Also, Stephens says that Dimon’s comments discounting the significance of bitcoin were reflective of his lack of understanding of the technology’s potential.
“The blockchain and cryptocurrencies have elicited an emotional response from financial incumbents. The technology is controversial and misunderstood, but that doesn’t make it any less real,” he says to Term Sheet.
“I would encourage Jamie Dimon and others to do some homework first. It is not a fraud. It is not a Ponzi scheme. It’s a robust technology that is going to impact multiple industries,” Stephens says. “Don’t discount it.”
Stephens says the wave is coming. “For too long, Silicon Valley has ignored the tsunami,” he says. “Many of my friends who are at generalist VC firms dismiss this stuff out of hand because they’re not spending the time to do the homework.”
Of course, it is in Stephens’ interest to publicly promote the potential of bitcoin technology. He is an investor in it. Blockchain Capital has a whole portfolio of blockchain-enabled companies, including Coinbase, Ripple and Abra.