eric discusses how Cannadao is allowing anyone interested to become involved in the cannabis industry. Eric also details how the cannabis industry and the crypto industry mirror each other when it comes to evolution, adoption, and regulatory scrutiny. Ou