TCNJ

16 The College of New Jersey Magazine Cryptocurrency has gained a foothold in global economics and shows no signs of slowing down. But what the heck is it? We turn to two alumni for the basics. When it comes to our traditional financial institutions, the phrase cash is king is widely accepted as truth. That is, cash — our government-printed money — is perceived as more valuable than any other form of investment, especially in times of economic uncertainty. Today, however, with the rise of cryptocurrencies (cash's digital relatives), some wonder if the king is set to be dethroned. Simply put, crypto is a digital asset that isn't issued by the U.S. government and is named for its cryptography (computer coding that authenticates and secures it). Created in 2009 amid a banking crisis that left some Americans with a distrust of our central system, the popularity of cryptocurrency has surged in recent years. But for many of us, understanding this new asset is anything but simple. That's where two alumni experts come in. Meet Jeff Horowitz '90, chief compliance officer at BitGo, and Dennis O'Connell '09, chief technology officer of the PSG Peregrine Digital Institutional Cryptocurrency Fund and acting director of decentralized finance product at Securrency. They are here to give a primer of what cryptocurrency is, how it works, and why there's so much buzz around it. Interviews YOLANDER PRINZEL Pictures PETER MURPHY CRYPTO 101

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