Pierre Rochard, who identifies as a veteran of the “bitcoin maximalist” movement, stumbled upon Bitcoin in 2012 while attending the University of Texas at Austin. Fascinated by the confluence of Austrian economics and open-source software, he found Bitcoin particularly compelling. Rochard quickly emerged as a notable voice in the space, co-establishing an institute dedicated to the core writings and principles of the cypherpunk movement.
His career has included significant positions at BitPay, Kraken, and more recently at Riot Platforms. At Riot, he addressed environmental critiques of Bitcoin by producing a humorous satirical video and shifted the narrative surrounding the mining debate and its economic implications.
Pierre Rochard is scheduled to speak at Consensus 2025 in Toronto from May 14-16, where attendees can secure their passes.
“Critics label mining as wasteful because they don’t recognize the inherent value of Bitcoin,” Rochard stated. “It represents monetary sovereignty — the power to manage your own finances.”
Currently, he is leading The Bitcoin Bond Company, focusing on how to engage fixed-income investors with Bitcoin opportunities.
In contrast to Michael Saylor’s long-only approach, Rochard aims to develop “bankruptcy-remote, bitcoin-only structures” that feature clear life cycles and detailed risk components. His endeavor is to present Bitcoin in a favorable light to traditional credit institutions.
His ambition? To accumulate $1 trillion in Bitcoin over the next two decades, contingent upon market circumstances.
Regarding Bitcoin’s price fluctuations, Rochard argues that the four-year halving cycle has diminished in importance for forecasting prices. “The compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of Bitcoin is now closely linked with interest rates,” he noted, pointing to its transition into a global macro asset. “Higher Federal Reserve rates tend to redirect capital away from Bitcoin, which subsequently hampers adoption.”
Even though educational barriers still exist, he remains hopeful. “A decade ago, this concept was met with skepticism. Today, Bitcoin-backed credit products are on an inevitable path.”
At Consensus 2025, Rochard is focused on enhancing institutional education, particularly among those looking to diversify their holdings beyond real estate and stocks.
He also acknowledged the challenges in Bitcoin adoption. “The primary issue is education,” he highlighted. “Many investors have never encountered a fixed-income product exclusively backed by Bitcoin. Their experiences are typically limited to real estate or corporate debt — this is an entirely new asset class for them.”
When it comes to concerns about low transaction fees or unutilized blocks in 2025, Rochard pushed back against those worries. “People fret about low fees, but that assumes a static system. Should there be any attacks or censorship, fees would spike — and miners would respond appropriately. It’s designed to be anti-fragile.”
Ultimately, Rochard’s message is concise: “Bitcoin is no longer a marginal experiment; it’s a fundamental monetary technology, and it’s time for the credit markets to catch up.”