Kim Goulde: ‘I realised how globally impactful Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies can be’

Mum of two and ex-management consultant Kim Goulde recently sat down with Coin Rivet to discuss her journey from once shrugging off Bitcoin to becoming a full-time HODLer.

Kim told Coin Rivet how she first learned about Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies from one of her family friends (who’s a plumber) after he asked her to pay him in Bitcoin in 2012 as “he wouldn’t accept cash for a favour”.

Seven years ago, she noted how there was “literally not much information about Bitcoin aside from occasional news about the currency being abused by underground criminals. My husband and I were sceptical, so we shrugged it off then.”

Fast-forward four years later, and on a trip to Indonesia in 2016 to do some charity work, Kim was reintroduced to Bitcoin when one of the women in the village mentioned how her daughter (who was a domestic helper in Singapore) had been sending them money using cryptocurrency because it provided a better foreign exchange rate.

Goulde said: “Coming back from that trip, I realised how globally impactful Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies can be. I told my husband about it, and we’ve decided to take the plunge and buy some. We’ve been, as the community calls it, ‘HODLing’ since then.”

Going old school with security

On the topic of private key management, she said: “Call me old school, but we managed to get one of those paper wallets set up and keep them that way.

“We spent most of our adult lives in the corporate space, and our expertise isn’t necessarily intertwined with technology, so we prefer to stay out of trading. If we were to do so down the line, we might entrust our money to people who know exactly what they’re doing in terms of investing.”

Kim mentioned that as the world’s population grows, there will be a growing demand for globalisation, and she believes technologies such as cryptocurrencies and blockchain will play a vital role in our developing society.

“Think of a young programmer in a village in India who may not necessarily have access to opportunities in Silicon Valley. They can now develop an app or any valuable product that many people around the world may find beneficial. With the help of the internet and connecting technologies, that young programmer can not only showcase their talents and abilities to the world, but can also help engage others into developing similar.”

‘An essential part of people’s day-to-day lives’

“Just as the internet started with a somehow unstable solution, I see cryptocurrencies developing over time, and they will become an essential part of people’s day-to-day lives,” says Goulde.

She concluded by telling Coin Rivet: “If you think about it, using cryptocurrencies is no longer a far-fetched idea anymore as most people in the UK, Norway, and Sweden are going ‘cashless’. So essentially migrating to cryptocurrency as a payment option is not too far of a future considering the solution offers a decentralised solution.

“This means your high-street bank can no longer easily have full control of your finances or be at their graces (as they please).”