'Where Banks Go, Regulation Follows.' Why Institutional Acceptance Is a Double-Edged Sword for Crypto, Feat. Ajit Tripathi

With PayPal recently announcing crypto services for millions of customers, it seems the crypto industry has passed another acceptance milestone.

But with that acceptance comes greater responsibility, says Ajit Tripathi, a longtime consultant working at the top of the industry.

Going forward, crypto can expect greater regulatory scrutiny and higher compliance costs. Times ten, says Tripathi.

On the "Opinionated" podcast this week, Tripathi discusses his recent op-ed “Bitcoin Is Good for PayPal, but Is PayPal Good for Bitcoin?” where he compares the costs of setting up a neobank in the U.K. (like Monzo) with creating a DeFi protocol this summer.

At the moment, the former comes with millions in compliance costs and the latter comes with none, and customers are not protected, he says.

As mainstream players like PayPal enter the market, Tripathi argues it’s inevitable that regulators will intervene. After the last financial crisis and following the ICO run-up, they feel obliged to take notice.

Listen in as Tripathi describes the regulatory challenges facing the industry as it becomes more popular.

Find Ajit online: twitter.com/chainyoda