New York-based bitcoin exchange itBit has hired a securities services and technology veteran to head operations in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

The hire of Jason Nabi comes as the exchange opens a new office in London. Prior to itBit, Nabi worked for major European bank Société Générale as its global business lead for post-trade services.

Nabi started his career as a dealer on the London Stock Exchange, and has held senior positions at IBM Global Services, Bloomberg and BNP Paribas Securities Services.

He said in a statement:

There’s been a push from entrepreneurs and traditional financial services players in London to better understand and take advantage of blockchain technology. In November, a consortium of banks, exchanges and clearing houses, including the London Stock Exchange, UBS and CME Group formed a working body to explore how blockchain could be used for settlement.

As an advisor to the Post-Trade Distributed Ledger Working Group, as the consortium is called, Nabi will likely help bridge the gap between the startup blockchain tech company, itBit and the traditional financial services industry.

With its clearing and settlement network, Bankchain, itBit plans on extending blockchain technology to existing markets, for starters trading on the London gold market, according to the Financial Times. And there’s momentum already with the London Bullion Market Association recently calling for proposals for an electronic hub where trades can be logged.

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