It seems that blockchain has another high-profile advocate in Wall Street, as Steve Chiavarone, VP of financial services company Federated Investors, has made some bullish statements on the distributed ledger technology, calling it an “economic growth driver” among other compliments.

When asked about whether blockchain can be the factor that fuels economic growth, he noted that “This is going to be one of five key technologies – along with automation, robotics, artificial intelligence and the Internet of things that drive this next industrial revolution.“ According to Mr. Chiavarone, some of the largest financial firms in the US have already begun adopting the technology. Bank of America has filed no less than 45 crypto-related patents, thus reaffirming his staunch optimism for the future of blockchain.

He went on to list the benefits of the technology for businesses, saying that, “When you think about blockchain from a business perspective, it has the ability to replace reconciliation in businesses which is expensive and which required back-office and time and more to that a lot of paperwork with more instantaneous verification. By using blockchain technology, such costs will be cut, and there will be more savings.“

Mr. Chiavarone has also shared some insights when asked how investors can benefit from the enormous potential of blockchain technology. He pointed to people that simply invested in bitcoin, although doubted whether it was the best course of action. Instead, he highlighted companies such as Nvidia and Intel that “enable blockchain verification” (a hint to crypto mining) as being good avenues to invest for those looking to enter the market and support the budding technology.

The VP concluded by saying that basically, any company with a supply chain can have huge benefits by implementing the blockchain technology. A good example could be the electronics giant Samsung, which now controls its enormous quantities of supplies using a blockchain platform.

In yet another pro-crypto statement recently, venture capitalist Fred Wilson said that “Cryptocurrencies are the fuel that powers a new form of technology infrastructure that is being built on top of the foundational internet protocols.“

Responding to anti-crypto remarks made by Warren Buffet, who likened bitcoin to rat poison, Mr. Wilson went on to claim that blockchain-powered smart contracts are the most important innovation in crypto sphere yet. While Mr. Buffet is an accomplished and truly visionary investor, he is not always right. Years ago, he claimed that neither Google nor Amazon were destined for a bright future. Looking at both companies today, it is safe to say he could not have been more wrong.

Perhaps that is why we should not be scared by Mr. Buffet’s doomsday predictions for cryptocurrencies, as he himself has admitted of not being tech-savvy. Understanding the underlying principles and the potential of blockchain is hard as it is, let alone for a man in his late 80s with little technical knowledge. After all, the most important lesson for investors according to Mr. Buffet is to only bet on businesses they understand.

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