The Intersection of Digital Assets and the Traditional Financial Economy
Not long ago, much of Wall Street viewed digital assets with skepticism. Today, firms like BlackRock, JPMorgan, and Morgan Stanley are committing significant resources to the space, from Bitcoin ETFs and tokenized assets to blockchain-based payments. What changed, and where is this headed?
Stephen McKeon, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Collab+Currency, brings the view from the ground up. A former tenured finance professor at the University of Oregon, he has backed more than 150 early-stage crypto and blockchain projects and will speak to the innovation and disruption taking shape at the earliest stages.
Matt Kunke, CFA, Lead Digital Assets ETF Strategist at BlackRock, brings the institutional view. He will cover how major financial institutions are approaching digital assets, the progress made to date, and what the next one to five years may hold.
Together, they will offer a grounded look at the convergence of traditional finance and digital assets from two distinct perspectives.
MATT KUNKE
lead digital assets strategist, blackrock
As Lead Digital Assets Strategist at BlackRock, Matt is focused on developing the growing digital assets ETF business, supporting efforts across research, marketing, and sales.
Before joining BlackRock, Matt was a crypto research analyst at GSR, a crypto market maker and OTC trading desk, where he authored fundamental crypto research and was frequently cited in crypto media outlets.
Prior to joining GSR, Matt led the digital assets research vertical at Global X ETFs and he spent several years researching alternative investment strategies in J.P. Morgan's Private Bank before that.
Matt graduated Summa Cum Laude from Portland State University with a Bachelors of Arts in Mathematics and Finance, and he is a CFA charterholder.
STEPHEN MCKEON
CO-FOUNDER AND MANAGING PARTNER, COLLAB+CURRENCY
Stephen McKeon is co-founder and Managing Partner of Collab+Currency, an early-stage venture fund with over 150 investments in blockchain, AI, and extended reality.
He was formerly a tenured finance professor at the University of Oregon and a visiting associate at the University of Cambridge.
He previously co-founded Skyward, a software company acquired by Verizon, and holds a PhD in Finance from Purdue.