As the cryptocurrency space has grown, exchanges have become the dominant juggernauts of the industry. One of the earliest and most reputable exchanges is Kraken. From the company's formation in 2011, Kraken has grown to 4m users and almost 1,000 employees.
We are joined by Kraken Founder and CEO Jesse Powell. We dove into the history of Kraken, their values and the vision that's driving them.

Topics covered in this episode:

How selling virtual goods for games led Jesse to discover Bitcoin
Why cryptocurrencies will lead to a better financial system
How Kraken launched and ended up getting strong traction in Europe
The challenges and changes of the regulatory environment
His thoughts on DeFi and decentralized exchanges
Kraken's approach to listing assets on the exchange
How to create a strong culture in a distributed company
His vision for Kraken to become a general trading and investment platform

Episode links:

Sponsors:

Cosmos: Change the future of finance at the SF Blockchain Week Defi Hackathon – $50,000 prize pool for winning teams - https://epicenter.rocks/sfcosmos
Trail of Bits: Trust the team at the forefront of blockchain security research - https://trailofbits.com

This episode is hosted by Sebastien Couture & Brian Fabian Crain. Show notes and listening options: epicenter.tv/313

Jesse Powell: How Kraken Accelerates Cryptocurrency Adoption