City of Santa Monica launches Bitcoin Office, plans October festival

The “Silicon Beach” wants to make sure Bitcoin has a place there, with help from a blue-collar-oriented nonprofit.

The City of Santa Monica, California, has created a Bitcoin Office to provide education, identify economic opportunities and solidify the city’s position as a hub of Bitcoin innovation. The office is working closely with Proof of Workforce, a nonprofit organization focused on Bitcoin education for the workforce, unions and pension funds.

The new city office was created by a unanimous vote of the Santa Monica city council on July 11. The office’s webpage appeared on the city’s website on the evening of Aug. 8. Although the office’s webpage does not suggest any concrete measures, the city will host a Bitcoin festival in October.

An educational and promotional effort

The Santa Monica Bitcoin Office is “an education-based community initiative coordinated by the Proof of Workforce Foundation (Not Financial Advice),” according to its X profile. The office’s webpage contains a lengthy disclaimer warning readers of the risks of cryptocurrency investment. It specified:

“In addition to providing education, the Bitcoin Office’s mission is also focused on identifying and facilitating Bitcoin industry partnerships that actively support Santa Monica’s economic recovery and cultivate new employment opportunities.”

The Proof of Workforce Foundation was founded by Santa Monica firefighter and former firefighters’ union president Dominick Bei in 2023. The organization, which has 501 (c)(4) nonprofit tax status, “aims to empower unions, workers, and organizations to discover ways in which Bitcoin can enhance their mission and well-being.”

It is not required to disclose its donors. The nonprofit is not charging the city for its coordination efforts.

Related: Blockchain gets down and dirty fighting fraud at California’s DMV

A Bitcoin festival is revived

The city is promoting the Bitcoin Peer to Pier Festival, which seems to be related to an event that was intended to be sponsored by Swan Bitcoin. On Aug. 5, Swan announced that it was canceling its Pacific Bitcoin Festival to be held in Santa Monica, on the heels of a staff reduction.

The two-day event planned by Swan would be replaced by a more modest event on Oct. 17, the company said. The event being promoted by the city is scheduled for Oct. 18.