What follows is my one-on-one meeting with Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, we talked about his plans for Miami amid technological innovation, how he adopts Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies, climate change, etc. innovation in Miami and has recently welcomed leaders and innovators in the cryptography industry.
Leeor Shimron:
Mayor Suarez, I’m very happy to meet you.
Mayor Francis Suarez:
Nice to meet you too.
Leeor Shimron:
Come on, you’ve been very public with your statements about making Miami a generation in the middle and the city inviting skill and innovators. What express measures and policies have you taken to inspire this?
Mayor Francis Suarez:
Well, it’s a 10-year hobby project. I had a moment of J-curve when I tweeted, “How can I help?”And since then, it’s like drinking water with a fireplace hose. Even today, we announced a $100 million venture capital fund with SoftBank, which will be allocated to Miami corporations and corporations moving to Miami. more and more budgets are coming here.
We look at paintings on a variety of other things. We work to make sure that our incentives are in place and that our law promotes cryptography and blockchain and has a vision for the future. We need to make sure we create as many paintings of fair frames as we can imagine. from a school perspective. We need it to be a holistic and comprehensive business so that each and every citizen of our city has the opportunity to succeed and thrive in the economy that will inevitably take a position in the future.
Leeor Shimron:
And so, you just announced with SoftBank that they’re going to spend $100 million on startups and generation corporations to move to the city, can you communicate a little more about that?
Mayor Francis Suarez:
Marcelo Claure, CEO of SoftBank Group International, is founded in Miami, saw what he was doing and sought to be a component of it, so that an ecosystem thrives, wants skill, what we have, and we’ve been exporting skill. for many decades, however, it also wants capital. And so, it was the first type of primary investment from someone who said, “Hey, we spent a lot of cash to boost and expand the businesses that are here in the city of Miami. “There’s never been an ad like this before.
Leeor Shimron:
Let’s get a little bit out of COVID, which in my brain is the big accelerator, has accelerated trends that are already on the move, especially around technology, how do you think the pandemic and the resulting kind of remote economy have led to technological changes and adjustments in How did that help Miami in the process?
Mayor Francis Suarez:
Well, it helped Miami. Es sad, obviously, that a tragedy like this is something useful and a catalyst in your city. But it’s been a mix of things. I think the first is the fact that he created this remote painting environment where other people can paint where they want to live and where they want to be, not necessarily where they want to be, and that created that environment. I think the component of the moment is that Miami and Florida were much less restrictive than other parts of the country, so when you look at the time and burden of living in other cities and places, you get to a breaking point. The camel’s back. And I think we’ve reached that point with other peoples and other people who are sixth-generation, generation-of-the-clock, and seventh-generation inhabitants. And I think that’s the biggest indication that a city has a problem.
Leeor Shimron:
Today’s citizens of the city would possibly be involved in gentrification as other richer people in the west and northeast move here. How can participants gain advantages from the transformation of the city?
Mayor Francis Suarez:
Well, I think gentrification is real, it’s anything every town is suffering because there’s a Renaissance in town, it’s not a Miami problem, it’s a national problem, and I think we’re focusing on making an investment in affordable housing today at the city commission. We’ve allocated $40 million to affordable housing allocations. We’re building our first $10 million affordable housing allowances in the last two years. It had a multiplier effect of 20 to one. So we got $200 million with an allocation of $10 million and created 722 affordable housing units.
So we were very intentional in creating homes. We are now entering the educational area and want to make sure that each and every child has the broadband and virtual equipment they want to succeed in this fashion economy. We also make sure the systems reflect tomorrow’s work. That’s what I think will create maximum parity and fairness in terms of opportunities for others in our community.
Leeor Shimron:
Now let’s talk about Bitcoin and crypto. You have publicly stated that the city deserves to add Bitcoin to its cash At what point is it so close to the truth and what steps do they deserve to take to achieve it?
Mayor Francis Suarez:
There are 3 things I need to do with Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in general: the first is that I should give my workers the opportunity to take a percentage of their salary in Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies; second, I need our citizens to have the opportunity to make tax and cryptopayment payments. And the third thing is to come with Bitcoin in the city’s investment portfolio. The last goal is probably the maximum misleading of the 3, not for anything other than the fact that we have regulations that we have to stick to our investment threshold, so I have to investigate that and that’s on my agenda.
We recently published Satoshi’s white paper on our municipal online page and it went absolutely viral. The white paper received 2. 3 million impressions, which is simply amazing. Within the technology, there is a subgroup of other people who are pro crypto and pro blockchain. a very, very physically powerful network and they are amazing. I mean, for me, it’s been exciting to be at the forefront of this innovation as a city and expect it to continue to make our city a concert leader. economy And I think that’s what’s going to happen.
Leeor Shimron:
In the cryptography industry, we have a concept that you know, called regulatory arbitration, in which certain geographic spaces or jurisdictions that are more pro-industry capture all the skill and percentage of spirit. Is this the game you play to attract skill?Miami?
Mayor Francis Suarez:
100%. We do this because we look at states like Wyoming and make sure we have the maximum progressive cryptographic laws. We need to make sure that if all things are the same, we win. So we just have to point to the field of play. We need to make sure that no one has merit on us based on easily modifiable laws.
Leeor Shimron:
Are you in a verbal exchange with Caitlin Long in Wyoming?Clearly, they have been very competitive in fostering innovation with value legislation and by providing a refuge to inspire companies to move. Is that within your jurisdiction right now?
Mayor Francis Suarez:
Absolutely, I think they’ve been, for your credit, incredibly proactive. Look, if I lived in Wyoming and I say it with respect, you have to be artistic to attract people. And congratulations. I congratulate you for being intelligent, for getting out of the beaten track, for getting ahead of everyone else, now it’s simple for me, and I say it with all due respect, to go after them and necessarily copy what they’re doing. They say imitation is the highest form of flattery, right?So, for me, it’s not a matter of writer’s pride, I just need to be on an equal footing with everyone and, unfortunately, it’s a competitive environment. But I respect what they do, I give them all the respect they deserve and congratulations on their release and their pioneering role.
Leeor Shimron:
Do you see that more as a festival in the United States and other cities in the United States, or around the world with other countries as well?
Mayor Francis Suarez:
It’s global. All the peoples of America and the world deserve to visit to expand their technological ecosystem, point, especially if they care about their young people and grandchildren. I think one of the reasons we are aware of technological innovation is that we were actually the first generation of technology. We’re the first generation with a private computer. We are the first generation with high-speed Internet. By the way, I still have an AOL account, my email is AOL. So we were the first generation with that. Our young people grow up with those tools. My iPhone probably has more computing force than the first manned spacecraft ever sent to the moon. Anyone who does not perceive and does not settle for what is coming will be to the detriment of him and to the detriment of his young people.
Leeor Shimron:
Have you talked a lot on Twitter and social media How has adopting new ones helped you get your message across?
Mayor Francis Suarez:
People ask me where Miami Sand Hill Road is, and I tell them it’s Twitter, people have converged, it’s an assembly position and that inspires them to be able to lead much of the conversation and the number of other people. who came to see me and thanked me from all walks of life was indeed inspiring. In fact, it gives me a sense of satisfaction. It makes me feel like I made the right decision by dedicating my life to public service, so it was a lot of fun for me.
Leeor Shimron:
You talked about the weather in Miami and how wonderful the movement is here, but clearly we have disorders with climate change, and I think other people are worried about things like the emerging degrees of the sea and the worsening of hurricane season. deal with those problems?
Mayor Francis Suarez:
Well, I think this is largely perceptive. For example, many others don’t know that New York has suffered more hurricane damage than Miami in the last 10 years. So that’s part of it. I think the other facet is that we’re probably the windiesnest city on the planet, this construction was built in the 1950s, all the constructions lately in Miami have hurricane windows, so we’re very wind resistant.
Our next challenge is to be as water resistant as they are to the wind. We’ve done something that probably no us-american people have ever done. But it’s not the first time He has made, that is, that we have made the decision to impose ourselves and create a guarantee of resilience of $200 million. We’ll spend this methodically on our infrastructure, leverage it with other state and federal resources, and create a Miami that will be there forever.
There is no city in the United States, potentially no city in the world that devotes as many resources as we do, so I applied to be the chairman of the Environment Committee of the United States Conference of Mayors and why I named to be on the Global Adaptation Commission. Lately I’ve been a member of the World Council as Vice President, We’ve gained a lot of prestige as a government because we’ve acted. We’re releasing our carbon trading plan on Earth Day this year. We are also unveiling our stormwater master plan, which will also take into account the rise of the sea point this year and serve as a style for the structure of our Miami Forever Bond.
Leeor Shimron:
Thank you for your time and luck on your mission.
Mayor Francis Suarez:
Thank you so much. I’m grateful for that.
Bitcoin, crypto and blockchain, new business models and global coordination creation. In my writings, I explore how virtual assets allow new instances of use and their
Bitcoin, crypto and blockchain, new business models and global coordination construction. In my writings, I explore how virtual assets allow for new instances of use and their second-rate effects on economics, finance, and politics. I am Vice President of Digital Asset Strategy at Fundstrat Global Advisors. I was also founder and CEO of NovaBlock Capital, a leading investment and generation firm company focused on virtual asset adoption. I attended the University of Pennsylvania and earned a bachelor’s degree in economics in collaboration with Wharton School.