Lukka’s Materazzi: Crypto Is Here, and All the Biggest Banks Know It

Crypto businesses are increasingly leaning into traditional banking products, Materazzi said, and he is excited to see how traditional banking starts to merge with digital assets.

article-image

Robert Materazzi, CEO of Lukka

share

key takeaways

  • Robert Materazzi sees further regulation as an opportunity to bring greater security and legitimacy to the digital asset space, if done well
  • There is going to be an increase in traditional financial institutions leaning into crypto products and offerings, he said

Banking in cryptocurrencies is here to stay, Robert Materazzi, CEO of Lukka, told Blockworks earlier this month at the Bretton Woods: The Realignment conference. 

“I don’t think that many people can argue that it isn’t here,” said Materazzi “All of the big banks are working on it in some way, with actual business units, if they haven’t already launched, they are just about to, which is very exciting.” 

Crypto businesses are increasingly leaning into traditional banking products, he said, and he is excited to see how traditional banking starts to merge with digital assets. 

Materazzi, who works closely with regulators day-to-day, is excited about how further regulation can elevate the digital asset space. 

“Buy some crypto, first,” Materazzi said of his advice to regulators trying to better understand the space. “What I mean by that is get your hands dirty, you have to actually go through the motions.” 

Watch my full interview with Materazzi below.

Want more investor-focused content on digital assets? Join us September 13th and 14th for the Digital Asset Summit (DAS) in NYC. Use code ARTICLE for $75 off your ticket. Buy it now.

Tags

Upcoming Events

Brooklyn, NY

SUN - MON, JUN. 22 - 23, 2025

Blockworks and Cracked Labs are teaming up for the third installment of the Permissionless Hackathon, happening June 22–23, 2025 in Brooklyn, NY. This is a 36-hour IRL builder sprint where developers, designers, and creatives ship real projects solving real problems across […]

Industry City | Brooklyn, NY

TUES - THURS, JUNE 24 - 26, 2025

Permissionless IV serves as the definitive gathering for crypto’s technical founders, developers, and builders to come together and create the future.If you’re ready to shape the future of crypto, Permissionless IV is where it happens.

Old Billingsgate

Mon - Wed, October 13 - 15, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

recent research

Research

article-image

The Arbitrum-based perps DEX recently launched its points campaign

article-image

P2P Foundation founder Michel Bauwens revealed this week that Satoshi wrote him over email in the early days of Bitcoin

article-image

A Blockworks Research report looked at how Hyperliquid has maintained its hype and how it can build out its businesses

article-image

Dragonfly’s Rob Hadick discussed how the firm is approaching investments in the current market

article-image

The asset surged over the past seven days to reach its highest-ever weekly close on the SOL/ETH pair

article-image

Industry watchers note that SOL ETFs have attracted a fraction of the demand for bitcoin and ether ETFs