Mark Zuckerberg's sister showcases Bitcoin and Ripple

Randi Zuckerberg’s latest guests at satellite radio SiriusXM are going hell for leather for blockchain technology and Bitcoin.

By Liam Frost

Mar 20, 2020

2 min read

Zuckerberg seems to be open to Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Image: Shutterstock.

In brief

Randi Zuckerberg spoke with Bitcoin and cryptocurrency experts in an interview.
Unsurprisingly, the interviewees were bullish on the crypto industry.
Her brother, Mark Zuckerberg, is building his own cryptocurrency, called Libra.

SiriusXM satellite radio host Randi Zuckerberg has been tweeting non-stop about cryptocurrency and blockchain over the last few days. She has been posting quotes from a March 18 interview she did with three high-profile crypto experts. They spoke about Bitcoin, Ripple and how blockchain will change the world.

Randi Zuckerberg’s first guest was Meltem Demirors, Chief Strategy Officer at digital asset management firm CoinShares, which has $750 million under its management.

Speaking about how she first came into the crypto world, Demirors said that she “went into a rabbit hole on Reddit” and discovered that Bitcoin is not just about technology but also has a strong philosophical component. According to her, it is about “monetary policy, self-sovereignty, and rights of the individual vs. the rights of the state.”

"Until bitcoin, we had never really thought about why we value the U.S. dollar over the Rwandan dollar and what's the difference between them. What is the reason that we pay exorbitant taxes?" @Melt_Dem

— Randi Zuckerberg (@randizuckerberg) March 18, 2020

She also highlighted Bitcoin’s—and other cryptocurrencies’—main advantage: they don’t require you to trust third parties.

Asheesh Birla, Senior vice president of product and corporate development at Ripple, echoed that sentiment. Ripple is a company that focuses using the cryptocurrency XRP for cross-border payments. In his opinion, the whole point of blockchain is that it’s “removing the intermediary, whether that be the banks or other financial institutions.”

"I found the Amazon of Blockchain with @ripple!" @ashgoblue

— Randi Zuckerberg (@randizuckerberg) March 18, 2020

Birla noted that blockchain technology is already seeing real-world adoption and solving real problems. “I think Ripple will be really taking off in the next 2 years. The world order will be reshuffled using blockchain technology. I think Asia will lead the pack,” he added.

Birla also said blockchain is an example of a technology that creates something out of nothing, and this thrills him.

Alexander Tapscott, a co-author of “Blockchain Revolution,” also argued that blockchain technology is the real underlying value of Bitcoin.

"Blockchain is a lot more than a nifty new technology and it's a lot more than Bitcoin." @alextapscott

— Randi Zuckerberg (@randizuckerberg) March 18, 2020

In his opinion, blockchain will “impact financial services beyond the internet impact” as it allows scarcity to be programmed into digital assets. And this hard-coded supply is exactly why “Bitcoin is often compared to gold, a digital gold,” he concluded.

Although not even that narrative has been holding up recently.

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