DraftKings CEO Jason Robins Calls For Crypto Centralization, Compares Sector To Early Internet Struggles

The CEO of a sports betting platform that has entered the non-fungible token market is calling for more centralization in the cryptocurrency space.

What Happened: Speaking on a Decrypt podcast, DraftKings Inc DKNG CEO and co-founder Jason Robins called for centralization.

Robins compared the current cryptocurrency market to the early days of the internet, with lots of scams and complications that turned off people who weren’t strong with technology.

“The types of things (we need) to become mainstream fly directly in the face of decentralization,” Robins said. “If you don’t have some sort of centralized control, it’s hard to protect people from themselves.”

Robins said the lack of protection could scare away people afraid of accidentally sending their NFTs to the wrong address.

The DraftKings CEO knows his opinion might be unpopular among people in the cryptocurrency space. “I know the purists won’t like this, but does there need to be some element of centralization that comes in that allows for some of the things that have to happen to make blockchain technology be more applicable to mainstream use cases?”

Robins said he thinks strong voices like Coinbase Global COIN CEO Brian Armstrong and FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried could take the lead in crypto regulation.

“Sam is a smart guy, I’m sure he knows what he’s doing. And Brian Armstrong at Coinbase, they’ve really just been pioneers. They were by far, more than anyone, the largest force in creating the industry in the United States.”

Related Link: DraftKings Launches College Basketball NFTs: Here Are The Details 

Why It’s Important: Robins is a holder of several cryptocurrencies and NFTs. He has seen how the space has grown and also brought athletes into the market.

DraftKings partnered with NFT platform Autograph, a company founded by Tom Brady, to launch several NFT collections from athletes. DraftKings also launched its own internal NFT marketplace and sees the space being a key growth driver going forward.

The sports betting market that DraftKings and Robins know so well is full of regulation, which could make Robins a key voice on how to work with regulators on addressing issues. Unlike sports betting, which operates on a state-by-state basis, cryptocurrency will likely see regulations come on the federal level.

Price Action: DraftKings shares are up 3% to $13.86 on Wednesday.

Photo: Courtesy of TechCrunch on Flickr