Sarah Hammer & Sameer Gupta — Introducing Cypher, Penn’s New Blockchain Accelerator

In today’s very special episode, Anirudh Singh sits down with Sarah Hammer and Sameer Gupta to discuss the Cypher Accelerator.

About Sarah and Sameer:
Sarah is an Adjunct Professor Law at the University of Pennsylvania, Managing Director of the Stevens Center for Innovation in Finance, and Senior Director for the Harris Alternative Investments Program at the Wharton School. Sameer is the Head of Data Solutions at Point72 and for the New York Mets. The two had a serendipitous meeting years ago where they discussed big data, machine learning, and, perhaps most importantly, blockchain technology. The two stayed in touch after this initial conversation and when Sarah launched the Cypher Accelerator, Sameer was a natural choice to join the team of advisors.

The Cypher Accelerator:

The Cypher Accelerator is a blockchain accelerator launched through the Stevens Center at Wharton. The name and the logo were designed by students at the University of Pennsylvania. The board of advisors for the program includes Mark Cuban, Tim Draper, former CFTC Chair J. Christopher Giancarlo, and partners from Andreessen Horowitz, Bessemer Venture Partners, Bain Capital, QED Investors, Union Square Ventures, Point72, and Pantera Capital.

Cypher sits at the intersection of many of Wharton’s strengths, including our expertise in finance, access to Penn’s talent and the larger University ecosystem, and relationships with global leaders in the crypto/blockchain industry. With these underlying advantages, Sarah’s leadership, and Sarah’s knowledge of and relationships within the regulatory world, Cypher is well-positioned to become a brand name blockchain accelerator. Applications are open from now until December 15, and the three-month program runs from February — May 2022. You can find additional details on the program and application process here.

Most Exciting Crypto and Blockchain Use Cases:
Towards the end of our conversation, I ask both Sarah and Sameer about some of the crypto/blockchain use cases they are most excited about. Their answers include:

• Cross Border Payments: the team believes that improvements in financial infrastructure will simplify the clearing and settling of cross-border payments, making the remittance process easier and improving overall financial inclusion.
• NFTs: the team sees value in having provenance and immutability of a digital artifact, and is excited about uses cases in art, music, and even healthcare.

When discussing Decentralized Finance in particular, Sameer highlights the regulatory headwinds that the industry faces. Startups will have a difficult time finding a better mentor than Sarah when facing these challenges, given her time as a Professor of Law and her work with the United States Department of Treasury.

We end today’s sessions with a rapid-fire round of questions, which includes:

• Ethereum or Solana?
• Art NFTs — overhyped or appropriately hyped?
• Best class at Wharton?
• Best resource to ramp up crypto knowledge?
• What each is most excited about with the Cypher Accelerator?

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Sarah Hammer:

Sarah Hammer is Managing Director of the Stevens Center for Innovation in Finance and Senior Director of the Harris Alternative Investments Program at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. In these roles, she focuses her efforts on private capital investments and financial technology. Ms. Hammer is also Adjunct Professor of Law at the University of Pennsylvania Law School, teaching an upper-level juris doctor course on financial regulation.

Previously, Ms. Hammer was Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Financial Institutions and Director of the Office of Financial Institutions Policy at the United States Department of the Treasury. In this role, she led and directed the Department’s policy responsibilities involving financial institutions, as well as oversaw the Federal Insurance Office and the Office of Critical Infrastructure Protection and Compliance Policy (cybersecurity).

Ms. Hammer earned a J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, an M.B.A. from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and a Master of Studies from Oxford University. She is a Harry S. Truman Scholar and a Member of the American Law Institute.

Sameer Gupta:

Sameer Gupta is the Head of Data Solutions at Point72 and for the New York Mets. He is responsible for creating end-to-end solutions in data and analytics for all Point72 businesses as well as the Mets. Before joining Point72, Gupta was the chief operating officer at iSentium, an artificial intelligence startup where he led key business functions including sales, business development, fundraising, engineering, and operations. Before iSentium, he was the COO for the Global Electronic Trading and Americas Cash Equities business at JPMorgan. Gupta also served in business development and product management roles at New York Stock Exchange Technologies, and in software development and technology strategy positions at Goldman Sachs. He is also actively involved in the New York City startup community through TechStars and New York University’s Endless Frontier Labs.

Gupta earned his MBA from Harvard Business School, M.S. in Information Systems Management from Carnegie Mellon, and B.S. in Computer Science from the National Institute of Technology in India.

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About the Author
Anirudh Singh is a second-year MBA Candidate at The Wharton School, where he is part of the Wharton FinTech Podcast team. He has a passion for economic development, venture capital, financial services, and all things FinTech. Don’t hesitate to reach out with questions, comments, feedback, and opportunities at singhan@wharton.upenn.edu.