As I reflect on the past year and the next one, I keep coming back to two themes that I believe could reshape our economic future for years to come.
If properly addressed, the first could lead to positive, transformational change in most communities around the country. While the first theme represents a golden opportunity, the second resembles more of an inflection point for the digital asset ecosystem and the future of finance.
Theme 1: The Great Wealth Transfer
Despite the smallest of odds – about one in 290 million – it seems like everyone bought tickets to last month’s record $2 billion Powerball jackpot. And when all the results were in, there was exactly one winner.
Imagine the ruckus over a $70 trillion jackpot. That’s what is in front of us with the Great Wealth Transfer, which will spool out over the next 20 years to family members, treasured institutions and charities, and to plenty of other fortunate beneficiaries.
What if we could inspire the owners of that wealth to set aside a meaningful amount to strengthen our civil society through philanthropy and charity? We all have a role to play – including our government – if we are going to properly address this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Game on.
Theme 2: The Future of Crypto
The actions of the much maligned former CEO of FTX – the crypto exchange that went belly up and took many crypto investors and companies down with it – are resulting in an inflection point for crypto. Until the FTX debacle, lawmakers were proceeding with new laws and regulations to serve as guardrails for the industry to protect investors and promote innovation..
The FTX meltdown has lawmakers now questioning the merit of supplying those guardrails, which imply acceptability of the industry. Or, rather, do they enact the bare minimum to facilitate the enforcement of existing laws against fraud and the like?
Given the stakes involved, I’ll be reading the tea leaves very closely to anticipate whether lawmakers ultimately succumb to the visionaries in the industry or not. But if I had to make a prediction right now, crypto is inevitable. It’s here to stay, and policymakers have an opportunity to either foster good actors through effective regulations or send the industry and assets overseas.
May the blessings of the season bring unexpected wonder and joy to you and your loved ones.