Entrepreneur & Author
Andrew Mellon meets Bitcoin
“The United States continues to go with digital currency.”
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Andrew Mellon was a Pittsburgher and an iconic member of the historic family that founded Mellon Bank. My father once met Andrew. Dad was a child selling raffle tickets and accidentally (on purpose) wandered onto the Mellon estate, which is now a park in the Shadyside neighborhood of Pittsburgh. As my father told the story, it was an early weekend morning, and Mr. Mellon was standing in his garden wearing a robe and drinking a cup of coffee when dad approached him and asked if he wanted to buy a raffle ticket. Mr. Mellon was extremely gracious and bought all of them before sending my father on his way. Thus, my family’s brush with Pittsburgh royalty abruptly ended.
Andrew Mellon (1855-1937) was an American banker, industrialist, philanthropist, and influential politician. He played a major role in shaping the U.S. economy during the early 20th century, especially as Secretary of the Treasury from 1921 to 1932.
In his wildest dreams, Mr. Mellon could not dream that his bank would become the first United States bank to offer cryptocurrency custody services for clients, bringing digital assets into the fold alongside the trillions of dollars of traditional assets.
Bank of New York Mellon-Corp., one of the United States oldest banks, is now accepting the once-fringe digital currency of bitcoin. The custody bank now holds, transfers and issues bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies on behalf of its asset-management clients. This represents a major shift, and we think deserves much more attention than it has received in the media as the United States shifts to accepting digital currency into the mainstream.
A brief timeline of bitcoin:
Bitcoin has had one of the most volatile trading histories of any vehicle and would be considered speculative. Please consult with your investment professional prior to considering taking a position.
2008: Satoshi Nakamoto published the bitcoin his white paper that established principles for a new electronic cash system. To this day, no one knows who Satoshi Nakamoto really is.
2017: JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon called bitcoin a fraud.
2020: Bitcoin trades above $10,000
2025: As of Tuesday, February 25, 2025 one bitcoin equals $87,030
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