Former US Senator Rick Santorum Joins Catholic-Focused Cryptocurrency Project

Former United States Senator Rick Santorum has joined the board of a Catholic community-oriented cryptocurrency project, according to a press release published on June 4.

The former senator and Republican presidential nominee is now a board member of the Catholic community-oriented cryptocurrency project dubbed Cathio.

The platform is designed to address the needs of the Catholic economy by ensuring lower costs, greater transaction visibility, and improved security for the community.

Santorum was a noted cultural conservative in U.S. politics, who strongly opposed abortion and same-sex marriage on his failed presidential campaigns in 2012 and 2016.

According to former Ambassador to the Holy See and Cathio Advisor Jim Nicholson, Cathio will not only save the Church money, but will also boost transparency of financial transactions and the connectivity of people, including greater donor development and promotion.

Religion has intersected with the cryptocurrency space in various instances around the world.

Last November, Switzerland-based fintech firm X8 AG received a certification from the Shariyah Review Bureau for its Ethereum-based stablecoin.

The debate over whether cryptocurrencies are Sharia-compliant is centered on their compatibility with the Islamic prohibition on monetary speculation.

By contrast, Bishop Hilarion Alfeyev of the Russian Orthodox Church condemned the new asset class last January.

"This innovation is representative of the entire banking system, where real assets are converted into virtual ones. This paves the way for usury, which the church has always spoken out against, but can do nothing about - we all have to keep our money in banks," Alfeyev said.