Bank of America appointed Sonali Theisen as head of its global digital assets platform and Kevin Milsom as head of AI transformation, according to internal memos first reported by Reuters and Bloomberg. The appointments follow a trend of traditional financial institutions building specialized teams around digital assets and artificial intelligence technologies. Theisen will oversee design, development, scaling and governance of the bank's digital-assets platform while continuing her current role leading electronic trading and strategic investments across BofA's fixed income, currencies and commodities division, with responsibilities focusing on bringing blockchain-based products into existing markets infrastructure. Milsom is tasked with implementing AI across the bank's global markets platforms. The moves align with similar efforts across Wall Street, where firms are integrating crypto and AI into daily business operations.
Theisen Oversees Digital Assets Platform Development
Theisen will oversee design, development, scaling and governance of the bank's digital-assets platform on top of her current role leading electronic trading and strategic investments across the bank's fixed income, currencies and commodities division. Her responsibilities will focus on bringing blockchain-based products into BofA's existing markets infrastructure, working alongside digital asset transformation chief Adam Dixon, who oversees tokenized deposits and stablecoins, digital collateral mobility, cryptocurrency trading settlement and custody.
Milsom Leads AI Implementation Across Global Markets
Milsom is tasked with implementing AI across the bank's global markets platforms. The appointment positions BofA to integrate artificial intelligence capabilities into its trading and market operations infrastructure.
Wall Street Firms Build Specialized Crypto and AI Teams
Earlier this month, Vanguard began searching for its first head of digital assets to develop a crypto strategy for personal wealth clients and engage with regulators. Morgan Stanley appointed veteran executive Amy Oldenburg to lead its digital asset strategy in January after filing to list spot Bitcoin and Solana ETFs. Oldenburg said in April that crypto was becoming part of the firm's daily business operations as it works to integrate crypto and tokenization with existing infrastructure across custody, wallets and data.
The AI and crypto overlap is taking hold outside of Wall Street. In February, Elon Musk's xAI was seeking a crypto quantitative expert to help train its models on digital asset derivatives, onchain analytics and decentralized finance protocols.
FAQ
What roles did Bank of America create for digital assets and AI?
Bank of America appointed Sonali Theisen as head of its global digital assets platform and Kevin Milsom as head of AI transformation. Theisen will oversee design, development, scaling and governance of the bank's digital-assets platform while working on bringing blockchain-based products into existing markets infrastructure. Milsom is tasked with implementing AI across the bank's global markets platforms.
Why are traditional banks appointing digital asset leaders?
Traditional financial institutions are building specialized teams around digital assets and artificial intelligence technologies. Earlier this month, Vanguard began searching for its first head of digital assets. Morgan Stanley appointed Amy Oldenburg to lead its digital asset strategy in January, with Oldenburg stating in April that crypto was becoming part of the firm's daily business operations as it integrates crypto and tokenization with existing infrastructure.
