Where did you grow up ?
I grew up in Milano, Ticino and Liestal.

What were your hobbies as a child ?
Nature, Tennis.

Where did you go to University ?
University of Basel and London School of Economics.

Where did you do your PhD ? 
University of Bern.

Who were your PhD Advisors ?
Winand Emons, Ernst Baltensperger both University of Bern.

Any anecdote or memory from your time as PhD ?
Playing darts in the office.

What is your main research focus ?
Monetary Theory, Monetary Policy, Cryptocurrencies.

What current research are you really excited about and why ?
Cryptocurrencies and Defi. Why: Bitcoin is the most fundamental innovation in money/finance in decades. It will shape the future of finance.

What is the next research problem you plan to work on ?
There are no problems only solutions.

What attracted you to Switzerland, your local university and SFI ?
Switzerland is a fantastic base from where you can travel all over the world to meet co-authors.

What languages do you speak ?
German, French, English.

Tell us something exciting that happened to you in the last five-ten years (it doesn’t have to be related to research) ?
I buy and renovate riads in the medina of Marrakech as a hobby.

What do you do in your spare time ?
See above plus I play tennis as much as I can.

What is your favorite holiday destination ?
Morocco.

What is your favorite book ?
I like the ‘Le Petit Prince'.

What question do you not like getting asked and why ?
Do you want to go for a beer tomorrow? I want to go now.