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Diego Gutiérrez Zaldívar inducted into the Crypto Hall of Fame

Diego Gutiérrez Zaldívar inducted into the Crypto Hall of Fame

The Crypto Hall of Fame, hosted by Moonstock, an online gallery specializing in Crypto Art and NFT created by Aaron Koening, was launched in April 2021. It celebrates major contributors to the blockchain industry with portraits designed by Max Crypotohead.

Miami, June 5th, 2021

The selection committee reached a decision and announced the twelfth member of the Crypto Hall of Fame: Diego Gutiérrez Zaldívar, co-founder of Rootstock, the first smart contract platform built on Bitcoin that made it fully programmable, and also co-founder of the Bitcoin Argentina Foundation and the .Ibero-American Blockchain Alliance.

“I am very honored to be included in this illustrious circle,” said Diego when he received the news at the announcement ceremony during Bitcoin 2021 in Miami. “I am very happy to have been inducted into the Crypto Hall of Fame among giants such as Satoshi Nakamoto, Nick Szabo and David Chaum. More than a personal recognition, I feel this as a recognition to all the pioneers who built the Bitcoin and crypto movement in Latin America, among them Rootstock co-founders Sergio Lerner, Ruben Altman, Adrian Eidelman and Gabriel Kurman. When we developed Rootstock, we had a vision of making Bitcoin an exclusive and fair financial system for the many, not the few. Now we are closer than ever to making that vision a reality.”

The first eleven inductees of the Crypto Hall of Fame are legends in the Crypto world, people like Satoshi Nakamoto, the mysterious inventor of Bitcoin, and his right-hand man Hal Finney. Other nominees include the creators of Bitcoin’s predecessors, among them David Chaum, Wei Dai, Adam Back and Nick Szabo.

For candidates to be considered, the Crypto Hall of Fame has a structured and transparent selection process where everyone can make a suggestion through its website. Afterward, a selection committee of impartial but knowledgeable cryptography experts decides who will be inducted next.

Other nominees in this round were Alexander Kuzmin (founder and CEO of Mycelium), Bram Cohen (creator of BitTorrent and Chia), Charlie Shrem (co-founder of BitInstant and Untold Stories), Erik Voorhees (co-founder of Shapeshift, Coinapult and Satoshi Dice) and Ralph Merkle (inventor of the Merkle tree).

The announcement ceremony took place during the Bitcoin 2021 conference held in Miami, with more than 12,000 attendees. The Crypto Hall of Fame honors outstanding business leaders and entrepreneurs who, through their work, have made a significant contribution to the crypto industry.

Diego’s portrait, created by Max Cryptohead, will be displayed in the 3D gallery of the Crypto Hall of Fame.

The members of the selection committee are:

  • Aaron van Wirdum (editor of Bitcoin Magazine)
  • Alexandra Kons (editor of Be-in-Crypto)
  • Amelia Tomasicchio (editor of The Cryptonomist)
  • Eryka Gemma (founder of Bitcoin Center Miami)
  • Jack Martin (editor of Cointelegraph)
  • Olga Filatova (founder of Crypto Art Museum)
  • Roger Benites (managing director of Bitcoin Center New York)

About Rootstock

Rootstock is the first, biggest, and longest lasting Bitcoin sidechain. It is the only Bitcoin layer 2 that combines the security of Bitcoin’s proof-of-work, with Ethereum’s smart contract capabilities.

Rootstock is open-source, EVM-compatible, and secured by over 60% of Bitcoin’s hashing power, which makes it a gateway to a vibrant ecosystem of dApps that continues to evolve to become fully trustless. 

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