The crypto wallet Code, backed by the same team that created the Kik messaging app, launched its Solana-based application. This minimalist payment app pivots around the cryptocurrency KIN, initially an Ethereum token, but now a Solana tenant. It was birthed by the Code’s CEO and former CEO of Kik, Ted Livingston, to monetize the Kik platform.
Livingston’s KIN raised an impressive $100 million during a 2017 initial coin offering. After being struck by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission hammer, KIN got labeled as a security, leading to a $5 million fine to Kik Interactive Inc.
The remnants of the regulatory friction appear not to bother Livingston who perceives the past as an advantage. He insists that KIN is the sole Solana token without inflation that has weaved its way through the SEC’s challenges, signifying it has been green-lit for U.S trading. Given comparable virtual currencies still await regulatory clearance, he argues KIN offers better potentials for adoption as a legitimate payment method.
His wallet, Code, aspires to be for crypto what the iPhone moment was for smartphones, offering instant crypto transfers via QR code scanning, advocating the concept of ‘digital paper cash’ – swift transactions which possess finality, like handing over a dollar to someone else.
Code ensures transactions proceed even in the event of network outages by building a layer 2 above Solana. However, Code’s ultimate triumph hinges on the adoption of the highly volatile KIN as a mode of payment – something undoubtedly risky given the recent 82% price jump in the past month and susceptible to significant price changes with small trading moves.
Livingston, however, discards volatility as a barrier to adoption. He suggests eliminating other challenges while leaving volatility intact may just work. He further indicates potential in incorporating additional assets like stablecoins into Code.
Reflecting on KIN’s somehow convoluted history, initially made by Kik Interactive in 2017 to monetize their messaging platform, relocating from Ethereum to Stellar, then to a Stellar fork, and finally to Solana where it stands now. The token’s journey has been no cakewalk, from battling SEC issues, dealing with leadership disputes within the Kin Foundation, to splitting it into two separate currencies.
Livingston proposed that the KIN community vote to dissolve the Kin Foundation, removing the remaining reserves. He says KIN’s lack of inflation and centralization solidifies its placement.
Source: Coindesk
