Digital Assets at Duke (DA@D)
In an era of rapid financial innovation, Digital Assets at Duke (DA@D) stands as a premier annual conference exploring the evolving landscape of digital assets. Each year, it convenes a diverse assembly of financial professionals, regulators, policymakers, technologists, academics, and legal experts for thoughtful, evidence-based dialogue. Its mission is to foster collaboration and informed discussion among those shaping the future of digital finance and technology. As such, DA@D combines the polish of a distinguished academic forum with a forward-looking, innovative energy.
At DA@D, participants gain valuable insights directly from top regulators and industry leaders. They leave equipped with up-to-the-minute knowledge and forward-looking perspectives to guide decisions and drive innovation within their own organizations. The conference offers direct engagement with the influential voices charting the course of digital finance, through keynote addresses, candid panel discussions, and interactive sessions. Notable speakers who have taken the DA@D stage include U.S. Senator Thom Tillis, former Congressman Patrick McHenry, SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce, CFTC Commissioners Kristin Johnson and Christy Goldsmith Romero, and SkyBridge Capital founder Anthony Scaramucci, among others. Reflecting its reputation for substance over spectacle, Bloomberg has praised DA@D as a “no-hype—and Lamborghini-free” conference in the world of crypto finance.
DA@D’s vision and ethos are driven by its co-founders, Dr. Jimmie Lenz and Lee Reiners, each a distinguished leader in the realm of digital finance. As co-organizers, they infuse the conference with a blend of academic rigor and practical expertise. Together, Lenz and Reiners also host the popular Coffee & Crypto with Lee & Jimmie podcast, extending their insightful discussions beyond the conference and into the broader fintech community.
Dr. Jimmie Lenz serves as the Lafitte Director of the Master of Engineering in Financial Technology program and as a Visiting Professor of Financial Economics at Duke University. He also leads Duke’s Digital Asset Research and Engineering Collaborative (DAREC), spearheading interdisciplinary research in digital asset innovation. A prolific author on digital assets, Dr. Lenz has published extensively on the subject. He draws on decades of experience as an executive, educator, and scholar in FinTech, financial innovation, and capital markets, bridging the gap between academic insight and real-world application.
Lee Reiners is a recognized authority on financial regulation and digital asset policy, and serves as a lecturing fellow at Duke University. His teaching and research focus on issues such as financial regulation, digital asset policy, and sustainable finance, combining academic rigor with practical regulatory insight. Reiners’ commentary and analysis—featured in leading outlets like The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times—critically examine the claims of the crypto industry and help inform public debate. He has testified before the United States Congress on digital asset regulation three times and served as an expert witness in the FTX multidistrict litigation. Reiners also regularly convenes and collaborates with regulators, academics, and industry leaders to advance evidence-based digital asset policy.