According to CoinDesk, Connie Shoemaker, a former executive at Goldman Sachs, has been appointed to the board of directors at crypto custody firm Anchorage Digital. Currently, Shoemaker is the COO and CFO of Bridgewater Associates Holdings, the parent company of Bridgewater Associates, the world's largest hedge fund.
Anchorage Digital holds the distinction of being the only crypto bank currently chartered by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). Other institutions, such as Paxos and Protego, have tried but failed to secure a full charter from the OCC, unable to surpass the provisional charter stage. The company's business is experiencing growth due to the surge in institutional interest in crypto, driven by the approval of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs), according to a company spokesperson.
The expansion of Anchorage Digital's board of directors is part of the company's strategy to meet the increasing institutional demand for a safe, secure, and federally regulated digital asset infrastructure. Nathan McCauley, co-founder and CEO of Anchorage Digital, stated that Shoemaker's experience in the traditional finance world would be invaluable to the company's growth. He emphasized that her experience in building the commercial bank division at Goldman Sachs is highly relevant to the work of Anchorage Digital.
Shoemaker held the position of global head of strategy at Goldman Sachs during the 2008 global financial crisis, where she managed the growth of Goldman Sachs Asset Management (GSAM). She later served as Goldman Sachs' Chief Administrative Officer. McCauley expressed that by adding Shoemaker to the board, Anchorage Digital is reinforcing its commitment to advancing the institutional ecosystem with its federally regulated offering.