BEN Zhou, co-founder and CEO of Bybit, the top 3 crypto exchanges in the world by web traffic, has called for the traditional markets to embrace the change being driven by crypto.
Speaking at the Pantera Blockchain Summit Asia this week, Zhou discussed the growing convergence between traditional financial institutions and crypto. ‘The infrastructure is already in place and large institutions are already exploring and engaging at multiple levels with crypto leaders,’ he commented.
But he said, ‘Wall St could do a lot more to truly embrace the innovation in the market and remain relevant,’ adding that traditional financial service firms run the risk of facing the same fate as Nokia.
‘Wall St has much more to gain if it embraces crypto, rather than the other way around.’ he added.
Zhou was referring to Wall St’s traditional approach of assimilating innovation, within its increasingly outdated business model, only to see the innovation stifled and suffocated under internal processes and restrictions.
‘There is a new financial services model for the world that is rapidly evolving,’ the crypto CEO said. ‘The energy, innovation, and momentum are all with crypto.’
He used the exodus of talent to illustrate his point and how ‘The Street’ needs to catch up in this crypto race so as not lose out as top performers. ‘Talent is attracted to crypto by its faster-paced environments, its hunger, and its unrestricted ability to innovate,’ he said.
Moderator Franklin Bi, confirmed as much when he talked of how during his time on Wall St, it would take 2 to 3 years to bring a new product to market, not the 2 to 3 weeks it takes Bybit.
Zhou co-founded Bybit in 2018 as a crypto derivatives exchange with a handful of trading pairs. Since then, it has grown into a one-stop shop for all things crypto with a 10-million-strong user base. Zhou achieved this, he said, partly because of crypto’s “can do” attitude.
