Ex-Goldman Sachs exec: Global crypto is coming, but it won’t be BTC

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Gary Cohn served for a brief time as the chief economic advisor for U.S. President Donald Trump. Prior to that, he was the president at Goldman Sachs. A financial expert who calls things like they are and understands where the economy is heading, Cohn has now spoken out on cryptocurrencies, seeing a future that accepts a global digital currency solution. However, he doesn’t believe that BTC will be that solution, calling, instead, for a cryptocurrency that is “more easily understood” by consumers.

In an interview with CNBC, Cohn opined that the future will definitely see a “global cryptocurrency at some point where the world understands it and it’s not based on mining costs or cost of electricity or things like that.” He clarified that he’s not a believer in BTC, but that he does support blockchain technology and predicts that the future global cryptocurrency will be supported by the blockchain.

BTC, as with a lot of cryptocurrencies, is mined—a process that requires a tremendous amount of resources, including specialized computer hardware and electricity. The intense resource requirements are what will be a deterrent to BTC becoming the “chosen one.” BTC was the first to use blockchain technology through which third-party intermediaries, such as banks, were eliminated, leaving only a secure and permanent transactional record between the two parties involved.

CNBC also asked Cohn what he thought about traditional financial institutions, such as Goldman Sachs (GS), launching a presence in the cryptocurrency space. Cohn simply responded, “They [GS] should do what they think is in the best interests of their shareholders,” before adding that he no longer owns shares in the company. GS recently announced that it would launch a cryptocurrency trading desk in response to investor demand.

Cohn resigned as the White House’s economic advisor at the beginning of March. Following his departure, he announced that he was contemplating the creation of a regulated bank that exists only in the digital realm. The bank would be similar to one already operational, Galaxy Digital (GD), which was founded by Mike Novogratz, another ex-Goldman Sachs executive. GD has been pulling high-ranking officials away from GS, including Richard Kim, who now serves as the company’s Chief Operating Officer.