What are CityCoins?

CityCoins unlock new support for cities by creating an open-source ecosystem for developers.

CityCoins are crypto tokens tied to a specific city, like Miami’s MiamiCoin. By mining and holding these tokens, people can foster an open-source developer ecosystem dedicated to their city. CityCoins can also be programmed to do useful things, creating a platform for developers to create helpful apps and services powered by their city’s token.

Your city’s free and open developer ecosystem will attract developers with ideas. As their ideas come to fruition, more supporters will collect the CityCoins, more developers will build on the network, and the city will thrive. All this, with no startup cost.

CityCoins transform citizens into stakeholders, sharing in the success of their favourite cities.

The future is urban. Between 1950 and 2015, the world’s urban population grew from 750 million to 4.2 billion. By 2050, over two-thirds of the world’s population is expected to live in an urban area. This means power will become ever more concentrated in city halls across the world, and the decisions made by city governments on behalf of billions of people will grow more and more consequential.

For decades, citizens have been seeking better ways to engage with their cities and shape their growth. But their efforts stop short against outdated, frustrating, and increasingly ineffective systems and processes. Citizens are left feeling powerless to meaningfully contribute to the places they live in and love.

The future is urban, and every citizen should be able to help shape that future. As a new type of civic platform, CityCoins bring civic engagement into the technological age.

CityCoins aren’t just theory: they exist, and they’re working for cities and citizens alike.

In September of 2021, Miami became the first city to officially adopt its token, MiamiCoin (MIA). The first US$4.3M has been earmarked to house the homeless, but earnings exceed that figure. Within weeks of the city adopting its token, MiamiCoin’s valuation exceeded $10M. Within three months, it exceeded $20M.

When Miami adopted MiamiCoin, the city switched on an open-source developer ecosystem. Governments are notoriously behind the times when it comes to technology, but CityCoins clears the path for developers and gives them the toolkit and free rein to improve life for residents.

The CityCoins ecosystem is open-source, so anyone can contribute and collaborate. This newfound freedom will attract the most innovative and passionate developers to do their best work on behalf of the city.

Developers are already building exciting tools on top of MiamiCoin. For example:

• Mint-with-MIA: Artists and other creators can create and buy NFTs with MiamiCoin
• Miami Voice: An app that will let holders vote with their MiamiCoin and use their tokens to highlight the issues closest to them
• Denizen: A Proof-of-Holding functionality that will let holders use MiamiCoin to enter exclusive spaces and events
  

The more useful things CityCoins tokens can do for their holders, the more value the city and community accrue. When Mayor Suarez claimed his city’s wallet he opened an entirely new ecosystem for developers to improve his town—and it cost Miami nothing.

When it comes to public funds, transparency and accountability are paramount. That’s why the CityCoins team works with stakeholders at every level to ensure that the system works for everyone in a safe, trustworthy, and effective way.

CityCoins are simple crypto tokens on the Stacks protocol, which is built on top of the Bitcoin network because it’s secure, reliable, and permanent. Every line of the Stack protocol’s code has been thoroughly audited by an independent team of Distributed Systems PHDs from Princeton University to ensure absolute security.  

The CityCoins code is open-source and available for anyone to see via Github.

Crypto lets everyday people support their cities. You don’t need to donate seven figures and have a library named after you to make an impact on your town-–even holding just a few dollars of your city’s token helps. It signals your commitment to the city and supports those who seek to improve it.

There isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach to a CityCoins’ growth. In the future, it’s possible every city has its own coin with its own uses, all developed by local communities. For now, CityCoins are an interconnected ecosystem of global-minded citizens.

It’s time for civic engagement to enter the modern era. CityCoins is the way.