Billionaire Alexander Lebedev Describes DeFi As “Revolutionary” Technology

Alexander Lebedev stands as the owner of the Evening Standard and The Independent, two UK newspapers. Alongside this, he owns the Novaya Gazeta publication. As it stands now, Lebedev has been public of his positive sentiment regarding smart contracts and cryptocurrency, claiming that it will revolutionize finance as we know it.

As Bullish For DeFi As You Can Get (Within Reason)

The billionaire wasn’t shy about it, either, with the man publishing a 1,800-word opinion piece about the matter at large in The Independent, doing so on the 13th of October, 2020. In this piece, the billionaire predicted that blockchain technology would disrupt the global financial system, which he referred to as a parasitic banking oligopoly. He explained that the integration of blockchain technology would render a large portion of those employed in the financial sector as obsolete.

Lebedev explained that there are tremendous opportunities that these technologies allow for in its infrastructure, opportunities to rebuild the global financial system outright. Even so, Lebedev was quick to say that the current explosive growth DeFi platforms are experiencing cannot be maintained indefinitely, being more as a result of a rapid liquidity influx.

Pushing For His Own Protocol

Lebedev explained that customers are capable of accessing financial services without the bank serving as a type of intermediary, thanks to the use of smart contracts. This, Lebedev states, will prevent “greedy bankers’ from stealing the funds of their respective clients, in turn.

Alongside this, Lebedev revealed to the public that he had invested an impressive $100,000 into a yield farming protocol based in Estonia, describing it as just an “experiment.” As such, the man was surprised at the quick returns he had made with it. He was so impressed with it, that he has opted to establish his own protocol, describing it as an “Independent Decentralized Financial Ecosystem.”

No Kind Words For The Current Financial System

One of the reasons why he is so adamant for cryptocurrencies and their potential, is his belief that, in its current form, the world’s financial system will only lead to economic disaster.

Lebedev himself had devoted 25 years of his life to banking, and purchased the third-largest bank of Russia, the National Reserve Bank, back in 1995. As such, he holds the claim of seeing a definitive shift in banking practices, moving towards the practice of pocketing client funds instead of serving the client. In particular, Lebedev highlighted how thousands of so-called “Banksters” in Russia have managed to misappropriate over $100 million in client funding ever since the 1990s.