JPMorgan to Launch Crypto Innovation Lab in Athens

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(Kitco News) – JPMorgan is starting to get to grips with blockchain. The largest bank in the United States by assets has announced plans to open a crypto innovation lab in Athens, Greece to foster the development of blockchain technology, artificial intelligence (AI) and of cryptography.

According to a report by E-Financial Careers, Tryone Lobbam, head of JPMorgan Onyx’s DeFi platform, revealed that JPMorgan “is opening an innovation lab in Athens, with an initial focus on building blockchain-related capabilities in the support of Onyx”.

Onyx, which was developed by the bank in 2020, is a blockchain-based platform for wholesale payment transactions.

The new crypto lab currently has four open engineering roles ranging in seniority from associate to executive director, including positions for two full-stack developers, a mobile apps engineer, and a technical launch lead.

The Mobile Application Engineer will also be responsible for creating “successful blockchain-based digital identity mobile applications and wallet prototypes,” according to Lobban, who added that “digital identity is key to unlocking scale of web3 and can enable entirely new interactions and services for web2 and web3 alike.

This development by New York-based JPMorgan comes at an interesting time for the global economy as the bank lays off traditional engineering roles at the same time it hires blockchain talent, suggesting that a change is occurring in the way traditional finance approaches the field. of the blockchain.

Jamie Dimon, the CEO of JPMorgan – who also happens to be Greek-American – is well known for his consistent anti-crypto comments over the years.

“I’m a major skeptic of crypto tokens, which you call currency, like Bitcoin,” Dimon said during testimony before the House Financial Services Committee in September. “These are decentralized Ponzi schemes, and the idea that it’s good for everyone is amazing.”

Crypto can also be “dangerous,” Dimon added, pointing to billions of dollars stolen through hacking, theft and other schemes in addition to issues such as money laundering. In October 2021, the CEO called Bitcoin worthless as it traded near all-time highs. The crypto winter of 2022-23 has only strengthened Dimon’s view of the asset class.

The launch of the new crypto lab highlights JPMorgan and Jamie Dimon’s emphasis on “blockchain, not Bitcoin,” which has become a common phrase in mainstream financial circles, hinting at the technology’s promising features. blockchain while avoiding what they consider “speculative assets”. without intrinsic value.

Despite Dimon’s history of negative feedback, JPMorgan has slowly increased its engagement with the crypto community over the past year since its position as America’s top bank.

In November, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office approved the bank’s trademark application for the “JP Morgan Wallet,” which is designed to transfer and exchange virtual currencies, facilitate crypto payment processing, and support virtual checking accounts and financial services in general.

The trademark filing also showed that JPMorgan is gearing up to provide crypto wallet services to members of online communities in multiple countries, offering support for different languages ​​and currencies.

November also saw the bank participate in a project with the Monetary Authority of Singapore that aimed to pilot digital asset and decentralized finance (DeFi) use cases where JPMorgan conducted its first live transaction on a public blockchain. . The bank has also partnered with Visa to work on developing cross-border payments through the use of their private blockchain networks Liink and B2B Connect.

And it’s not just JPMorgan that is digging deeper into the crypto ecosystem. According to a report released by the Office of Inspector General of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), in January, “The FDIC was aware that 136 insured banks had ongoing or planned crypto-asset-related activity. For example, these banks have agreements with third parties that allow bank customers to buy and sell crypto assets. Banks also provide account deposit services, custodial services, and loans to crypto asset exchanges.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and may not reflect those of Kitco Metals Inc. The author has made every effort to ensure the accuracy of the information provided; however, neither Kitco Metals Inc. nor the author can guarantee such accuracy. This article is strictly for informational purposes only. This is not a solicitation to trade commodities, securities or other financial instruments. Kitco Metals Inc. and the author of this article accept no responsibility for loss and/or damage resulting from the use of this publication.

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