Different voices in product, policy and hiring change crypto outcomes, panelists tell Consensus Miami

Senior leaders from Mastercard, the Crypto Council for Innovation and Clerisy said the right people in the right rooms can reshape internal decisions, citing examples from stablecoin-linked cards and financial access to staking-policy framing in Washington.

What to know:

• Mastercard’s Maja Lapcevic, Crypto Council for Innovation’s Alison Mangiero and Clerisy’s Alexandra Wilkis Wilson told CoinDesk’s Consensus Miami conference Tuesday that bringing different voices into product, policy and hiring discussions can change the outcomes those discussions produce.
• Lapcevic said an outside partner helped Mastercard think beyond crypto infrastructure and focus on making crypto “accessible, not complex,” including through cards linked to stablecoins for users in markets with limited access to traditional financial services.
• Mangiero said CCI’s policy work on staking changed after builders of staking primitives joined the discussion, helping the group describe staking as a “technical service” rather than a financialized product.

The right voices in the right rooms can reshape product, policy and hiring outcomes in crypto, three senior executives told CoinDesk’s Consensus Miami conference on Tuesday. Each cited a moment from her own organization when an outside perspective changed what was being built, argued or prioritized.

Mastercard SVP for Blockchain & Digital Assets Maja Lapcevic said her company’s crypto team had initially viewed infrastructure as the key to crypto adoption, until a partner reframed the problem around usability. “We probably all thought about infrastructure to be the winning formula for crypto,” she said. “But one of our partners actually really helped shed light on how we make crypto accessible, not complex, very simple to use.” That thinking helped push Mastercard toward cards linked to stablecoins, including for users in markets with limited access to traditional financial services, she said.

Crypto Council for Innovation Chief Strategy Officer Alison Mangiero said her organization had a similar realization around staking after bringing builders into policy discussions. “Sometimes we might think we understand, or we’ll put things into a bucket,” she said. “We’ll take a shortcut and say, oh, that sounds like a fund. Oh, that sounds like interest or yield, when in actuality what’s going on under the hood is fundamentally different.” After hearing from people building staking primitives, she said, CCI understood the need to describe staking as a technical service rather than a financialized product.

Clerisy Co-Founder and Managing Partner Alexandra Wilkis Wilson brought the argument to hiring. “Many of us fall into a very comfortable bias of hiring people who not only might look like ourselves or remind you of your younger self,” she said. She recalled one 10-person startup where a Myers-Briggs analysis found that eight of the 10 team members were extroverts. “It’s really important, when you’re growing teams, to not only bring in diversity on the outside, but also to think about diversity on the inside,” she said.

Mangiero closed by framing the issue as one for the broader industry. Crypto “is having a moment right now where folks are really interested in hearing our voice,” she said, “but that begs the question, what is our voice at the end of the day?” The conference, she added, “is called Consensus for a reason.” Good policy, she said, requires the industry to ensure different communities are reflected, including token holders and people building on top of blockchain networks, while also protecting consumers and allowing innovation to thrive.

More For You

Payward and Kraken co-CEO Arjun Sethi says the exchange is “80% ready” to go public, as a new partnership with MoneyGram aims to expand access to digital assets by solving last-mile cash conversion.

What to know:

• Kraken is still preparing for an IPO, with co-CEO Arjun Sethi saying the company is “80% ready."
• MoneyGram and Kraken announced a partnership to enable easier conversion between crypto and cash globally.
• Both firms see stablecoins and digital assets lowering costs and expanding access, especially in underserved markets.

AI agents are breaking web economics, but Cloudflare says x402 can help

13 minutes ago

Kraken eyes IPO as it partners with MoneyGram to bridge crypto-to-cash gap

32 minutes ago

State Street says institutions want improved blockchain security in wake of recent DeFi attacks

33 minutes ago

Crypto's 'barbell': speculation and stablecoin payments drive adoption, Tempo's Romero says

36 minutes ago

Citi exec says fragmented crypto systems risk repeating old banking problems

38 minutes ago

Overseas demand for U.S. equities is growing, says Robinhood's Johan Kerbrart

41 minutes ago

Strategy posts $12.54 billion Q1 loss on declining bitcoin price

1 hour ago

Bitcoin extends gains to $81,500 as tokenization push lifts Bullish, Galaxy, Centrifuge

3 hours ago

Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse says Clarity better than chaos as Senate hits key moment

5 hours ago

Consensus Miami Day 1: Real-time coverage and highlights from on the ground

8 hours ago

Figure targets Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in mortgage push, citing massive cost cuts for borrowers

4 hours ago

Coinbase cuts 14% of staff as AI reshapes how crypto companies operate

10 hours ago