Digital asset firm Fireblocks has appointed the former head of fintech at the Bank of England, Varun Paul, as its new central banking digital currency (CBDC) and market infrastructure director.
Paul arrives at Fireblocks after 14 years at the Bank of England, ultimately spearheading its fintech hub and future of finance initiatives.
In his new role, Paul will be tasked with leading the Fireblocks' engagement with central banks and market infrastructures as they begin adopting digital asset and tokenization technologies.
According to the Bank for International Settlements, fully 90% of central banks are actively exploring CBDCs and more than half are now developing them or running concrete experiments.
Says Paul: "Financial innovation in CBDC, DeFi and tokenization is rapidly accelerating, and my new role at Fireblocks allows me the privilege and opportunity to work alongside some of the most forward-thinking organizations in the world as they prepare for one of the sector's greatest transformations."
Since launching in 2019, Fireblocks has onboarded more than 1,300 institutional customers, providing digital asset and crypto products for custodians, fintech, crypto exchanges, lending desks, super apps and asset management firms. The firm in January reached an $8 billion valuation on a $500 million funding round.