Chamber of Digital Commerce, the first Washington, DC-based trade association representing the digital asset industry, has announced the appointment of Mark Wetjen to its Board of Advisors.
Wetjen currently serves as the Head of Global Public Policy at The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC), the world’s leading post-trade market infrastructure for the global financial services industry, processing nearly $1.5 quadrillion worth of securities transactions in 2015. Prior to DTCC, he served as Commissioner at the U.S. Commodity and Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
“We are excited to have Mark bring his vast experience and knowledge of financial markets and technology to our association and the Board of Advisors. Mark and the Board will help to shape the next chapter of financial services technology,” said Perianne Boring, Founder and President of the Chamber.
In a statement, Wetjen noted the tremendous opportunities that are being created by new and innovative technologies to connect economies worldwide, make markets safer and more efficient and deliver services to consumers in novel ways. He particularly spoke about the potential of blockchain and distributed ledger technologies, saying:
“[D]istributed ledger technology offers the industry a unique opportunity to drive targeted improvements to the financial market infrastructures that underpin the global capital market. I am pleased to join the Chamber and look forward to collaborating with the industry around fintech and blockchain strategies, which will be important to any future re-architecting of the post-trade environment.”
DTCC Joins Chamber’s Executive Committee
In addition, Chamber of Digital Commerce also announced that the DTCC has joined its Executive Committee. DTCC has a focused blockchain strategy to ensure the firm capitalizes on distributed ledger opportunities in a measured, appropriate, safe and secure manner. DTCC has made significant advancements with a number of internal business use cases and is currently working on several proof of concepts with the industry, including initiatives related to repurchase agreements (repos) and credit default swaps (CDS).
Also, the DTCC was one of the seven firms to take part in the successful test of blockchain technology and smart contracts to manage post-trade lifecycle events for standard North American single name credit default swaps. In addition, DTCC has made a financial investment in blockchain startup Digital Asset Holdings and has also joined the Linux Foundation to support the Hyperledger project, a collaborative effort to advance the blockchain technology.
