Paolo Ardoino (born 1984) is an Italian billionaire businessman and computer scientist who has served as the chief executive officer (CEO) of Tether since December 2023.[1] He also serves as the chief technology officer (CTO) of Bitfinex.[2]

Early life and education

Ardoino was born in 1984 in Cisano sul Neva, Italy.[3][4] He began coding at the age of eight. He obtained a bachelor's degree in computer science from the University of Genoa.[5]

Career

After completing his education, Ardoino joined the University of Genoa as researcher, where he worked on research projects involving cybersecurity and cryptography for military applications.[6][7] He left the University of Genoa in 2011.[7]

Ardoino moved to London in 2013, where he founded Fincluster, a technology startup that built cloud-based financial service applications for fund managers and institutions across London, Milan, and Lugano.[8]

In 2014, Ardoino joined Bitfinex as a software engineer.[1] Two years later, in 2016, he transitioned to the role of chief technology officer.[9]

In 2017, Ardoino became chief technology officer of Tether.[6]

In 2022, Ardoino founded Holepunch, an open-source platform designed for building P2P products with computer scientist Mathias Buus.[10] In March 2022, Ardoino worked with Michele Foletti, the mayor of Lugano, Switzerland, to accept Tether and other cryptocurrencies for municipal payments.[11]

In December 2023, Ardoino was appointed as the chief executive officer of Tether.[6] Under Ardoino, Tether's stablecoin, USDT, has grown to become the first and largest United States dollar-backed stablecoin by market capitalization,[12] and Bitfinex is the world's second largest exchange by number of Bitcoin held in its digital wallet.[13] Tether has invested approximately $2.5 billion in sustainable energy and technology sectors and about $1 billion in artificial intelligence infrastructure company Northern Data[14] and $200 million in Blackrock Neurotech, an American brain implant company, taking a majority stake.[15] Ardoino directs these investments to come from Tether's profits, not its customer reserves.[8] Under Ardoino, Tether has supported El Salvador's Volcano Energy renewable power project[16] aimed at supporting the country's Bitcoin adoption, which aims to raise up to $1 billion. Ardoino has also led Tether to invest in the growth of renewable energy and sustainable Bitcoin mining in Uruguay.[17][18]

References

  1. ^ a b Nicolle, Emily (October 20, 2023). "Tether's Frontman Inherits Crypto's $84 Billion Behemoth". Bloomberg.
  2. ^ "Paolo Ardoino". Forbes.
  3. ^ "Paolo Ardoino, chi è il fondatore di Tether che ora guarda alla Juventus". la Repubblica. February 14, 2025.
  4. ^ "Paolo Ardoino, ad di Tether e nuovo azionista della Juventus: «Abbiamo la capacità finanziaria per sostenere la squadra per i prossimi 2000 anni»". Corriere della Sera. February 17, 2025.
  5. ^ "Paolo Ardoino (Tether): "L'aumento delle tasse sui Bitcoin farà scappare dall'Italia cervelli e capitali"". la Repubblica. October 18, 2024.
  6. ^ a b c Howcroft, Elizabeth (2023-10-13). "Stablecoin Tether appoints chief technology officer Ardoino as CEO". Reuters. Retrieved 2024-06-12.
  7. ^ a b "Paolo Ardoino, da ricercatore a 800 euro al mese a miliardario con i bitcoin: «Io e Giancarlo Devasini, ecco la nostra storia»". Corriere della Sera. April 5, 2024.
  8. ^ a b Bambysheva, Nina (2024-05-09). "How Crypto Giant Tether's New CEO Is Remaking The Company For The Apocalypse". Forbes. Retrieved 2024-09-16.
  9. ^ "CityAM". 2021-02-05. Retrieved 2024-06-12.
  10. ^ "Connecting Asia's startup ecosystem". Tech in Asia. Retrieved 2024-06-12.
  11. ^ Benrath, Bastian (2023-12-06). "Taxpayers in Swiss City Can Settle Bills With Bitcoin, Tether". Bloomberg. Retrieved 2024-02-26.
  12. ^ Browne, Ryan (2023-05-17). "Tether buys bitcoin with a portion of its net profit to back USDT stablecoin". CNBC. Retrieved 2024-06-12.
  13. ^ "As banks buy up bitcoins, who else are the 'Bitcoin whales'?". BBC Home. 2024-03-01. Retrieved 2024-06-12.
  14. ^ Kharif, Olga (2024-06-11). "Tether to Invest More Than $1 Billion in Deals Over Next Year". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2024-09-16.
  15. ^ Howcroft, Elizabeth (2024-04-29). "Crypto company Tether invests $200 mln in brain-chip maker Blackrock Neurotech". Reuters. Retrieved 2024-06-12.
  16. ^ "El Salvador Bitcoin city planned at base of Conchagua volcano". BBC Home. 2021-11-21. Retrieved 2024-06-12.
  17. ^ Browne, Ryan (2023-05-30). "Stablecoin giant Tether to mine bitcoin in Uruguay using renewable energy". CNBC. Retrieved 2024-06-12.
  18. ^ Bhardwaj, Shashank (2023-05-31). "Tether To Use Renewable Energy For Bitcoin Mining In Uruguay". Forbes India. Retrieved 2024-06-12.
Allikas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paolo_Ardoino
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