Citigroup CEO: Digital Currencies for Countries the 'Logical Next Step'
*By Alisha Haridasani*
It’s only a matter of time before a country officially adopts a cryptocurrency as its standard, said Citigroup CEO Mike Corbat.
“It’s the logical next step,” he said in an interview with Cheddar on Thursday.
Crypto’s underlying decentralized blockchain technology will enable financial institutions and governments to conduct safer transactions, replacing the "Know Your Customers" process and ensuring compliance with global regulations around money laundering, Corbat explained.
But so far, the only test of a national crypto has run into problems. Venezuela became the first government to launch its own cryptocurrency, Petro, in March. The token’s value is pegged to oil and is widely seen as a [scam](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-04-03/crypto-rating-sites-are-already-calling-venezuela-s-petro-a-scam) as the country struggles to keep its economy afloat.
And Corbat's bullishness on digital tokens runs counter to many heavyweights in the business world.
Billionaire investor Warren Buffett last month described Bitcoin as “rat poison, squared”, and his business partner, Charlie Munger, likened the currency to “turds.” Even Bill Gates, who usually backs emerging technologies, derided cryptocurrencies as one of the “crazier speculative” investments and said he would short it if that was possible.
Cryptocurrencies have been extremely volatile in recent months, particularly as the Securities and Exchange Commissions has intensified a crackdown on fraudulent Initial Coin Offerings (ICO).
Bitcoin peaked in December, trading at over $19,000. Today, it hovers around $6,000.
For the full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/citi-ceo-talks-why-wall-street-matters-trade-tensions-and-immigration).
Ben Lamm, founder of Colossal Biosciences, is leading a bold mission to resurrect the extinct dodo via gene editing, avian breakthroughs, and rewilding plans.
Chipmaker Nvidia will invest $100 billion in OpenAI as part of a partnership that will add at least 10 gigawatts of Nvidia AI data centers to ramp up the computing power for the owner of the artificial intelligence chatbot ChatGPT.
Julie Hansen of Babbel unveils Babbel Speak, an AI voice trainer tackling language fear head-on, as Babbel eyes IPO and takes on AirPods’ translation tech.
The Trump administration has issued its first warnings to online services that offer unofficial versions of popular drugs like the blockbuster obesity treatment Wegovy.
Albania's Prime Minister Edi Rama says his new Cabinet will include an artificial intelligence “minister” in charge of fighting corruption. The AI, named Diella, will oversee public funding projects and combat corruption in public tenders. Diella was launched earlier this year as a virtual assistant on the government's public service platform. Corruption has been a persistent issue in Albania since 1990. Rama's Socialist Party won a fourth consecutive term in May. It aims to deliver EU membership for Albania in five years, but the opposition Democratic Party remains skeptical.
The Federal Trade Commission has launched an inquiry into several social media and artificial intelligence companies about the potential harms to children and teenagers who use their AI chatbots as companions.
Swedish buy now, pay later company Klarna is making its highly anticipated public debut on the New York Stock Exchange Wednesday, the latest in a run of high-profile initial public offerings this year. The offering priced at $40 Tuesday, above the forecasted range of $35 to $37 a share, valuing the company at more than $15 billion. The valuation easily makes Klarna one of the biggest IPOs so far in 2025, which has been one of the busier years for companies going public. Other popular IPOs so far this year include the design software company Figma and Circle Internet Group, which issues the USDC stablecoin..
