David Birch

Dave Birch is a Director of Consult Hyperion, an IT consultancy that specialises in electronic payments and transactions. David and Consult Hyperion are at the forefront of developments in transaction technology, including fields such as identity verification, the fintech sector, and digital currencies.

Incorporating digital security, identity, banking, and online and mobile, Dave provides an insight into the cutting edge of this fast-moving world. He offers advice and practical support to clients around the world including all of the leading payment businesses, telecoms providers, governmental bodies and international organisations such as the OECD.

From the revolution in developing economies where mobile-to-mobile payments are increasingly the norm, to the rise of cryptocurrencies, Dave talks about the pitfalls, perception and future of what some refer to as ‘the death of money’. His book, Identity is the New Money examines why proof of who you are is the key to secure payments in the future, the implications of this shift, and how identity is becoming a commodity itself.

Described by The Telegraph as ‘one of the world’s leading experts on digital money’, by The Independent as a ‘grade-A geek’, by the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation as ‘one of the most user-friendly of the UK's uber-techies’ and by Financial World as ‘mad’, Dave is arguably the UK’s leading authority on this area. He is a member of the editorial board of the E-Finance & Payments Law and Policy Journal, chair of the Digital Money Forum, and is well-known for his blogs on digital money and digital identity.

An acclaimed commentator on e-payments, Dave is a regular contributor to the media including BBC TV and radio, and Sky News, as well as other worldwide. He has lectured on MBA courses on the impact of new information and communications technologies, contributed to publications ranging from the Parliamentary IT Review to Prospect magazine, and has written a technology column for The Guardian.