In First ‘Pure Crypto’ Hire, Silvergate Bank Recruits Blockstream Liquid Network Exec

Crypto-friendly Silvergate Financial institution has made its first rent from the hardcore bitcoin neighborhood to assist an bold roadmap for its enterprise serving digital foreign money shoppers. 

Benjamin Richman, previously director of enterprise growth and partnerships at bitcoin tech startup Blockstream, joined the La Jolla, Calif.-based financial institution on the finish of final month as director of digital foreign money. 

“We have employed people which might be from tech corporations that had been offering companies to some crypto corporations, and we’ve employed former legislation enforcement to assist us with AML/KYC/BSA, however within the pure crypto area Benjamin is perhaps the primary,” Silvergate Chief Government Alan Lane informed CoinDesk. 

The rent exhibits Silvergate’s deepening dedication to serving a distinct segment the place most banks concern to tread, owing partly to the excessive prices of anti-money-laundering, know-your-customer and Financial institution Secrecy Act compliance Lane talked about.  

At Blockstream, an outfit pursuing bleeding-edge tech enhancements for bitcoin, Richman was answerable for the expansion of Liquid, a sidechain, or parallel community generally used to maneuver cash between exchanges.

In his new job, Richman can be answerable for crypto buyer progress for Silvergate. He’s taking over the obligation from the chief vp of company growth, Ben Reynolds, who will deal with the financial institution’s newer initiatives reminiscent of crypto-collateralized loans and the financial institution’s utility for a New York belief firm license. 

Earlier this month, the financial institution launched the Silvergate Change Community’s (SEN) Leverage product, which permits proprietary merchants to place up bitcoin as collateral for fiat loans they will then use to purchase extra bitcoin, just like margin lending within the conventional markets. The financial institution additionally utilized for the New York belief license with the purpose of offering custody and settlement for crypto. 

The financial institution, which went public on the New York Inventory Change in November, is considered one of a handful within the U.S. that can present accounts to crypto exchanges, startups and merchants. (Signature, Metropolitan Industrial and Cross River are among the many few others.) Early final 12 months, Silvergate offered its retail department and enterprise lending crew to deal with its specialty enterprise strains, together with crypto, a wealthy supply of low-cost deposits.