Knowledge at Wharton Ripple Effect: The Rise of Crypto | Campbell Harvey and Neha Narula
Aug 5, 2025
Campbell Harvey, a finance professor at Duke University known for his pioneering work in crypto, and Neha Narula, director of MIT Media Lab's Digital Currency Initiative with expertise in the history of money, dive into the transformative journey of cryptocurrency. They discuss its promise for financial inclusion, explore the inefficiencies in traditional banking, and highlight how trust has shaped the evolution of money. The conversation also tackles the balance between centralization and decentralization in finance, showcasing the innovative potential of digital assets.
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Crypto Bridges Financial Gaps
- Crypto addresses major inefficiencies in traditional finance like high transaction costs and slow settlement times.
- It also promotes financial inclusion by enabling billions without bank access to participate via smartphones.
Crypto Resolves Market Barriers
- Traditional finance can't settle transactions 24/7 or support programmable payments efficiently.
- Crypto is overcoming market structure and incentive barriers, not merely technological limitations.
Money As Collective Fiction
- Money’s value lies in collective belief and trust, making it a social construct or 'collective fiction.'
- Crypto is the next evolution revealing underlying assumptions about trust and value in our monetary system.
