Jesse Powell

Founder & Executive Chairman, Kraken

Search every verified Jesse Powell interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. Jesse Powell, co-founder and executive chairman of Kraken, has continued to advocate for cryptocurrency as a foundational technology for new societies and a financial "rail of last resort." In a 2025 interview, he discussed the concept of "network states," describing them as a "new frontier" where a "crypto-first society" could be built, with Kraken potentially designing financial products to support such experiments. He has also been critical of the U.S. regulatory environment, stating that there is still "a lot of uncertainty" and calling for a single regulator for crypto and clearer asset classification. Powell has described the SEC's approach as applying "laws that were created 80 years ago" to crypto. Powell has also been outspoken on workplace culture and political issues. In 2023, he published a memo outlining Kraken's libertarian-leaning culture, which he described as "the most neutral view," and offered employees who disagreed a severance package. He has stated that he believes "when you go woke you go broke" and that the company saw a surge in job applications after the policy was publicized. Regarding the 2022 collapse of FTX, Powell characterized it as a "scam" and a "Ponzi," but argued it was not an indictment of the broader crypto industry)Skip to content