Philadelphia Immediately Follows Miami And New York, Joins CityCoins

Philadelphia, became the next city to join CityCoins. (photo: doc. unsplash)

JAKARTA - Philadelphia is soon following in the footsteps of Miami, Austin and New York City partnering with CityCoins to develop crypto for the city of Brotherly Love.

Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney has endorsed the concept. He told state news media website Statescoop that his office was "enthusiastic about the potential donations from the CityCoins program to target pressing issues in the city."

Philly's Chief Information Officer and Bitcoin (BTC) supporter, Mark Wheeler, said that "Philly is ready" to start working with CityCoins in a January 31 tweet.

CityCoins is a software application on the Stacks (STX) blockchain that helps city governments create unique digital currencies. Stacks of transactions on the table can be completed on the Bitcoin network.

New York City and Miami are already using CityCoins to increase their treasury holdings. Thirty percent of the mined STX tokens are sent to the city wallet then sold for USD which goes directly to the city treasury. Miners retain the rest.

In a February 1 interview, Wheeler indicated that the city will begin officially vetting CityCoins to ensure that any potential partnerships they enter into together comply with existing laws regarding cryptocurrencies.

Wheeler addresses environmental concerns by adopting programs that use Proof-of-Work blockchains such as Bitcoin. He pointed out that CityCoins does not require users to use any additional hardware that could cause further harm to the environment. He told Statescoop on February 1.

“I think we can simply say, 'This isn't Bitcoin and it doesn't require a new server to set up and it doesn't require any energy intensive use.' I think that's a valid and verifiable statement," Wheeler was quoted as saying by Cointelegraph.

Last November, Wheeler announced that Philadelphia would seek to add blockchain technology to the city's government. He took the city of Miami as the inspiration for the initiative.

Miami launched Miami Coin with CityCoins last August to help the city raise funds that Miami Mayor Francis Suarez said could be used to cover the tax burden for all of its residents.

New York City launched NYC Coin in partnership with CityCoins last November. Like Miami Coin, NYC Coin miners receive STX and BTC rewards for supplying the city with tokens. Austin, Texas has also entered into a partnership with CityCoins, but mining has not yet started.