Rethinking smart contracts - Boris Bohrer Bilowitzki on Coppercast EP058
In a space saturated by speculation and empty promises, Boris Bohrer-Bilowitzki brings a refreshingly sober voice to the Coppercasts podcast. As CEO of Concordium, Boris unpacks the hard truths about blockchain’s failure to bridge into real-world adoption, and the precise steps Concordium is taking to change that.
From protocol-level identity and programmable compliance to redefining what smart contracts should be, this conversation delivers clarity on a new direction for blockchain: away from hype, toward infrastructure that can power payments, stablecoins, and institutional trust.
If you’re tired of watching the industry chase its tail, and you’re looking for real-world alignment, this episode is not just worth a listen, it’s simply required.
1 Concordium’s Positioning & Blockchain Industry Outlook
Q1 If you had sort of 60 seconds to gimme the top level unique features
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- Boris expresses deep frustration with blockchain’s current trajectory.
- Industry failed real-world adoption, creating an isolated universe sustained mainly by meme coins and speculation.
- Emphasizes the failure of the industry to address key issues: compliance, identity, and usability for everyday payments.
- Concordium positions itself uniquely through identity solutions deeply embedded at the protocol level.
- Leverages zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs) for identity, maintaining privacy.
- Critiques the ineffectiveness of current stablecoins limited mostly to crypto exchanges (Tether, Circle).
- Highlights stablecoins as Concordium's immediate focus due to existing clear market demand and potential broad use-cases.
- Critically views traditional tokenization efforts (e.g., tokenized real estate) as illiquid and impractical, calling for a simpler approach.
- Concordium aims for simplified and practical blockchain adoption, targeting core payments infrastructure and compliance barriers.
- Comments
2 Concordium’s Smart Contracts Philosophy
Q2 What is it that you feel about smart smart contracts that is
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- Strong criticism of smart contracts used as custodians, labeling them “dumb banks”.
- Highlights massive security issues exposed by major hacks (Bybit case referenced).
- Advocates smart contracts strictly enforcing conditionality rather than holding funds.
- Proposes custodial functionality should reside at the blockchain’s base layer.
- Highlights Concordium’s protocol-level security against smart-contract hacks.
- Claims Concordium uniquely positioned to challenge entrenched incumbents by combining protocol-level security and identity.
- Argues Concordium simplifies blockchain usage, reducing reliance on insecure smart contracts, thus driving real-world adoption.
- Comments
3 Blockchain Payments vs Traditional Payments
Q3 Just to step back is is is the payment infrastructure and the
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- Payment challenges not just technical; also user-experience focused.
- Compares blockchain-based payments unfavorably to smooth experiences like Apple Pay.
- Boris emphasizes that payments should happen seamlessly without users caring about underlying tech.
- Concordium’s identity layer enables secure, privacy-preserving age verification and KYC processes embedded within payments.
- Highlights Concordium’s near-instantaneous (2-4 second finality) payment capability, significantly better than many blockchain competitors.
- Asserts Concordium capable of overcoming blockchain payment adoption hurdles by simplifying user and merchant interactions.
- Clarifies blockchain itself not the barrier, but poorly implemented user interfaces and complex smart contract risks currently impede mass adoption.
- Comments
- https://t.me/c/1659427635/28280
4 Developer Adoption & Smart Contract Limitations
Q4 Ethereums flexibility with smart contracts
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- Ethereum initially thrived due to smart contract flexibility, driving DeFi innovation.
- Boris agrees flexibility beneficial early but argues current adoption hampered by complexity and risk.
- Acknowledges developer learning curves (Rust/Haskell), but confident adoption will follow clear business utility and security benefits.
- Believes clarity, simplicity, and security at Concordium eventually attract substantial developer ecosystems, despite initial rigidity compared to Ethereum.
- Comments
5 Concordium’s Specific Market Focus
Q5 So whos the target market here Boris
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- Explicit market target defined as stablecoin issuers and related payment infrastructure.
- Historical reference to previous successful Concordium pilots: Danish Energy Grid, provenance tracking.
- Open invitation to developers for additional use cases leveraging Concordium’s identity features.
- New leadership’s strategic focus solidly placed on tangible stablecoin solutions, leaving behind generic, unfocused positioning.
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6 Trade Finance & Concordium’s Core Advantages
Q6 Okay so you mentioned you mentioned trade finance 1
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- Explains Concordium’s key features clearly:
- identity layer,
- protocol-level tokens, and
- programmable locks.
- Highlights precise, conditional payments scenario in trade finance (example: oil tanker scenario, GPS-based conditional payments).
- Stresses Concordium’s security advantage: tokens and funds strictly transferable only to predefined entities, removing theft/fraud risks.
- Suggests strong institutional appeal through secure, transparent trade finance functionality.
- Comments
7 Concordium Token Economics
Q7 And and lets go back a little bit to CCD the coin itself
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- Explains CCD’s stable transaction fee structure pegged to fiat (fixed at 0.01 EUR/USD per transaction).
- Mentions tested scalability reaching 2,000 TPS, far exceeding most blockchain transaction needs today.
- Affirms no immediate scalability concerns until significantly higher network usage levels (5-700 TPS range).
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8 Concordium’s Strategic Partnerships & Adoption Drive
Q8 If you had sort of microphone right now call for for certain
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- Confirms active, ongoing discussions with stablecoin issuers including traditional banks.
- Plans announced soon regarding strategic adoption and market outreach, alongside imminent rebranding.
- Outlines Concordium’s commercial and technical strengths as uniquely attractive for banking sector partnerships due to compliance and identity built-in solutions.
- Comments
Q9 Which bank are you speaking to, Boris?
Q9 Which bank are you speaking to Boris
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- Nothing particular is revealed.
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10 Boris’ Copper Experience & Concordium’s Opportunity
10 Why dont you tell us a little bit about that
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- Boris reflects briefly on Copper's challenges working with heavily regulated banks (2021-22), particularly highlighting the internal complexity banks faced during market downturns.
- He pivots to Concordium, noting these experiences shaped his understanding of what banks need:
- simplified, compliance-friendly blockchain solutions.
- Emphasizes current global momentum around stablecoins and de-dollarization, suggesting geopolitical shifts (mentioning Trump and the Genius Act) are increasing institutional interest.
- Critically notes Ethereum and Solana's complexity as unsuitable for regulated institutions, stressing Concordium’s unique advantage: built-in identity and compliance at the protocol level.
- Concludes the timing is perfect for Concordium to capitalize on this growing institutional appetite for secure and compliant stablecoin solutions.
- Comments
11 Banks' Crucial Role in Concordium’s Stablecoin Strategy
11 It kind of makes sense for banks to take on
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- Banks already possess extensive KYC data, making them ideal stablecoin issuers on Concordium.
- Concordium allows banks to seamlessly transfer existing customer KYC onto blockchain without user friction.
- Boris stresses this step (solving identity first) as essential before broader asset tokenization efforts (e.g., tokenized stocks).
- Draws parallel with Copper’s custody-first strategy, emphasizing foundational compliance before complexity. It was necessary before they could introduce ClearLoop.
- Suggests Concordium and Copper complement each other—Copper handles custody and prime brokerage, while Concordium covers identity and compliance.
- Highlights recent institutional momentum (e.g., Copper’s partnership with Cantor Fitzgerald), showing rising institutional interest in secure blockchain infrastructure.
- Envisions stablecoins integrated deeply into institutional finance for collateral management, not just crypto purchases.
- Illustrates everyday stablecoin use cases (groceries, Deliveroo, Amazon), emphasizing Concordium’s potential to reduce payment fraud (instant, conditional transactions).
- Comments
12 How Concordium Preserves Privacy While Enabling On-Chain Identity
12 How Concordium Preserves Privacy While Enabling On Chain Identity
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- Clarifies a common misconception: identity documents (e.g., passports) are not stored on the blockchain.
- Instead, identity providers (IDPs)—such as banks or government-authorized entities—verify identity off-chain and issue verified attributes (e.g., age, nationality, residence).
- These attributes are stored in the user’s wallet, not on-chain.
- Only the attributes needed for a given transaction (e.g., “Is this user over 18?” or “Is the user a UK resident?”) are referenced via Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs).
- The blockchain never sees personal data—only yes/no answers derived from ZKPs.
- This structure ensures maximum privacy while enabling compliance and verifiability—a balance most blockchains cannot offer.
- Boris stresses that this cryptographic design is far from trivial; it requires deep expertise and years of development.
- Names top cryptographers involved: Ivan Damgård, Jesper Buus Nielsen, Torben Pryds Pedersen, Ueli Maurer, among others—reinforcing the academic credibility behind Concordium’s identity layer.
- Notes that few (if any) major blockchains could integrate such a privacy-preserving identity layer without a complete redesign.
- Reiterates: “Your identity is never on-chain.” Only cryptographic proofs tied to selected wallet attributes are used to validate conditions for transactions.
- The result: a system that’s both privacy-preserving and regulation-ready, bridging the trust gap for institutions and users alike.
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13 Concordium’s Deep Scientific Roots and Visionary Origins
13 Concordiums Deep Scientific Roots and Visionary Origins
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- Many are unaware that Concordium is deeply connected to Cobra (Concordium Blockchain Research Centre) at Aarhus University.
- Aarhus is globally recognized for cryptographic research, ranking among the top in the world—particularly in blockchain and secure multiparty computation (MPC).
- The Cobra team played a core role in designing Concordium’s infrastructure, including its identity and zero-knowledge systems.
- This collaboration gave Concordium a formally verified, academically grounded architecture, rarely seen in the blockchain space.
- The project’s founder, Lars Seier Christensen, is also co-founder and long-time CEO of Saxo Bank.
- He took Saxo online in 1996—well before internet banking was mainstream—demonstrating a track record of bold, early bets on transformative technologies.
- Similarly, he identified identity as essential for blockchain adoption—well ahead of industry consensus.
- His early interest in Ethereum was turned toward building something with privacy, compliance, and scientific rigor at its core.
- Boris refers to it as a “science-based blockchain”, and highlights the exceptional talent behind it.
- While the underlying tech is complex, even non-specialists can sense the depth and credibility once they explore it.
- For Boris, this scientific foundation was a key factor in joining the project—he was “rather impressed” by the caliber of the people and work involved.
- Comments
14 From Past Pilots to Stablecoin Focus
14 From Past Pilots to Stablecoin Focus
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- Concordium ran pilots like the Danish energy grid with Google.
- Proved tech works across diverse use cases.
- Such projects are slow-moving and no longer the focus.
- New strategy centers on stablecoins and payments (PayFi).
- Sees this as the quickest path to global adoption.
- Already has two credible issuers on the platform.
- Much larger opportunity ahead in tokenizing idle capital.
- Yield-bearing assets (e.g. in trade finance) are key targets.
- Fiat’s value erodes; blockchain offers a better store and flow.
- Can cut out intermediaries, improving efficiency.
- Enables faster, cheaper, fairer transactions.
- Concordium infrastructure offers a competitive edge.
- “Unfair advantage” quip underscores platform strength.
- Comments
15 No Distractions—Nailing Step One First
15 No Distractions Nailing Step One First
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- Team has brainstormed many ideas—“noodled” a lot.
- But clear priority: get step one right before expanding.
- Credibility must be earned before building new layers.
- Focus now is proving adoption of stablecoins and related verticals.
- Price action alone doesn’t tell the story—adoption does.
- Tech is now built and being refined for real-world use.
- Stablecoins come in many forms; Concordium supports them all.
- Solves key issue with self-custodial wallets—lack of identity layer.
- Other blockchains rely on exchanges for KYC or use third parties.
- Those third parties may be unreliable, unvetted, or poorly localized.
- Concordium’s identity is native, integrated, and verifiable.
- Removes user friction from day one.
- Full-stack solution: compliance, identity, and usability baked in.
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16 Boris’s Favorite Milestones from Copper
16 Boriss Favorite Milestone from Copper
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- 1. Credit Suisse moment (2018):
- Launched custody, attended COO Summit.
- A Credit Suisse executive dismissed their efforts—only to later vote for Copper in a major industry award, and apologize for his earlier attitude.
- 2. Early brainstorming sessions:
- Recalls working with Dimmer at inaudible and in inaudible.
- These creative early days shaped Copper’s direction and left a lasting impression.
- 3. Major growth milestone:
- Reaching $100M in assets under custody felt surreal at the time.
- Only months later, Copper surpassed $1 billion, marking explosive institutional growth.
- Comments
- https://t.me/c/1659427635/28294
17 Looking Back, Looking Ahead
17 Looking Back Looking Ahead
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- Boris reflects on Copper’s rapid growth and legacy.
- Expresses pride in the team and confidence in new leadership.
- Says recent progress proves they’re on the right track.
- Hints the full story could fill a whole podcast.
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18 Wrap Up & Final Thoughts: From Complexity to Clarity
18 Wrap Up
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What sets Concordium apart isn’t just its technical architecture, it’s the strategic restraint. Boris makes it clear: this is about more than building for the sake of building. It’s about solving the identity and compliance bottlenecks holding blockchain back.
The episode has truly underscored Concordium’s renewed focus on stablecoins, payments, and it showcases how partnerships with institutions who are ready to move are imminent.
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