Joseph Chalom, CEO: “Active engagement with regulators is crucial for digital assets” [Crypto Briefing]

[Financial News]"Before launching innovative digital asset products, the most important thing is active engagement with supervisory authorities. You cannot expect regulators to automatically understand all the details," he said.He gave this answer when asked on the 5th how he had communicated with the Joe Biden administration in the United States while working at BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, to launch digital asset products. At BlackRock, Chalom led the rollout of spot Bitcoin and Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs), as well as a tokenized money market fund (MMF) and the BlackRock USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL). SharpLink began as a sports betting and i-gaming business, but in June last year it transformed into a Digital Asset Treasury (DAT) company that manages Ethereum as a core asset. By the holdings of listed companies, it currently ranks second in the world in Ethereum reserves.
Before joining BlackRock, Chalom earned a Juris Doctor from Columbia Law School and worked as an attorney. Although that background may seem far removed from asset management and digital assets, he explained that his legal experience is precisely what enabled him to bring innovative products to market.
“Through legal training, I learned how to think about frameworks, risk and governance principles, and that became an essential skill throughout my time at BlackRock,” Chalom noted. “As a technology and venture capital lawyer, I built strategic partnerships between ‘traditional companies’ and ‘innovative internet business models,’ and I learned that a ‘win–win partnership’ is the most sustainable and successful approach,” he said.
He went on, “Since joining BlackRock in 2005, I spent 20 years building institutional-scale platforms and partnerships. When institutions began to view Bitcoin and Ethereum as investable assets, we approached them with the same systematic framework we had applied to technological innovation and investment decisions.” He added, “We started by designing products from a risk and regulatory perspective, and that ultimately led to the launch of digital asset ETFs and what was then the largest tokenized MMF, BUIDL.”
Chalom also stressed the importance of communication for firms in Korea that are preparing to launch products while the country is still in the process of introducing detailed regulations. “It is crucial to explain why the ‘digitalization of the financial system’ matters for Korea’s economic competitiveness and how it benefits citizens and investors,” he said. “Regulators in particular should not confuse these with risky assets. Stablecoins and Bitcoin funds are simply modern forms of ownership. On the blockchain, all transactions are public and auditable, which allows for transparency,” he explained.
He continued, “If regulators understand that this is not a dangerous activity but a change similar to the digitalization of the stock market, they will also recognize that failing to compete could leave them behind other markets.” He emphasized, “Korea is a young and highly advanced technological society, and consumers here have a strong grasp of technology. Korea can become a leader in the digitalization of the economy. In my view, the real ‘risk’ is stopping progress.”
Chalom joined SharpLink as co-CEO in July last year. Since December, he has been leading the company as its sole CEO.
In closing, Chalom predicted that the DAT strategy and Ethereum could become the new mainstream. “After retiring from BlackRock, I was fascinated by the idea that Ethereum could serve as trust infrastructure for the future of finance,” he said. “Most digital asset activity now begins on Ethereum, and it enables payments and settlement on a global scale. That is why we view Ethereum not just as an asset, but as next-generation foundational infrastructure for finance,” he added.
yimsh0214@fnnews.com Reporter Sang-hyuk Lim Reporter