Fortunately for lovers of bitcoin and blockchain, today’s Hoffman Family Business Lecture speaker, UVM alum ’93 Brian Kelly, was not a stellar accounting student; thus realizing he may not be cut out for that line of work, promptly switched to finance where two professors in particular, allowed his interest in markets and finance to bloom.
Kelly spoke to a crowd of students, faculty, and staff on Wednesday, April 5 as part of the Hoffman Family Business Lecture Series, hosted by the Grossman School of Business. The Hoffman Family Business Lecture Series provides opportunities for students to learn about innovative business practices from leading scholars and practitioners.
Fast forward to 2017, and Kelly, as one of the leading evangelists for the technology that he calls “the greatest game changer of this generation,” enthralled a packed Waterman Memorial Lounge.
He conveyed his career path from UVM to Wall Street that started as a cold-caller at Lehman Brothers, noting he learned lessons even from failure; “to always take something away from the experience whatever the outcome.”
A passion for investments and entrepreneurship has led Brian to start several successful investment businesses. His most recent start-up BKCM LLC is a global investment management firm specializing in Global Macro and Currency investing to a select clientele, including high net worth individual investors, family offices and institutions.
As a regular commentator on financial TV shows like CNBC’s Fast Money, Kelly has now carved out a niche in bitcoin, which he believes is the “internet of money and the future of finance.”
JD Kelly, a junior pursuing a dual degree in finance and economics stated "Mr. Kelly's lecture on bitcoin and blockchain provided great insight into an emerging disrupter of the financial industry as we know it." He continued "this lecture really challenged us to think about what the leading edge of financial innovation looks like. It is always exciting to learn about these innovations, because they keep our education up to date with what is currently being desired and implemented in the workplace." "It is lectures like these that enable us as students to be prepared for the jobs of the future." In addition to his talk, Kelly took time out for a working breakfast with top Grossman students as well as meeting with UVM Provost, David Rosowsky. Whether bitcoin and blockchain have such a dramatic impact on the finance industry remains to be seen, however Kelly left an impression on the students and assembled crowd that will linger for some time. Thank you Brian Kelly for sharing your insights, and leaving all of us with plenty of food for thought. Clearly innovation is not just the purview of Silicon Valley.