JPMorgan Chase boss Jamie Dimon may not like Bitcoin or cryptocurrencyâbut his bank is one of the âbigger usersâ of its underlying technology.Â
Billionaire banker Dimon said Tuesday that his bankâone of the largest in the worldâwas one of the biggest “real” users of the blockchain.Â
â[JPMorgan Chase] is probably one of the bigger users of blockchain. A real userâan actual userâas opposed to sex trafficking,â he said in an interview at the Georgetown Psaros Center for Financial Markets and Policy.
Bitcoin and its pseudonymous creator (or creators) Satoshi Nakamoto released the technology to the world after minting the first digital coin. A blockchain, the underlying tech on which Bitcoinâs network runs, is a distributed, online ledger that records transactions. It uses cryptography and cannot easily be tampered with.
The technology inspired tens of thousands of other cryptocurrencies and has been used elsewhereâincluding in the banking system. JP Morgan uses blockchain with its JPM Coin product. The system allows companies to automate the transfer of funds based on preprogrammed conditions.
But Dimon has long criticized Bitcoinâcalling it a âfraudâ back in 2017, and last year saying heâd âclose it downâ if he could.Â
âIâm not a fan of cryptocurrency,â he said again on Tuesday.
Dimon did reiterate his enthusiasm for artificial intelligence, though. âI think itâs going to cure cancer,â he added.
Edited by Andrew Hayward
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