Key Highlights:
- Artificial intelligence agents need crypto and blockchain’s speed and scalability to operate effectively in finance
- Traditional Finance is Obsolete
- Bitcoin is more valuable than gold because it is digital, programmable, easily movable, and can offer a yield.
- Institutional Adoption is Slow
Coinbase’s John D’Agostino believes that the world of finance needs a serious upgrade if AI agents are going to work well. In his view, trying to run these cutting-edge artificial intelligence agents on today’s traditional financial system is like trying to stream a movie using an old dial-up modem. It simply won’t work.
AI Needs Crypto’s Speed
D’Agostino, who heads institutional strategy at Coinbase, argues that crypto and blockchain technology are essential for AI-powered agents to operate effectively in the financial markets. The main problem with the current, traditional system is that it’s just too slow and outdated.
He stresses that if AI agents are going to manage money and act on people’s behalf, they need access to “true sources of information.” If they don’t, the results could be “disastrous.”
D’Agostino sees a natural partnership between the two technologies:
- Artificial Intelligence offers intelligence that can scale limitlessly.
- Blockchain (the technology behind crypto) offers a “source of truth” that can also scale limitlessly.
When you put those two together, you get a powerful combination.
The Problem with Traditional Finance
Today’s financial systems were never designed for the kind of transactions AI agents need to perform: real-time, machine-to-machine, and at a massive scale.
D’Agostino told CNBC that asking AI agents to operate on “100-year-old financial rails” is a non-starter. If we want to take advantage of these agents that act at “infinitely fast speeds,” then they need money rails that are just as fast and scalable.
That’s where blockchain and crypto come in. He emphasized the comparison: you wouldn’t try to stream on a dial-up modem, so you shouldn’t ask AI agents to transact on a financial system that’s even older than those modems.
Why Bitcoin is Not Just Digital Gold
D’Agostino also weighed in on the popular debate comparing Bitcoin (BTC) to gold. In his opinion, comparing the two misses the point entirely, because Bitcoin has unique characteristics that gold simply doesn’t have.
He described Bitcoin as:
- Programmable: It’s more than just a store of value; it can be integrated into applications and systems.
- Digital: It exists in the digital world, making it instantly accessible.
- Infinitely Scalable in Movement: It’s easy to move across borders instantly, unlike having to “lug” physical gold around.
- Yield-Producing: It offers potential returns that traditional gold doesn’t.
The Inflation Argument
For those genuinely concerned that the global money supply is growing too fast—and thus causing inflation—D’Agostino says you need assets that can outpace that growth. He believes Bitcoin is one of those assets.
He also expressed bullishness on Bitcoin due to the trillions of dollars currently sitting in money market funds. These funds were popular because US interest rates were high (around 5%), offering a way to beat inflation. As the Federal Reserve starts to potentially cut those rates (like they did recently on September 17th), he predicts that money will start to flow out of those low-yield money markets and into other assets. While not all of it will go to Bitcoin, he expects a significant portion will find its way into crypto.
The Institutional “Wave” is a Myth
Finally, D’Agostino threw some cold water on the idea of a sudden, massive “institutional wave” of crypto adoption that many people predict will be the next big market driver.
While institutions like pension funds, endowments, and sovereign wealth funds are getting into the crypto space—and more will follow—he says it won’t be a giant, overnight shift.
He speaks from experience, explaining that these major institutions “don’t invest in waves.” They are incredibly cautious, thoughtful, and take their time. They are “not lemmings running over a cliff” in a huge, single movement. The process of adoption will be slow, deliberate, and calculated, rather than the rapid influx that the market seems to be expecting.
In short: For AI agents to truly transform finance, the underlying financial infrastructure must be replaced by the speed and scalability of crypto. At the same time, don’t hold your breath for a sudden flood of institutional money; it will be a carefully managed trickle.
