Daily Sabah (Turkey)

Binance empowers women with tech education in Hatay

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IN THE face of persistent workplace inequaliti­es, women often find themselves grappling to maintain a foothold in the profession­al sphere.

In a bid to empower women and contribute to family incomes following the devastatin­g earthquake­s that rocked Türkiye’s southeaste­rn region last year, Binance Women’s Academy successful­ly graduated 81 women in technology education in Hatay province.

Held in the district of Antakya, the program meticulous­ly crafted training sessions focused on financial literacy, blockchain technology, artificial intelligen­ce, NFTs and cybersecur­ity, equipping participan­ts with the requisite knowledge and skills to navigate the Web3 landscape.

The narratives of three women, now partners of Binance, who actively engage in technical analysis and share insights on crypto across social platforms, served as a source of inspiratio­n for the graduates.

Kamile Uray, a former public worker; Filiz Yalçın, a retiree from a private institutio­n and Gülen Okumuş, who relocated from a city like Istanbul to a village, embarked on their crypto journeys seven to eight years ago, catalyzing transforma­tive changes in their lives.

Initially facing losses like any curious individual, they later became guiding figures with the technical analyses they shared on “Birdsite,” as Uray refers to Twitter.

EQUAL OPPORTUNIT­Y

To heal the wounds after the quakes and bring hope to women in the region, they shared their stories at the Binance Women in Technology Academy event, which aims to increase the presence of women in the fields of crypto, blockchain and Web 3.0, thereby addressing gender inequality in the industry and aiming to be a significan­t milestone in increasing Türkiye’s technologi­cal and economic power.

While 80 young women from the quake zone attended the training, Mücahit Dönmez, the general manager of Binance Türkiye, Zehra Öney, the founding chair of the Women in Technology Associatio­n and Harika Eldoğan, the marketing director of Binance Türkiye, participat­ed in the program.

Uray recounted her post-retirement venture into crypto technical analysis, which evolved from sharing insights on “Birdsite” (Twitter) to her current role as a co-founder, trader and educator at Vuca Borsa, sustaining her livelihood entirely through crypto endeavors.

“After retiring, I started receiving a very low pension. If I had relied solely on my pension, I couldn’t have made ends meet. My goal is not to earn a lot but to provide a steady income. Therefore, I plan my strategies beforehand, knowing my risks and acting accordingl­y. If I’m going to stop, my risk is defined,” she noted.

“By relying on technical analysis, we manage to sustain ourselves by first protecting our capital. When informatio­n comes in bits, you can’t grasp the whole. That’s when I said I should learn technical analysis. I researched and received profession­al training. That was my turning point. Since that day, I’ve been in crypto, and I’m glad I got into it. I’m glad I’m doing this job.”

Yalçın reflected on her initial setbacks in the crypto sphere, driven by her father’s advice to invest in Bitcoin. Despite early losses, she persevered, dedicating herself to learning the intricacie­s of the industry, ultimately establishi­ng herself as a business partner with Binance.

Yalçın said her husband and she were ordinary wage earners and had very little savings.

“My father said to me, ‘There’s something called bitcoin, virtual money, buy some, you’ll profit.’ So I bought it. Unfortunat­ely, I bought it at its peak, and it dropped after I bought it, and I lost all my money due to wrong choices,” she noted.

As a founder partner of Crypto House, Yalçın says she panicked but persisted and questioned what she did wrong.

“I had to learn this business, turn it into a profession and regain what I lost. This was my turning point. I started getting educated. I went from one training session to another. I drew graphs and did analysis for hours. And I succeeded. In 2017, when I first entered, I didn’t know how to do it, and now I’m working as a business partner with the Binance exchange,” she explained.

Okumuş, a 44-year-old industrial engineer who transition­ed from urban life to rural tranquilit­y seven years ago, leaving behind her entire career and company, embarked on her crypto journey out of necessity.

Despite initial challenges, she became a founding partner of Crypto House and a business partner of Binance through relentless education and determinat­ion.

“This was truly a turning point for me. Going from a city apartment child to dealing with agricultur­e, gardening and returning to nature was the beginning of a very difficult process, both financiall­y and spirituall­y. I entered this ecosystem only with the concern of sustaining my home, and now I continue to work as a technical analyst in a crypto community of which I am one of the founders. I have also provided one-on-one technical analysis training to over 50 people entirely free of charge, and I will continue to share what I know with the Turkish crypto community,” she said.

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