JPMorgan Appoints Former Celsius Exec as Crypto Regulatory Policy Head: Report

JPMorgan (JPM) has appointed Aaron Iovine as its head of crypto regulatory policy, a newly created role, according to a Bloomberg report on Wednesday.

The U.S. investment banking giant wishes to expand its digital asset regulatory scope given the volatile conditions in the market in recent months with a downturn in cryptocurrencies' values and several firms becoming insolvent.

Iovine himself used to work for one of these, spending eight months as head of policy and regulatory affairs for crypto lender Celsius, which filed for bankruptcy protection in July. Iovine held this role from February to September this year according to his LinkedIn page.

JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon is well known for his disdain for cryptocurrency, most recently referring to crypto tokens as "decentralized Ponzis". He did however praise blockchain technology, noting its certain "real" aspects, using JPMorgan's Onyx platform for wholesale payments as an example.

The bank did not immediately respond to CoinDesk's request for comment on the new hire.

Read more: Why Celsius Doxxed Hundreds of Thousands of Users