The promise of bitcoin has been overshadowed by its underlying technology, the blockchain. There is great interest from traditional financial firms, which, saddled with decades-old payment infrastructures, are eager to adapt to the digital realities and improve the efficiency, speed and transparency of transactions. Efforts are underway at the national and international levels to study and monitor the blockchain, and a consortium of large international banks is collaborating on how to bring bitcoin’s technology to bear in the financial marketplace. How can this technology deliver for the financial services industry? Can we expect to see widespread use of these new systems in the near future and, if so, how will they change finance? Are we likely to see movement toward private rather than public blockchains, and how will this affect transparency and security?
Moderator
Marc Hochstein, Editor-in-Chief, American Banker
Speakers
Brian Forde, Director, Digital Currency, MIT Media Lab
Jalak Jobanputra, Founding Partner, FuturePerfect Ventures
Leanne Kemp, Founder and CEO, Everledger
Margaret Liu, Senior Vice President and Deputy General Counsel, Conference of State Bank Supervisors
Steve Wager, Executive Vice President, Operations and Development, itBit
