Jon Southurst is Associate Editor, Asia-Pacific at CoinGeek, the BSV blockchain news publication. Based in Tokyo, Japan, he covers Bitcoin and blockchain technology, artificial intelligence and agentic AI, and the digital economy — including stablecoins, central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), and asset tokenization — with particular attention to developments across Asia.

Jon has worked as a technology writer since 1994, beginning with geographic information systems (GIS), digital mapping, and statistical data for Australian telecommunications company Telstra, and technology articles for print newspapers in Australia and Canada.

He turned to Bitcoin full-time in 2013 as a reporter for CoinDesk, remaining there until 2015. Based in Tokyo during the collapse of the Mt. Gox exchange in 2014, he covered the story at close quarters and produced several now-iconic images from that period of Bitcoin’s history. He went on to report for Bitcoin.com and Bitcoinist (2015–16), then co-founded Bitsonline, serving as Senior Editor from 2016 to 2019. He joined CoinGeek in 2019.

Alongside his writing, Jon has presented and hosted video interview programs including BitcoinSVtrain and MetaNetTV on YouTube, and CoinGeek’s “The Bitcoin Bridge.” His interview subjects over more than a decade of reporting include venture capitalist Tim Draper, economist Steve Keen, entrepreneurs Halsey Minor and Michael Terpin, Lyn Ulbricht, Roger Ver, Craig Wright, and musician Perry Farrell.

His CoinGeek article marking the anniversary of Bitcoin’s Genesis Block from January 2020 was cited in “Strengthening American Leadership in Digital Financial Technology,” a digital assets report published by the White House in 2025.

Jon has reported from blockchain and finance conferences around the world, including Beijing, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore, Seoul, Bangkok, Tbilisi, Dubai, London, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and Denver. He has appeared as a presenter and panelist at conferences in Seoul (2014) and Changsha (2016), and served as a panel moderator at the London Blockchain Conference in 2023 and 2024.

His areas of expertise include Bitcoin and blockchain systems, digital currencies, central banking and financial regulation, and the intersection of artificial intelligence with blockchain and digital payments. His current reporting focuses on BSV software and application development, agentic AI, and the emerging digital economy.

Article by Jon Southurst

G7 finance ministers renew support for digital asset monitoring, CBDC research
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19 May, 2023

G7 finance ministers renew support for digital asset monitoring, CBDC research

G7 member nations reiterate that CBDCs could play a major role in maintaining a good financial system but, similar to...
Realistic use cases for NFTs and atomic swaps: The Bitcoin Masterclasses #5 with Dr. Craig Wright
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18 May, 2023

Realistic use cases for NFTs and atomic swaps: The Bitcoin Masterclasses #5 with Dr. Craig Wright

This third session of the fifth The Bitcoin Masterclasses series examines why NFTs and "atomic swaps" are necessary and the...
Making EDI better with the BSV blockchain: The Bitcoin Masterclasses #5 with Craig Wright
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17 May, 2023

Making EDI better with the BSV blockchain: The Bitcoin Masterclasses #5 with Craig Wright

As Dr. Craig S. Wright points out in the latest installment of the Bitcoin Masterclasses workshops, automating business processes through...
Ethereum stumbles with settlements as validators go missing
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15 May, 2023

Ethereum stumbles with settlements as validators go missing

Delays recorded in settling transactions in Ethereum last week weren't all that serious, developers working on the issue said but...
Google to release new AI tools in race against ChatGPT and Microsoft
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11 May, 2023

Google to release new AI tools in race against ChatGPT and Microsoft

Google unveils "PaLM 2," a major update to its PaLM large language model (LLM), as well as new features for...
New York digital assets bill targets blockchain’s Wild West attitudes
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9 May, 2023

New York digital assets bill targets blockchain’s Wild West attitudes

The draft bill seeks to amend New York's general business law, financial services law, and tax law with new specifications...