Bitcoin wallet and payment processor Xapo has announced the formation of its advisory board, naming all-star industry veterans Dee Hock, John Reed and Lawrence H. Summers.
Hock is credited as the leading force behind the modern-day credit card, founding what eventually became Visa International. Xapo described him as “responsible for effectively creating payment systems as we know them today.” How significant it is that he has embraced decentralized technology for the future of finance. On today’s payment systems, he commented: “We live in the 21st century but are still using command and control organizational structures from the 16th century.”
Reed was formerly Chairman & CEO of Citibank, which while under his leadership, developed the modern ATM and reshaped the retail banking experience. Yet, he acknowledges that change is once again needed: “Financial services have remained largely untouched by the digital revolution. Bitcoin represents a real opportunity for changing that. Money at its core is simply a ledger for keeping track of debts and Bitcoin is truly the best iteration of a universal ledger we’ve ever seen.”
He took it a step further, extolling Bitcoin as a currency, a position that is highly contentious: “The mere fact that there will never be more than 21 million bitcoins and that each bitcoin can be divided into 100 million units makes it a significant improvement on any historical form of currency.”
Also brought on board was Lawrence Summers, formerly Secretary of the Treasury under President Bill Clinton. He has also held multiple senior positions in academia, including serving as Harvard University’s President, and is considered one of the leading economic minds of today.
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