NEWS

A Recap of BPM’s First Cryptocurrency Meetup

Inna Merzheritsky, Brian Finnegan, Norm Bustamante • January 19, 2018

Industries: Blockchain & Digital Assets

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On January 9, 2018, BPM held its first crypto meetup in its San Francisco office. The event was scheduled from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. but due to the overwhelming amount of enthusiasm displayed by attendees, which included fund managers, fund advisors, attorneys, and interested investors, the meetup went beyond the allocated time.

To open the event, cryptocurrency senior manager, Mark Li introduced BPM’s crypto partners consisting of Assurance Practice Group Leader, Brian Finnegan, International Tax Partner, Inna Merzheritsky, Assurance Partner, Norm Bustamante, Dmitri Alexeev.

The discussion began with the pressing issue on everyone’s mind: extreme volatility in the cryptocurrency world. There has been an endless frenzy of media coverage of the rise and fall of cryptocurrencies. An attendee attributed its volatility to supply and demand, human emotions, retail tractors, and involvement from countries outside of the U.S.

Attendees also discussed factors such as the process speed of Bitcoin and its malleability, private versus public ledgers, and cybersecurity. Many factors affect Bitcoin’s value fluctuation and one of them is processor speed.

Private ledgers and public ledgers came up when a participant questioned whether one currency would rule them all in the future. A lively discussion followed when an attendee brought up cybersecurity and the best way to protect digital assets. As the industry is quite new and largely unregulated, there is a huge risk of irrecoverable loss. There was a heated debate on the best way to store the coins and what types of strategy to implement for optimal protection.

The meetup brought people together to exchange ideas, knowledge, and individual experiences. With cryptocurrency’s development occurring at breakneck speed, BPM is pleased to create a community of enthusiastic individuals who are just as invested in this space as we are.

An investor who attended added, “The crypto meetup at BPM was a great way to connect with a multitude of players across the cryptocurrency field. I enjoyed exchanging advice and news with finance and tax professionals, hedge fund managers, blockchain developers and seasoned investors. BPM did a great job hosting the event and keeping the attendees engaged in the topics. I'm excited to attend the next one!”

If you are interested in learning more about how BPM supports the cryptocurrency space and our services, click here.

If you would like to attend our next cryptocurrency meetup, please reach out to Mark Li at [email protected]. Everyone is welcomed and we look forward to seeing you at the next meetup soon.