Paolo Ardoino | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1984 (age 40–41) |
| Nationality | Italian |
| Education | University of Genoa |
| Occupation | Computer scientist |
| Known for | Tether and Bitfinex |
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]
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]
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]
In 2024 Ardoino buys 8% of the shares of the Italian football team Juventus.