Ex-PM continues post-Downing Street career with booking at Singapore conference
Credit: WorldSpectrum
Boris Johnson will address a cryptocurrency conference in Singapore next month as he presses on with a public-speaking career following his three-year tenure as prime minister.
After leaving Downing Street earlier this year, he will feature as a keynote speaker at the International Symposium on Blockchain Advancements on 2 December. Although Johnson no longer has a role in government, he is still the MP for Uxbridge and South Ruislip and the event will take place when parliament is sitting.
Blockchain is a system where records of transactions made in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin are maintained across several computers that are linked to a peer-to-peer network.
The symposium’s website says that it “aims to guide the first step in migrating to the digital economy by provoking meaningful questions and discussions that will enable all of us, builders and consumers alike, to cut through the blockchain hype and grasp a realistic view of the emerging trends and needs, and to provide a technical blueprint for innovative solutions”.
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The event has another former high-ranking politician speaking. Dick Cheney, who was vice-president of the United States between 2001 and 2009 will contribute to the discussion.
Johnson was reportedly paid $150,000 last month for his first appearance as a speaker since he resigned as prime minister. He gave a 30-minute speech and had a further 45-minute moderated discussion with the Council of Insurance Agents and Brokers in Colorado.
An estimated two million people in the UK own cryptocurrencies. Earlier this year, the Bank of England published a research paper examining how the UK could potentially implement a digital currency run by the central bank.
Its publication came shortly after then-chancellor – and now prime minister – Rishi Sunak had announced the introduction of tougher regulations on how cryptocurrencies are promoted.
“Crypto assets can provide exciting new opportunities, offering people new ways to transact and invest, but it’s important that consumers are not being sold products with misleading claims,” he said. “We are ensuring consumers are protected, while also supporting innovation of the crypto-asset market.”
