We’re still in the Netscape phase of crypto, according to Marshall Hayner, founder and CEO of Metal Payments, and the future is bright. Hayner sees regulation and user interface as the two pivotal factors affecting mass adoption. While 2021 saw a rapid acceleration of lobbying efforts as well as public-awareness initiatives, most governments still just don’t seem to get it and people are still using clunky software like Metamask. Hayner and his team at Metal are currently working to create browser-based and seamless crypto payment systems. In the very near future, though, the cumbersome tasks we assume are just part of the process will slowly ease as they are abstracted away by developers. The implications of what is a relatively simple shift are immense, according to Hayner, and he remains highly optimistic on the next decade in this space. Interviewed by Ash Bennington on February 3, 2022.