The second edition of the largest Bitcoin conference in Europe has just ended in Prague.
From June 13 to 15, the second edition of BTC Prague took place in Prague, Europe’s largest conference primarily dedicated to Bitcoin.
Among the most well-known speakers were Michael Saylor, Adam Back, Jack Mallers, Giacomo Zucco, and Jimmy Song.
One of the first speakers was Michael Saylor, Executive Chairman of MicroStrategy, who presented his personal “21 Rules of Bitcoin”.
Following Saylor’s presentation, there was an announcement of a new hardware wallet by Trezor. The device is called Trezor Safe 5 and will be available in both a Bitcoin-only version and a multicoin version.
The main features of the Trezor Safe 5 are:
- Suitable for daily use
- Touchscreen
- Secure Element EAL 6+
- Open source
- USB-C connection
- Micro SD slot
The price is $169 and the first shipments will start between July and August 2024.
Subsequently, the panel “Self custody is (not) for everyone” with participants Lunaticoin, Kevin Loaec, Charles Guillemet, Štěpán Uherík, and Barbara Schlyter, offered an overview of all the possible solutions currently available for self-custody. They compared the purchase of bitcoin through ETFs and through solutions more oriented towards individual independence. According to the opinion of the main panel participants, buying bitcoin through an ETF is equivalent to not owning bitcoin at all.
Also on the main stage, the panel “Bitcoin education on all fronts” was held, dedicated to education about Bitcoin. Giacomo Zucco, director of PlanB Network, provided an overview of the various methods for promoting Bitcoin education. In particular, he emphasized the difference between learning online autonomously and engaging in educational experiences in contact with the most important personalities in the industry.
In the afternoon, there was an announcement by Dirk Röder, head of infrastructure and Web3 solutions at T-Mobile Deutsche Telekom, who declared that he is in the process of spreading Bitcoin within the company. He stated that the company already manages some Bitcoin & Lightning Network nodes and soon intends to enter the mining sector.
The second day of the conference opened with Giacomo Zucco’s speech, in which he drew parallels between the period of the Blocksize War and the recent spam attack attempts by the Taproot Wizards movement.
After Zucco’s keynote, it was Jack Mallers’ turn, who explained why Bitcoin is the only serious and honest project within the cryptocurrency world. He focused on the value of Proof of Work, explaining how this is the only consensus algorithm capable of transforming real-world value (electrical energy) into absolute digital scarcity.
There was also space for Bitcoin in practice. During the keynote “UTXO management, Lightning, Liquid & more“, Ben Perrin, host of the BTC Session YouTube channel, offered a comprehensive overview of the most suitable wallet solutions to use during periods of high onchain fees.
BTC Prague 2024 saw the participation of about 7,500 attendees. The space dedicated to the stands of companies in the sector is the distinctive feature of the conference. Compared to last year, the number of mining companies present has increased. At BTC Prague 2024, a large percentage of the stands was dedicated to mining companies, both European and American.
