Chinese economist Fu Peng, whose candid remarks about the country’s economic ills went viral, has joined a Hong Kong cryptocurrency firm as chief scientist, hailing the “historical” leap of digital assets into mainstream finance despite their current slump.

“[Digital assets] have become mature enough to be added to investment portfolios,” Fu said in Hong Kong on Thursday, addressing audience members at an event organised by his new employer Bitfire Group, a Hong Kong-listed crypto asset management firm previously linked to the Chinese crypto exchange Huobi, now known as HTX.

Fu said he decided to join the crypto industry because its current moment represented the “second great integration” between finance and technology, following the emergence of the fixed income, currencies and commodities markets in the 1980s.

“I hope my speech today will go down in history,” he said.

Fu’s high-profile entry into digital assets is rare for a well-known Chinese economist, given Beijing’s ban on the crypto industry on the mainland. Meanwhile, Hong Kong is encouraging crypto activities under a strict regulatory regime.