NYSE Chairman Jeffrey Sprecher recently appeared on CNBC’s “Power Lunch” where he briefly expressed his views on the digital currency Bitcoin, and its underlying technology Blockchain.
The Wall Street veteran said that the millennials trust Bitcoin more than they trust the government-backed fiat currencies, and further acknowledged its potential to be a game-changer. By making references to other progressive software applications, Sprecher stated:
“Young people, Millennials, trust their app and how many stars you give a driver, more than they trust the New York Taxi Department who vets and gives a medallion to a taxi driver. And in the same way, we are seeing Millennials trust a currency that is really created in the ether more than they trust fiat currency by a government.”
The comments arrived weeks after NYSE’s announcement to launch its very own Bitcoin Index — the NYXBT. Prior to that, the American stock exchange, which is also backed by Sprecher’s very own Intercontinental Exchange, had also announced to invest a huge sum into the Californian Bitcoin startup Coinbase.
The chairman recognized his fantasy towards a disruptive payment technology like Bitcoin, saying that their organization is working on it “for over a year to understand it.” He also noted that their layman style has made it difficult for them to crack such an advanced language.
“I think there is something to it,” Sprecher switched to Ben Stiller mode (arguably). “I think there is something here.”
As Bitcoin has left its speculative phase, we can hardly see anything dramatic coming out of Sprecher’s comments on Bitcoin. But indeed, the words clearly demonstrate the vanishing distance between the traditional and futuristic payment markets. It will undoubtedly assist Bitcoin in gaining more attention among institutional investors and traders around the globe.
