By Jason Nelson
3 min read
It's pretty well known that lots of crypto people have moved into Clubhouse, the hot, audio-based social media platform. The biggest group? Black Bitcoin Billionaires, which claims 17,000 members.
Now Square Inc., via its CashApp, is partnering with the group's organizer, Lamar Wilson, to create more Black millionaires through Bitcoin via “Operation: Satoshi Millionaire.” The month-long campaign began February 4 and focuses on getting Bitcoin into the hands of more Black families, and educating people about Bitcoin.
“CashApp is very easy to use and it fits one of our principles of owning your coins, because unlike PayPal and Robinhood, you can send your bitcoin to your own wallet,” Wilson told Decrypt. He noted that the app has been downloaded 30 million times and makes buying bitcoin as easy as selecting "enable bitcoin" in the app.
"Cash App is a tool that a lot of black Americans use," added Isaiah Jackson, who hosts Black Bitcoin Billionaires, on Clubhouse. "We wanted ease of use, and to partner with a company that puts their money where their mouth is."
Jackson, the author of Bitcoin and Black America, has become a prominent voice in the bitcoin community, bridging the gap between bitcoin and people of color. Indeed, Square’s CEO, Jack Dorsey, is a fan of Jackson’s book and promoted it a year ago on to his 5.2 million followers.
It was Jackson who first reached out to Dorsey to gauge his interest in his Square partnering with the Black Bitcoin Billionaires group. “I talked to Jack personally. Then [Wilson and I] talked to Brian Grassadonia [the co-creator of CashApp],” Jackson said. “Jack and I have talked a few times before so he loved the idea."
Wilson is no stranger to building an online community around cryptocurrency. He founded the Koinda (formerly Wacoinda) Facebook group in January, 2018. The group has more than 25,000 members and launched its own cryptocurrency, the “CJ” named for Madam C.J. Walker, a black entrepreneur who was the first female, self-made millionaire in America.
Wilson hopes that the current project will help advance the goal of exposing the community to crypto assets. "The campaign to help narrow the generational wealth gap is just one step in the right direction, but expect more from Black Bitcoin Billionaires soon," he said in a statement. "Both Zay and I believe this partnership with Cash App will set the tone for other corporate sponsors that want to provide more financial access to those often forgotten."
San Francisco-based Clubhouse has become the go-to place for conversation on social media. Launched last March by Paul Davison and Rohan Seth, the audio-only platform has hosted discussions including Elon Musk, Kanye West, and Mark Zuckerberg.
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