Over the years, Samsung has openly embraced the use of digital currencies. According to Walk-Morris (2022), Samsung recently introduced a new digital wallet, allowing users of its Galaxy phone series to have cryptocurrency wallets and digital keys. The telecommunication giant introduced a tool using blockchain technology to enable its users to monitor their digital currencies. Individuals using Samsung devices across the US, UK, Germany, Italy, and other European nations had the opportunity to update their Samsung mobile applications and passwords before migrating into the newly introduced wallet. The company also announced that its applications would be improved to store critical documents of the users, such as their driving licenses and school IDs. The introduction was meant to bolster the company’s global competition since most tech giants had embraced digital currency wallets, posing a competitive threat to the company (Rozen, 2020). According to the company, the digital wallet had numerous opportunities, such as bringing more convenience to users of the company’s products and creating a safe and secure environment for storing digital keys, currencies, and documents. Other tech giants had retreated from traditional mobile wallets and further entrenched themselves in the digital space. What opportunities, curiosity, and problems will digital wallets bring to Samsung and its users? This paper conducts a Causal Layered Analysis into how digital wallets might be directed to generate innovative and contextualized strategies in money transfer.
Litany
Over the past decades, tech organizations, including Samsung, have questioned the effectiveness and suitability of digital money to execute faster and more secure transactions. The central questions about digital currencies involve the definition of digital money, the different types of currency, the key advantages and limitations of using digital currencies, and the problems the currency solves. Most organizations have wondered how people might react to their introduction of digital currencies. People have been wondering what they can buy using digital currencies such as cryptocurrency, the safety of holding the currency and using it as a safe and faster transfer method, and the regulations governing Bitcoin (Ibrahim et al., 2023). They also strive to understand how big banks, such as central banks, regard digital currencies and whether they are likely to embrace such currencies as traditional currencies. Tech companies have been analyzing the litany surrounding the use of digital currencies and their effectiveness in solving the challenges associated with money transfers. Samsung has equally analyzed the emerging questions before finally embracing digital currencies. Increased use of digital currencies to facilitate transactions made Samsung further its commitment by striking a deal with Gemini, an organization specializing in digital currency exchange. The company launched a blockchain wallet integrating the Gemini app to allow users to enjoy buying, selling, and exchanging digital currencies.
According to a publication of Forbes issued by David Roddick, digital currencies are considered the future of money. Several organizations, including Samsung, have already embraced digital currencies, while others are testing their effectiveness. Organizations like Apple were also keenly evaluating the possibility of introducing the digital wallet in their devices. Central banks and other financial regulatory systems work on projects using blockchain and other digital currencies for regional payment between nations. When countries such as the US officially adopt digital currencies, they will use them as alternatives to cash and use them as a quicker method of transferring money as it is electronic (Roddick, 2023). People can easily use them via smartphones, chip-based cards, and web accounts. Transactions executed using digital currencies are faster and cheaper even in international transfers, can be accessed at any hour, and are more efficient. The introduction of the Samsung digital wallet implies that the company is diving deeper into digital currencies to enable its users to access digital assets on the platform. However, most individuals and organizations have yet to understand the opportunities and challenges of digital technology (Yayman, 2021). Security issues, legality, and taxation of digital currencies remain the key questions yet to be answered.
Social causes
The cryptocurrency was first introduced in 2009 by top-notch computer programmers using the pseudo name Satoshi Nakamoto. The true identity of the Bitcoin founders has never been revealed, even up to date. The founders said that blockchain would be the technology behind the cryptocurrency market and that all transactions would be replicated and distributed across computer systems. A computer system would execute trades on the blockchain, with all transactions forming an unbroken link on the chain. Individuals wishing to engage in digital currency transactions must create a digital wallet, and mining could be used to create a block. The key aim of creating cryptocurrency was to avoid the overreliance on banks, intermediaries, and governments when executing transactions (Paumgarten, 2018). Having digital currencies would help individuals execute transactions with whomever they wish and at any time without any restriction.
The first crypto emerged when the world was experiencing a financial crisis. Nakamoto released a peer-to-peer electronic cash system using blockchain technology to run other digital currencies. The Bitcoin domain was registered online, and the first block was mined. The primary motivation for developing cryptocurrencies was the three consecutive financial crises experienced at the start of the twenty-first century (Mantymaki et al., 2020). The emergence of the dot com bubble, the collapse of the real estate market, and the banking crisis triggered the need for digital currencies. People could no longer trust traditional national currencies and based all their hopes on digital currencies. People wanted the right to decide their finances; therefore, digital currencies provided a solution to their needs. Equally, they needed currencies that could be used globally, methods that could facilitate seconds within a short while, a system that was independent of the state institutions, and a system that was not subject to inflation and falsification.
Worldviews
Individuals hold diverse worldviews about digital currencies. For instance, some view it as an offering that protects against inflation. They believe that since the supply of money is more than that of digital currencies, the price of digital currencies will ultimately increase, thus addressing the issues associated with inflation. There are limited bitcoins; increasing demand will trigger a price rise. Equally, they regard digital currencies as ones with high transactional speed. Digital transactions are executed within minutes, and therefore people find it appealing. Low transaction costs are associated with executing such transfers, and therefore most individuals no longer need to engage third parties such as VISA to confirm the success of their transactions (Tambe & Jain, 2023). Decentralization, diversity, and accessibility of digital currencies make more people embrace them. However, the greatest puzzle yet to be solved lies in the safety and security of such digital currencies. Whereas individuals believe it is hard to access someone else’s funds without a private key, others believe that blockchain technology is prone to hacking and, therefore, its safety and security can be compromised. Samsung has the opportunity to address the safety and security challenges in its digital wallets to assure investors of their security, failure to which the security issues will still be a significant challenge.
Equally, other individuals have been associating digital currencies with issues such as the lack of sufficient and comprehensive regulations to ensure that the currencies are well supervised from illegalities. They believe more must still be done for digital currencies to gain worldwide acceptance. More regulations about the supervision of digital currencies from a central administrator need to be introduced to curb illegal transactions and money laundering (Tambe & Jain, 2023). Equally, digital currencies are regarded as highly volatile and thus not the best way of storing value or being a medium of exchange. The safety and security issues associated with digital currencies are at the heart of all concerns. Despite organizations channelling resources to enhance encryption as a safety measure, Samsung still faces safety issues but has the opportunity to utilize artificial intelligence to enhance the security of its digital wallets.
Myths
There exist plenty of myths regarding cryptocurrencies. Several people have yet to understand its legality, environmental effects, and if it is only used in illegal activities. For example, some believe digital assets are only used to facilitate illicit transactions. They believe that criminal organizations exploit digital currencies (Prasad, 2021). Others even believe digital currencies adversely affect the environment because the mining process requires high-powered computers. Mining involves using computers to solve complex issues associated with cryptocurrency releases and ensure that hackers do not attack it. It is evident that criminal organizations exploit most digital currencies, and the lack of centralized authority makes them prone to being used for illegal purposes. Some transactions are still conducted with legal and legitimate intentions. However, there is a need for Samsung to explore the legitimacy, safety, and security of utilizing its digital assets to facilitate the transfer of digital currencies.
Most people also believe cryptocurrencies are not secure and prone to theft and hacking (Harvey, 2019). Even though decentralization of the financial system is prone to hacking, digital currencies have secure encryption. The security issues reported in the headlines commonly occur due to security breaches in third-party businesses and services that use digital currencies. The interlinking of security issues and high volatility issues makes most people uncertain about whether to embrace digital wallets. Samsung should address all these concerns by streamlining the processes involved in transferring digital currencies, setting up more security measures, and advocating for more regulations. Artificial intelligence is one of the best technologies that Samsung can implement to solve the numerous concerns associated with digital currencies.
Vertical links
For the past few years, individuals have questioned the effectiveness and suitability of digital currencies such as crypto in executing financial transactions. Magazines, newspapers, and other publications have considered digital currencies the future that will replace traditional currencies. The most general questions have been related to the security of such transactions, the different types of digital currencies, and the problems associated with the currency. The social causes behind the introduction of digital currencies include the financial crises experienced in the first decade of the twenty-first century. The emergence of the dot com bubble, the collapse of the real estate market, and the banking crisis triggered the need for digital currencies. All that people wanted was the right to decide their finances. The existence of diverse worldviews regarding digital currencies has led to different perspectives regarding the safety and security of digital currency transactions. Frequent fluctuations of crypto have made people lose money, with fraudulent transactions making people need help trusting digital currencies. However, technology enthusiasts believe that digital currency technology has the potential to ensure that money remains safe and secure. Existing worldviews about digital currencies have led to numerous myths regarding the risks, safety, and opportunities. Samsung has the opportunity to completely change the worldviews and myths associated with digital currencies by embracing artificial intelligence to enhance the security of digital currencies.
Conclusion
Several organizations, including Samsung, have embraced digital currencies and utilized them as a medium of exchange due to the numerous benefits of the currency. However, there exists diverse worldviews and myths about digital currencies that Samsung needs to address. For example, some believe cryptocurrency has high transactional speed, facilitates cost-effective transactions, is decentralized, promotes diversity, and protects against inflation. However, others link it with potential security issues, high volatility, and insufficient regulations. Despite improvements in encryption techniques, most organizations still face security challenges. Samsung has the opportunity to completely change the myths and worldviews surrounding the use of digital currencies by enhancing its security system. The organization can embrace artificial intelligence to identify the major threats facing digital currencies, quantify risks, and make well-informed decisions to avoid security threats.
References
Harvey, C. R. (2019). Bitcoin myths and facts. Available at SSRN 2479670.
Ibrahim, S., Nnamani, D. I., Okosun, O., & Soyele, O. E. (2023). Cybercrime and Cryptocurrency.
Mäntymäki, M., Wirén, M., & Najmul Islam, A. K. M. (2020). Exploring the disruptiveness of cryptocurrencies: a causal layered analysis-based approach. In Responsible Design, Implementation and Use of Information and Communication Technology: 19th IFIP WG 6.11 Conference on e-Business, e-Services, and e-Society, I3E 2020, Skukuza, South Africa, April 6–8, 2020, Proceedings, Part I 19 (pp. 27-38). Springer International Publishing.
Paumgarten, N. (2018). The Prophets of Cryptocurrency Survey the Boom and Bust. The New Yorker (15 October 2018) www. newyorker. com/magazine/2018/10/22/theprophets-of-cryptocurrency-survey-the-boom-and-bust.
Prasad, E. (2021). Five myths about cryptocurrency. Washington, DC. May, 24.
Rozen, J. (2020). Samsung’s embrace of digital currencies grows. Retrieved from https://coingeek.com/samsungs-embrace-of-digital-currencies-grows/
Tambe, N. & Jain, A. (2023). Advantages and disadvantages of cryptocurrency in 2023. Forbes. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/advisor/in/investing/cryptocurrency/advantages-of-cryptocurrency/
Walk-Morris, T. Samsung debuts a new digital wallet with crypto. Retrieved from https://www.paymentsdive.com/news/samsung-debuts-a-new-digital-wallet-with-crypto/625493/
Yayman, D. (2021). Blockchain in taxation. Journal of Accounting and Finance, 21(4), 140-155.
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