World Economic Forum to host cryptocurrency discussions at Davos this week

The International Organization for Public-Private Cooperation has been vocal about its stance on the burgeoning crypto market. And it’s now discussing it more formally.

WEF discusses crypto

This week will see two cryptocurrency events take place between officials of the World Economic Forum, the international commerce think tank, as part of the high-profile Davos meeting.

Held on Monday and Thursday, the two sessions are the first time digital assets would be the sole topic at the WEF. The Geneva-headquartered agency has earlier spoken sporadically about Bitcoin and other crypto assets—even honored oracle service Chainlink as a rising tech player—and foresees the sector to have a positive impact on the world.

As per the “Davos Agenda” program, Monday’s session, called “Resetting Digital Currencies,”  sees WEF blockchain and policy head Sheila Warren, Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey, and Western Union CEO Hikmet Ersek take the stage for discussing digital currencies.

Legally speaking, is digital money really money? https://t.co/SjAwGNQG91 #DigitalCurrency #economy pic.twitter.com/jWqriKymxI

— World Economic Forum (@wef) January 25, 2021

The agenda would revolve around the policies, practices, and partnerships are needed to leverage the opportunities posed by the rise of digital currencies. “COVID-19 has accelerated the long-term shift from cash. Meanwhile, central bank digital currencies are emerging, potentially transforming how people use money worldwide,” the event’s prospectus stated.

On the other hand, Thursday’s event sees Singapore minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Beijing’s National Institute of Financial Research chairman Zhu Min, CoinDesk’s chief content office Micheal Casey, and Overseas Development Institute chief executive Sara Pantuliano.

Past dives

This weeks’ discussions come as WEF officials have positively considered the rise of cryptocurrencies in the future, alongside another emerging tech like blockchain (over which most digital currencies work) and AI.

Last year, the WEF even recognized decentralized oracle service Chainlink as one of the top fifty “technology pioneers” in the world, alongside MakerDAO, Bitcoin development team Lightning Labs, and blockchain analytics firm Elliptic.

We’re honored that @wef has selected @Chainlink as a 2020 TechPioneer! #techpioneers20 https://t.co/CDI4a7zWFS

— Chainlink – Official Channel (@chainlink) June 16, 2020

Such firms are early to growth-stage companies and are involved in work towards the design, development, and deployment of disruptive technologies and innovations. The Forum earmarks such firms to have a “significant impact” on business and broader society.

And now with the official discussions this week, how far more does WEF see crypto assets going?

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