Since the 2017 mania, every year in the crypto and blockchain space has been increasingly eventful. 2019 was no exception: Along with Facebook’s Libra project and China’s digital yuan endeavors, Intercontinental Exchange’s digital assets platform Bakkt was finally launched. Its CEO, Kelly Loeffler, ensured a smooth start for the exchange, then swiftly left her business to pursue a political career by the end of the year. She now represents the state of Georgia in the United States Senate, and as one of the most influential people affiliated with the crypto industry, she could potentially pave the way for Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies in Washington.
Loeffler was born in Bloomington, Illinois on Nov. 27, 1970. She grew up on her family’s farming estate in Stanford, working the soybean fields. “We lived simply,” Loeffler recalled at a recent press conference. “Life revolved around farming, church, school and 4-H.” She allegedly became interested in stock markets as early as the age of 10; her mother kept track of commodity prices on a kitchen napkin every day before lunchtime.