- May 27th 2014, 9:27am CDT

Matt Kenahan is a busy guy. At just 22 years old, he’s the Founder and CEO of The Bitcoin Society, he just finished his degree at renowned business school Washington University in St. Louis, and he’s the winner of two Blockchain Awards in Amsterdam at Bitcoin2014 on May 16th. As can be expected, he and his organization are hot topics of conversation in some of the highest echelons of the Bitcoin community right now.

After missing him in St. Louis, Amsterdam, and Chicago, I was able to track Matthew down in Los Angeles on Friday before he heads on another trip overseas – a planned ‘post-graduation’ trip with his siblings that has been reworked to take advantage of some new networking opportunities. He was gracious enough to chat with me about his background, The Bitcoin Society, and what winning the Blockchain Awards has meant to him and his organization.

HR: Where are you from, what’s your background?

MK: “I was born in Mishawaka, Indiana. My dad is from Providence, Rhode Island, my mother from Canton, Mississippi – they met at Notre Dame – and I pretty much grew up in Chicago.”

HK: So you just graduated with your bachelors?

MK: “Yea, I had a specific focus in International Business Marketing, and I did a minor in Arts and Sciences – in Spanish, just because I’d been taking that for awhile.”



HR: Why Washington University?

MK: “It’s the #5 business school in the nation . I had the option to go to a few of the Ivy League schools, and Westpoint, but I was very involved in sports and it was the only place where I would be able to play baseball and football – I was having trouble deciding between the two. Plus, it was also close to home.”

HR: Has the University been supportive?

MK: “Absolutely, yea. They have something called the ‘Bridge Program’ and it’s through the business school. They awarded me $5000, and we’re also allowed to offer internships through the career center that count towards graduation. And the most exciting thing is that for each additional senior that joins our team from the business school, they’re eligible to receive that same $5k award.”

“I’ve had conversations with the deans, and it’s clear that [Bitcoin] has piqued their interest, especially with the developments at other accredited universities like MIT. They’ve been extremely supportive and I’m thankful for that.”