Chinese economist Fu Peng joins Bitfire as chief scientist, hails crypto's historic rise

Chinese economist Fu Peng has joined Hong Kong-listed crypto asset management firm Bitfire Group as chief scientist, praising digital assets' 'historical' leap into mainstream finance. Speaking at a Bitfire event in Hong Kong on Thursday, Fu described the current moment as the 'second great integration' between finance and technology, following the 1980s emergence of fixed income, currencies, and commodities markets. Bitfire, previously linked to the Chinese crypto exchange Huobi (now HTX), also acquired a trading system and hired a 20-person team from Avenir Group for US$1.6 million. Fu's move is rare for a well-known Chinese economist given Beijing's ban on crypto, while Hong Kong encourages crypto activities under strict regulation.