Luno CEO: ‘Industry accelerated a lot faster this year than we anticipated’

What

CEO of Luno Marcus Swanepoel reveals his thoughts on the acceleration of the crypto industry

Why

2021 has been a breakthrough year for the crypto market with new currencies, products and solutions emerging

What next

Luno will continue with its missions to upgrade the world to a better financial system across a global footprint

The Story

In remarks published by the Daily Maverick, Marcus Swanepoel, CEO of Luno offered his thoughts on the pace of the crypto industry’s acceleration in 2021. The pace surprised many, including Marcus, who did not anticipate the pace of the growth.

“The industry accelerated a lot faster this year than we anticipated. We knew it was coming, but just not that fast, particularly in certain subsectors like NFTs and some altcoins,” Swanepoel is quoted explaining.

Since its acquisition by Digital Currency Group, Swanepoel also offered his views on the perceived threat to cryptocurrencies posed by central bank digital currencies (CBDC). He explained that while many governments are seemingly interested in issuing or are experimenting with CBDCs, the reality is that it will take several years before such digital currencies are fully rolled out.

Looking to 2022, Marcus intends for Luno to continue expanding across all markets where it makes sense to, including other African countries. “We definitely see ourselves as a global first, but with a strong emerging market footprint,” he concluded.