Crypto on the Gold Coast...

While I'm sure you were thinking the Gold Coast in Australia, this blog is about the Gold Coast in Connecticut, most notable for its collection of waterfront properties located along the shore. Greenwich is situated about 30 miles from Manhattan, and home to not only two of the wealthiest zip codes in Connecticut, (06830 and 06831), but also median household incomes in the Country. The town is popular with celebrities and Wall Street execs, some who live there, and others that frequent its many high end restaurants.

Listed at $6,495,000, the Levi Ireland house which is a designated Greenwich Landmark, is a 5 bedroom, 3 and 1/2 bath property that sits on 4.3 acres of land. According to the listing notes, the house features, "including Lutron lighting & motorized shades, Porsche pinhole recessed lights & Swarovski fixtures, custom Missoni & Stark carpeting plus new windows, glass bead pool, custom stone terracing, property-wide WiFi & generator as well as HVAC with infrared air purification."

Perhaps the most interesting thing about the compound (minus a seller willing to accept crypto), is the self-described "party barn". The room is unfinished, but wired for power, and could also serve as a horse stable.

Listing agent Kevin Sneddon of Compass told CNBC that the seller is not only willing to take payment in either Bitcoin or Ethereum, but also fully intends to hold it that way. She is also an active day trader, Sneddon said. During the pandemic, her family retreated from NYC to this house, and since she needed to have the ability to buy and sell crypto when needed, the house is also fully covered with high-speed Internet.

While we can consider this a win for the crypto world should a buyer offer and close with BTC or ETH, what else is Connecticut up to in the world of cryptocurrency?

Symbridge is a new company also based in Greenwich, describing itself as, "the first U.S.-based, licensed, industrial grade, digital asset exchange built exclusively for hedge funds, market makers, asset managers, corporations, and active traders". The platform allows people to buy and sell digital assets, such as Bitcoin as well as tokens. “Cryptocurrency is the beginning of it, when you look at ‘tokenizing’ different types of assets that can all trade on digital exchanges. That’s the really exciting part", Michael McGuire, CEO, told Greenwich Time. McGuire is also a lecturer at Columbia University.

Rather than basing his companies overseas to potentially deal with less regulatory oversight, McGuire specifically chose to base his company in the United States because of the perhaps overregulation (depending on who you ask). With cryptocurrencies still being debated in terms of where regulation is heading, McGuire is certainly not wrong that the US government will likely take a heavier handed approach when it comes to crypto, since we already know how Janet Yellen feels, while his own State has been determining crypto as an industry and how to best regulate the space.

We will be keeping a close watch on this transaction at 241 Bedford Road. Though it won't be the first time a house in the State sold for crypto, it could be the first time the seller doesn't ask for it to be converted to cash. This would not only be a huge win for the industry, but especially for the State of Connecticut.