Join The Stage At Abu Dhabi - Global Blockchain Show 2026

Professor Ronghui Gu is the Co-founder and CEO of CertiK, and an Associate Professor of Computer Science at Columbia University. He serves as an International Technology Advisor to the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).Professor Gu obtained his Ph.D. from Yale University and his Bachelor’s degree from Tsinghua University. He has received numerous prestigious awards for his work in systems verification, including a National Science Foundation CAREER Award, a VMware Systems Research Award, three Amazon Research Awards, an OSDI Jay Lepreau Best Paper Award, an SOSP Best Paper Award, and a CACM Research Highlight.

Yat Siu is the Co-Founder and Executive Chairman of Animoca Brands, a global leader in blockchain and gaming. Based in Hong Kong, Yat is a veteran technology entrepreneur and investor. Animoca Brands is on a mission to deliver digital property rights to gamers and internet users worldwide, creating new asset classes, play-and-earn economies, and a more equitable digital framework — contributing to the development of the open metaverse.

Yat began his career at Atari Germany in 1990. In 1995, he moved to Hong Kong to establish Hong Kong Cybercity/Freenation, Asia’s first free web page and email provider. In 1998, he founded Outblaze, a multilingual white-label web services pioneer. After selling Outblaze’s messaging unit to IBM in 2009, he pivoted the company into an incubator for digital entertainment ventures — one of which became Animoca Brands in 2014.

In 2017, Yat launched the Dalton Learning Lab, an after-school program focused on developing creative and design thinking skills often neglected by traditional education systems. He also founded ThinkBlaze, the research arm of Outblaze, which investigates socially impactful technology issues.

An early advocate of blockchain and NFTs in gaming, Yat has championed the concept of true digital ownership. Under his leadership, Animoca Brands has invested in over 540 blockchain projects, making it one of the largest blockchain portfolios globally.

Yat has received numerous accolades, including Global Leader of Tomorrow by the World Economic Forum, Young Entrepreneur of the Year by DHL/SCMP, and recognition in Cointelegraph’s Top 100 Most Notable People in Blockchain. A classically trained musician, he is also a BAFTA advisory board member and a director of the Asian Youth Orchestra.

Sergej Kunz is the co-founder of the 1inch Network, a distributed network of decentralized protocols that enable the fastest, most lucrative and protected operations in major blockchain ecosystems. From 2015 to 2019, Sergej worked for Mimacom consultancy, running projects for major customers, such as Bosch, Siemens and Porsche. After joining Porsche on a full-time basis, he gradually shifted towards cybersecurity. Sergej’s first introduction to the crypto space dates back to 2012. After mining Ethereum for years, he launched a YouTube show, CryptoManiacs, in which he did live security audits of smart contracts. Anton Bukov, the 1inch Network’s eventual co-founder, soon joined him as a co-host.At a May 2019 hackathon in New York City, over the course of 36 hours, Sergej and Anton developed a prototype crypto exchange aggregator that became the basis of the 1inch Network.

I’m an entrepreneurial investor passionate about venture investing & building, frontier technologies (AI, blockchain & digital assets, space tech, climate and energy tech, life sciences, neurotech), sustainability, mental health, longevity & wellness, automotive & motorsports, luxury goods, and travel & hospitality.

Currently I’m founder & Managing Partner at Vanquish Venture Partners, a venture capital firm investing in innovators playing to win.

I’m an inveterate connector of extraordinary human beings who frequently colors outside the lines and thrives on helping founders accomplish legendary outcomes while helping investors produce stellar returns & impact.

I manage $1.2B+ in assets across all vehicles to date.

My Limited Partner community includes:

1) C-suites/Managing Partners (current and former) of: Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America, Citadel, Bridgewater Associates, Oaktree Capital, Apollo Global, Point72, PayPal, Alibaba, Hillhouse Capital, NBC Universal, General Motors, Swiss Re, Discover, PizzaHut, DoorDash, DocuSign, Sandoz, Gusto, Guinness, Bitmain, Thomson Reuters, Yahoo, Zynga, the Dallas Cowboys, BlockTower Capital, and TopGolf; and

2) Board Members (current and former) of: BlackRock, Goldman Sachs, MasterCard, MIO Partners, Fortress, BNY Mellon, RBC, Altria, ARM Semiconductor, SoFi, Warburg Pincus, Kraft, SABMiller, Cognizant, Western Union, Raine Group, Harvard Business School, Harvard Law School, Harvard Medical School, Harvard University, Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, Wharton, and Johns Hopkins University.

Outside of work what energizes me is travel (40+ countries), electronic music, nature, and Burning Man (12x).globalblockchainshow-whiteglobalblockchainshow-white
10-11 Dec, 2025 Abu Dhabi Speakers Agenda Exhibit

Cathy Hackl is the Co-CEO of Future Dynamics and a globally recognized tech and gaming executive, futurist, and speaker known as the “Godmother of the Metaverse.” She is one of LinkedIn’s top tech voices, named among Ad Age’s Leading Women of 2023, featured on the cover of Forbes Latam’s 100 Most Powerful Women, and included in Vogue Business’s 100 Innovators list.
Cathy has held leadership roles at Amazon Web Services, Magic Leap, and HTC VIVE, and has worked with Nike, Louis Vuitton, Walmart, Ralph Lauren, and Clinique on their emerging tech and gaming strategies. She has been featured by CNN, Bloomberg, CNBC, The Economist, Time, and Good Morning America, and made history as the first person to ring the NASDAQ opening bell in both physical and avatar form.

Gracy Chen is the CEO of Bitget, a leading global cryptocurrency exchange and Web3 platform ranked among the industry’s top three by trading volume. She is the only woman CEO among the world’s top 10 crypto exchanges. Since stepping into the CEO role from her previous position as Managing Director, Gracy has led Bitget’s expansion from nearly 20 million to over 120 million users worldwide.
Under her leadership, Bitget has evolved beyond its origins as a derivatives platform into a comprehensive crypto ecosystem, offering spot trading, Launchpad and Launchpool initiatives, copy trading, asset management tools, a self-custody wallet, and a wide range of Web3 projects. Gracy also plays a key role in institutional business development, working closely with major clients and partners to strengthen Bitget’s global presence.
She also spearheads Blockchain4Her, a $10 million initiative within Bitget dedicated to fostering inclusivity and gender diversity in the blockchain industry. Through this program, Gracy and her team focus on elevating, empowering, educating, and embracing women in blockchain, ensuring equal opportunities and representation across the crypto space.
A strong advocate for diversity and education in Web3, Chen serves as a delegate of the UN Women CSW conference and is a guest lecturer at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), where she teaches a graduate-level course on Crypto Finance.
With a background in tech investment and entrepreneurship, Gracy actively leads Bitget’s project listing strategy, supporting the growth of promising startups through her deep industry insight. Her strategic vision continues to drive Bitget’s mission to empower users and create new opportunities in the future of finance.

Teresa Goody Guillén is widely regarded as one of the top crypto lawyers shaping the future of blockchain regulation and policy. Formerly at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, she designed and now leads BakerHostetler’s Digital and Innovative Markets team and co-leads its Web3 and Digitas Assets practice. She combines deep experience in securities law, corporate governance, and market structure with forward-looking expertise in digital assets and decentralized finance. Teresa advises global industry participants, governments, and regulators on how to navigate blockchain’s rapidly evolving legal landscape and seamlessly integrate crypto markets and traditional financial markets. Teresa has extensive experience in securities, litigation, investigations, and corporate matters, including across blockchain, DeFi, NFTs, DAOs, AI, and Web3 ecosystems. She has served as trusted counsel to high-stakes market participants in civil litigation, regulatory enforcement matters, and corporate transactions. Ranked by Chambers for Blockchain & Cryptocurrencies and named to the SEC “Enforcement Elite”, she has authored influential thought leadership on securities law and economic theory, developed a Modular Economic Abstraction regulatory framework as applied to digital assets, and is recognized for bridging the gap between legal frameworks and innovative technologies. With an MBA, Certified Fraud Examiner, and Cryptocurrency Tracing Certified Examiner credentials, she brings both legal precision and business acumen to guide leaders through uncharted waters. Teresa brings her unique perspective as both a regulatory insider and a formidable advocate for modernized markets that empower innovators while protecting investors.

Sandeep Nailwal is the founder of Polygon and CEO of the Polygon Foundation, building infrastructure for a decentralized internet. He works with Marc Borion, CEO of Polygon Labs, to guide the protocol’s long-term growth. Nailwal began in blockchain with Bitcoin in 2013, later launching Polygon (originally Matic) in 2017 to scale Ethereum. Today, Polygon powers payments, RWAs, and Web3 adoption, with Agglayer as its next frontier. Beyond Polygon, Nailwal co-founded Sentient, launched Blockchain for Impact, and created the Nailwal Fellowship. He holds an MBA from NITIE.

Shiliang Tang is the Managing Partner of Monarq Asset Management. He previously founded LedgerPrime in 2017, which scaled to $400M AUM by 2022 and was ultimately acquired. He also co-founded Arbelos Markets, a principal trading firm specializing in digital asset derivatives, which FalconX acquired at the end of 2024. Prior to LedgerPrime and Arbelos Markets, Shiliang co-founded WorldCover, a fintech firm backed by Y Combinator and other prestigious VC firms. Shiliang started his career on the proprietary trading desks of Merrill Lynch and UBS, where he focused on volatility trading and high frequency strategies. Shiliang received his Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from MIT and holds CFA and CAIA designations.

As the Global CEO of BitMart, a leading cryptocurrency exchange serving over 12 million users worldwide, Nenter (Nathan) Chow leads the company’s international expansion initiatives. Previously, he was a Partner at Animoca Ventures, spearheading both venture and liquid Web3 investments across Infrastructure, DeFi, and Consumer, including Monad and TON. He played a pivotal role in forging global strategic partnerships across institutional investors, government entities, major Web3 ecosystems, and various Web3 communities. With 17 years in investment banking at firms like JP Morgan and MUFG, Nenter is a professional expert in finance, M&A, investments, trading, and strategy. His extensive experience in traditional finance and Web3, combined with demonstrated global leadership, equips him to drive advancements in digital finance and blockchain innovation

Andy is a partner at Draper Associates, founding partner at Draper Dragon, and chair of the executive committee for Draper University.

Over 20 years of venture investing across ten fund vintages at Draper, he’s seeded over 15 technology unicorn companies in the software/AI, healthcare/biotech, crypto/fintech, and deep-tech spaces.

Andy first worked in R&D for semiconductor technologies at MIT, where he earned a US patent, before moving into commercial operations at Intel during its generations of chip design dominance. Following this, he moved into investment banking (Credit Suisse), then corporate venture (Infineon Technologies and ABB) before co-founding Draper Dragon with Tim Draper in 2006. Subsequently, he partnered with Tim to launch Draper Associates’ first outside fund in 2014. Finally, he manages DA’s limited partner co-investment program, as well as directs VCx, an invite-only alliance of family offices that promotes generational relationship-building, education, and investing.
Andy holds a BS in Electrical and Computer Engineering from The University of Texas at Austin, an MS in Electrical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and an MBA from The University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School. Andy was honored as a distinguished young alumnus by the Texas Governor Greg Abbott on behalf of The University of Texas at Austin.

Evgeny Gokhberg is the founder of Re7 Capital and brings over 14 years of investment-management experience, including seven years focused on crypto markets. He started investing in digital assets back in 2016, spotting early the potential of DeFi to reshape traditional finance. In 2021, he founded Re7 Capital — and in only four and a half years, he has grown the firm to $1 billion in assets under management.

Stephen Richardson is Chief Strategy Officer and Head of Banking at Fireblocks, an enterprise platform to manage digital asset operations and build innovative businesses on the blockchain, Stephen’s role at Fireblocks involves structuring, developing, and evaluating strategic opportunities with traditional financial institutions, as well as helping them drive digital asset innovation.
Prior to Fireblocks, he was Senior Manager in the Financial Services practice of Accenture Strategy, focused on transforming customer experience and digital enablement programs for leading Financial Services firms.
Stephen previously worked as Head of Strategy and Vice President of Product (Business) for Noble Markets, a next-generation banking platform that focuses on enabling clients to clear, net and settle FX & OTC transactions in real-time. While at Noble, Stephen was responsible for the development of Noble’s banking and trade settlement products. He also completed various stints with BNP Paribas, Goldman Sachs and Teach for America.

David is the Chief Degen of the Sui Foundation. Before that he worked at Mysten Labs and was one of the original investors personally into Mysten. Before that he held VC Investor roles at Matrixpot Ventures and Reciprocal Ventures. He also worked at BlackRock. David has a Bachelor of Science from Cornell University and a Masters in Computer Science from University of Pennsylvania.

Kash is responsible for driving Circle’s commercial strategy to advance the future of finance and digital assets. He has deep experience in revenue leadership, business development, and go-to-market execution, and previously served as SVP of Sales for the Americas at Brightcove. With over 20 years in revenue leadership, business development, and go-to-market strategy, Mr. Razzaghi has built and scaled high-performing global teams and forged partnerships that drive transformative growth.

Chris Williams is an accomplished entrepreneur and co-founder of Messiah Network, a Node-as-a-Service platform designed to make decentralized infrastructure accessible to everyone. Messiah empowers both individuals and enterprises to deploy, manage, and scale blockchain nodes with ease, driving true decentralisation and accelerating mass adoption of Web3 technology.Before entering the crypto space in 2017, Chris built his career at the intersection of technology, business development, and marketing within the defence and security sector, where he specialised in bringing bleeding-edge innovations to market.Since transitioning into blockchain, he has led marketing and growth strategies for several top-100 crypto projects, including the fastest-growing token project in history, which reached a $1 billion market cap in just three weeks.Chris is passionate about decentralisation, infrastructure sovereignty, and building systems that empower people everywhere to take part in a more open, secure, and censorship-resistant internet.

David is the Founder and General Partner of Inception Capital, where he leads the firm’s
early-stage digital assets funds, Inception Ventures and Inception Fund of Funds. Since 2016,
David has invested in industry unicorns such as Arbitrum, Lido, and Circle during his time at
Huobi, in addition to projects like MegaEth, SonicSVM, and Opacity at Inception. He has also
backed top-performing funds including Syncracy, Topology and Alliance DAO. Named a Forbes
30 Under 30 Asia honoree in 2019, David is dedicated to bridging the East and West by
empowering founders and fund managers driving blockchain innovation. David dropped out of
Stanford and holds an MBA from the Wharton School.

John Lilic is a long time blockchain and cryptocurrency community member whose exposure to the sector started in 2014 at the NYC Bitcoin Center locaed at 40 Broad Street next to the NYSE in the heart of Wall Street, where he volunteered.
John is also an early Ethereum contributor and one of the first team members of ConsenSys. During his 6 years at ConsenSys, John participated in driving core infrastructure, enterprise adoption and global growth of the Ethereum ecosystem. He later became a founding contributor to Polygon, supporting its rise as Ethereum’s leading scaling solution. John is also an active venture capital investor focusing on Ethereum and Web3 projects (cryptographic infrastructure and decentralized finance), quantum cryptography and AI ventures.

A systematic absolute return macro hedge fund, and Capriole Charts, premium suite of alpha signals for navigating markets. Charles has been investing for over 20 years and coding trading algorithms for a decade. He is the creator of renowned on-chain models like “Hash Ribbons” and “Macro Index” and has built proprietary investment models using over 200 macro and crypto data signals. He is one of the leading publishers of on-chain Bitcoin and macro models globally, with his indicators and models featured in the top 10 on TradingView, and also available on Glassnode, CryptoQuant and more. He has created 100+ open-source metrics, authored 10+ research pieces, and regularly shares market insights with his 123,000+ followers on X.com. Charles has been featured in 200+ media articles (including CNBC, Forbes and Bitcoin Magazine), has appeared on 20+ podcasts (including “We Study Billionaires” in 2021, the world’s largest stock investing podcast) and spoken at major conferences such as TOKEN2049 in 2025 (the world’s largest crypto conference). He holds two Dean’s Awards and three scholarships from studies in Australia, London, and Denmark.

Janet Adams is a Board Director of the Artificial Superintelligence (ASI) Alliance Council and the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of SingularityNET. She plays a pivotal role in leading AI and Blockchain initiatives across multiple vertical markets, including robotics, biotech, gaming and metaverse, media, DeFi, music, and arts.
Janet Adams brings her extensive expertise and insights to the stage, captivating audiences with her deep understanding of disruptive technologies and their potential impact on various industries. With a passion for AI ethics and regulation, Janet’s talks often revolve around the responsible and ethical use of AI in today’s rapidly evolving world, alongside the positive potential of decentralised Artificial General Intelligence (AGI). Her dedication to a positive and beneficial Singularity for the benefit of humanity makes her an influential thought leader in the AI and blockchain industries.

Samantha Yap is the Founder and CEO of YAP Global, an international PR and communications consultancy that works with meaningful companies and organisations in the cryptocurrency, decentralised finance (DeFi) and web3 sector. With her expertise and stewardship, she has built YAP Global to be the link between complex cryptocurrency technology and mainstream press.
Since establishing YAP Global in 2018, Samantha has grown the team across continents and launched YAP Cast (a podcast series exploring the history of money, in turn allowing listeners to make sense of the world of crypto and DeFi), and The Context (a newsletter that provides a grounded perspective on developments in crypto, DeFi and web3 industries).
Prior to delving into PR, she worked as a broadcast journalist and producer for Channel NewsAsia Singapore. Samantha also gained extensive international journalism experience in Melbourne, Jakarta, Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur.

Francesco Andreoli is Director of Developer Relations at Consensys/MetaMask, leading global developer strategy across wallets, L2s, and emerging infrastructure. He focuses on AI agents, account abstraction, and next generation developer workflows, and speaks at major web3 events worldwide.

Jenna Peterson is the Chief Operating Officer of Midnight Foundation, where she leads global operations, strategic execution, and ecosystem growth. She leverages her cross-industry expertise to drive adoption, strengthen partnerships, and advance the Foundation’s mission of creating secure, decentralized, and privacy-preserving financial systems. At Midnight, Jenna has guided the organization through complex regulatory environments, built high-performing international teams, and delivered mission-critical systems for trading, analytics, and blockchain innovation.
With 20+ years of experience building and scaling financial, trading, and decentralized infrastructure across global markets, Jenna brings a blend of technical depth, regulatory insight, and operational leadership. Prior to joining the Midnight Foundation, she held senior leadership roles at the Injective Foundation and across other fintech organizations, supporting the growth of next-generation financial and blockchain technologies.

Clara Tsao is a founding officer of Filecoin Foundation and Filecoin Foundation for the Decentralized Web. She is also co-founder and on the board of the Trust & Safety Professional Association and the Trust & Safety Foundation. Clara previously was the Senior Advisor for Emerging Technology (IoT and Blockchain) at the Department of Homeland Security and a Chief Technology Officer focused on countering foreign influence, election security, and homegrown extremism. She has spent a decade working in the technology industry across global teams at Microsoft, Apple, Sony PlayStation, AT&T, and also as a Google and Mozilla Technology Policy Fellow. Clara is also the Board Chair and President of the White House Presidential Innovation Fellows Foundation and a Senior Advisor at Tech Against Terrorism.

Sami Waittinen is the Chief Marketing Officer at Trust Wallet, the world’s leading self-custody Web3 wallet, serving over 210 million users globally.
Prior to Trust Wallet, Sami has been hyper scaling businesses at Angry Birds (Rovio), launching cities and operations at Uber and providing crypto passive income opportunities at Binance Earn.
With deep experience in tech, crypto, and growth marketing, Sami is passionate about making Web3 more accessible and comprehensible.

Robin Wingardh is a former professional golfer on the DP world tour. After his professional golf career, Robin has founded and scaled several companies in multiple industries with multiple exits prior to co-founding Wingbits in late 2023

As a Web3 entrepreneur and ecosystem builder, Hinza Asif is dedicated to supporting startups and promoting blockchain innovation. As the founder and CEO of Blockza, he works as a pioneer in decentralized media solutions. Furthermore, through the Web3 Salon and Asia Web3 Alliance Japan supported by JETRO, we are connecting Web3 startups with investors, industry leaders, and government efforts to support growth in the Japanese and global markets. Her work focuses on building partnerships, hosting industry events, and promoting blockchain adoption, and aims to establish Japan as the main hub for Web3.

Jason Yuqiang Jiang has a proven executive management track record and over 15 years of experience driving sales growth in industrial, technology and consumer industries. He recently served as Chief Operating Officer for Sensimo Inc., a technology company providing AIOT energy saving solutions to mega Data center. He was the Founder and Chief Executive Officer for Inno Optics, Inc. from 2012 until 2018, a company that provides RAMAN optical technology based identification systems to a wide range of industries including food, textile, petroleum, gem stone and pharmaceutical. The company was publicly listed on China’s NEEQ market in 2018. Prior to joining Inno Optics, Jason was General Manager of China for Greif Inc., a Fortune 500 company, responsible for a business unit’s performance of $100 Million P&L. At Greif China, he led the transformation into China’s top industrial packaging company while growing sales 30% year over year. Previously, he served as founder and VP of Business Development and Operation of AEC-MotionStar, Inc. Under his guidance, he grew the company from start-up stage to $4M revenue within 3 years and one factory operation. Jason spent the prior 8 years at Motorola, holding various engineering and management positions.

Sunil Raina is the CEO and Founder of CereBree, a cognitive AI infrastructure redefining how people understand their abilities, make decisions, and navigate lifelong growth. With more than 17 years leading large-scale digital transformation across global enterprises, Sunil focuses on shaping human-aligned systems, strategic frameworks, and intelligence models that empower individuals and organizations with clarity and direction.

Marcin leads strategy and go-to-market at RedStone, the fastest-growing blockchain Oracle, and at Credora, the largest DeFi Ratings platform. RedStone holds the top 3 position globally by the number of clients (200+ B2B clients) and Total Value of Assets Secured ($10+ billion). RedStone is the official oracle for Securitize, BlackRock BUIDL, Apollo ACRED, VanEck VBILL, Hamilton Lane SCOPE and other tokenized funds, backed by veterans like Mike Arrington, co-founder of TechCrunch.

Marcin has been in the blockchain industry since 2018, ex-Google Cloud PM with a background in quantitative methods in economics. Co-founder of ETHWarsaw, the largest technical crypto conference in the CEE region. Laureate of Forbes 30 under 30 Poland. Speaker at global crypto events including Consensus, Token2049, ETHcc, ETHDenver, Ethereum Zurich and more.

Vit Jedlicka studied Political Science and Economy. On April 13, 2015 he founded the Free Republic of Liberland and was elected its first President. More than 750 000 people applied for citizenship. He has been a speaker on many high-level conferences such as the Horasis Global Meeting and has been interviewed in nearly all mainstream media. His goal is to build the freest country in the world and use the full spectrum of Web3 tools in the process.

Adeola is a first-generation African immigrant who migrated into the US many years ago and has carved a unique path in the business world, blending social consciousness with entrepreneurial drive. With academic foundations laid at the City University of New York (BS & MS in Accounting & Finance) and an MBA from Harvard Business School, Adeola’s journey is one marked by perseverance, insight, and a profound understanding of diverse economic landscapes.
Having successfully navigated a business exit, Adeola is now building Kredete, a platform that helps African immigrants in the US to build credit through international money transfers across more than 40+ countries in Africa through the utilization of Stablecoins and processed over $1B in TPV.

Oleg Ogienko has over 20 years of experience in government relations and business development in Russia and overseas in digital economy and finance sectors, substantially contributed to the Russian crypto regulation development.

Garen Meserlian is the Chief Operating Officer at easyMarkets, where he leads operational strategy and drives innovation across the organization. With over 15 years of experience in marketing, product development, and business operations, Garen is known for his technical approach to optimizing business processes and delivering growth.
He began his career in the tourism industry, quickly advancing to manage the marketing of a hotel chain. He later founded a digital agency that offered a comprehensive range of Digital Marketing Services. Afterward, he joined an international PR agency to establish its Digital Arm, which serviced clients across three continents.
Over the past two years, Garen has been with easyMarkets as Chief Marketing Officer, playing a key role in shaping the company’s marketing strategy and positioning, and significantly driving the brand forward.
Now as COO, Garen applies his deep marketing knowledge and strategic vision to enhance operational efficiency, streamline processes, and fuel the company’s continued success. Known for his energy, determination, and relentless pursuit of excellence, Garen is committed to driving innovation and ensuring that easyMarkets growth aligns with both market trends and consumer needs.

Catrina is a General Partner at Portal Ventures, a crypto firm that exclusively focus on leading first checks into protocol businesses at the pre-seed stage. Prior to Portal, Catrina operated at Protocol Labs and Apple, invested at Hivemind Capital, and was a founding member of Deloitte Consulting’s Blockchain Program in 2017. She also organizes the annual UPenn Blockchain Conference (PBC) and designed the crypto curriculum of the Wharton School.

Bryan Benson is a high-performance strategist and ecosystem architect with a background spanning Morgan Stanley and his role as Managing Director at Binance Latin America. He specializes in bringing discipline, clarity, and long-term structure to fast-moving digital asset, neobank, and RWA ecosystems, with a reputation for execution that scales.
Bryan is deeply embedded in the global blockchain landscape, actively participating in flagship industry events including Token2049 (Dubai & Singapore), Satoshi Roundtable, Global Blockchain Show Abu Dhabi, Bitcoin MENA, LABITCONF, and major leadership and ecosystem summits across Europe, LATAM, and the Middle East. His work centers on building sustainable, interoperable infrastructure and aligning teams around vision, momentum, and measurable growth.

Ahmad Khatib serves as the Chief Business Development Officer at CFI, bringing over 25 years of strategic leadership in the financial sector.
Renowned for his ability to drive productivity, build high-performing teams, and implement growth-focused strategies, Ahmad has a proven track record of transforming businesses and supporting robust expansion.
In his current role, he is focused on advancing CFI’s objectives by driving cohesive strategies across markets, ensuring the company remains agile and responsive to the evolving needs of its clients in a competitive landscape.

Lars Holst is the Founder & CEO of GCEX Group, a regulated digital-asset and FX brokerage serving institutional and professional clients. He founded GCEX in 2018 following the USD 120m sale of CFH and expanded the group in 2025 through the acquisition of GlobalBlock, adding an asset-management capability. With 25+ years in e-FX, including senior roles at Saxo Bank and Currenex, Lars also chairs RegTech firm Muinmos.

I am the founder of SetupFX, where I help entrepreneurs and institutions launch and scale global forex brokerages. We specialize in licensing, MT5/MT4 integration, CRM systems, mobile trading apps, branding, and full white-label solutions. With 100+ broker launches worldwide, I focus on building reliable trading infrastructure and guiding founders through the complexities of brokerage setup and growth.

Akshat runs the deal team for Maelstrom across all deal strategies: 1) Venture; 2) Liquid; and 3) Buyouts. He previously led the M&A team at BitMEX before departing in 2022 to co-found Maelstrom. Initially trained as a management consultant, he began his investing career executing LBOs at Granite Creek Capital Partners. Akshat holds a BS in Economics from UPenn’s Wharton School of Business.

Very early stage venture capitalist and builder.
https://t.me/johnlilic join my Telegram investor syndicate channel where I share regular updates on my investment activities.

Reeve Collins is a serial entrepreneur and a leading figure in the Blockchain space, best known for co-founding Tether, the groundbreaking stablecoin that bridged fiat currencies with blockchain technology. Now, Collins is focused on launching three cutting edge blockchain ventures: TreasuryX, WeFi, and SuperSol, all poised to deliver on the promise of Web3. Collins is also a prominent speaker and advisor, sharing his expertise in blockchain and digital assets globally.

Stephan Lutz is the CEO of BitMEX. He initially joined the company in 2021 as the CFO and was appointed as the group’s CEO during late 2022 – one of crypto’s most colourful periods. Stephan has been instrumental in driving the exchange’s position as one of the crypto derivatives market leaders, steering the platform to pivot back to its successful origins in providing professional and institutional traders with a derivatives trading platform that caters to their key needs of liquidity, performance, and reliability.

Under his leadership, BitMEX celebrated a decade without security breaches in 2024, a rare feat in the crypto industry, while also advancing innovations that enhanced trader engagement, user trust, and platform efficiency.

Before BitMEX, he was a Senior Partner at PwC for close to a decade, where he advised many of the world’s largest financial institutions. Prior to PwC, he held senior positions with Deutsche Börse. His career began in corporate finance and equities trading at Dresdner Bank AG (now Commerzbank AG).

Wissam Younane is the CEO of BNC Media Group, a leading regional publishing and events powerhouse behind Entrepreneur in MENA, CBNME, Hotel & Catering News ME, Design ME, and other influential business and lifestyle platforms. Under his leadership, BNC has evolved into one of the most dynamic media ecosystems in the Middle East, combining print, digital, broadcast, and live experiences to spotlight innovation, leadership, and entrepreneurship across industries.

Vineet Budki is CEO and Managing Partner of Sigma Capital and has been a known face in the Web3 Venture Investment Space. Prior to Sigma, he headed Cypher Capital, one of the Biggest Web3 Fund’s Globally with 300+ Investments across 2 funds and having half a billion in AUM.

Vineet has been named in the Top 100 Indians in the Middle East multiple times and was recognized in the Top 10 Crypto Personalities Globally in 2024 by Arabian Business.

Xianming Dou is a veteran database architect and the Partnership Field CTO at PingCAP, where he bridges the gap between intricate database technologies and strategic business outcomes. With over 15 years of expertise in distributed systems, Cloud-Native architecture, and HTAP databases, Xianming has pioneered solutions that power modern data-intensive applications.Prior to his current role, he led engineering initiatives that drove a tenfold ARR growth, architecting deep-level product enhancements for enterprise-scale problems. A kernel-level developer at heart with a visionary outlook, Xianming specializes in building high-performance data infrastructure capable of handling the massive throughput and scalability challenges demanded by the next generation of Web3 and decentralized applications.

Founder of Soter Insure with 25 years as a senior executive in financial services. Henson recently served as the first CEO of Dubai’s Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA) and was previously the President and Acting CEO of Komainu, a digital asset custodian backed by Nomura and Ledger.

Maryna Barysheva is an award-winning Web3 marketing executive, helping crypto projects scale communities, launch tokens, and go to market. She currently serves as the CEO of LKI Consulting – a veteran crypto marketing firm growing blockchain businesses since 2016. Their portfolio includes Binance, Bybit, KuCoin, Mantle, Transak, and more.
Before leading LKI Consulting, Maryna scaled Interactio, a B2B tech startup in the Baltics, leading their marketing from seed to a $100M valuation.
Maryna also frequently makes appearances at international events, sharing alpha on the latest crypto narratives and marketing trends. On a personal level, she mentors young startup entrepreneurs on business development and growth.
She has shared the stage with leading industry players such as Tether, DWF Labs, Tribe Digital, and Beincrypto, and has recently spoken at CoinferenceX (Token2049 Singapore), Invest Web3 Forum (Token2049 Dubai), Sigma World Summit, AIBC Cyprus, and more.

Karine Arama is a Partner at SGH Capital, a venture capital firm investing at the forefront of
Blockchain, Artificial Intelligence, and Robotics. With over two decades in global finance at Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and RBS, she now brings that expertise to backing disruptive technologies. At SGH Capital, Karine leads investments that are shaping the infrastructure of tomorrow’s financial system.

Shervin Farigam is a seasoned telecommunications and tech sales & marketing executive with over 25 years of experience driving enterprise solutions and product launched in global markets. Currently serving as CEO of Coin Factory AG based in Switzerland, he leads worldwide initiatives in creating decentralized utility crypto tokens – many of them with applications in online gaming and play2earn. Previously he was Senior Director of Member Services at ITRG based in Canada, he lead projects to enhance client engagement and operational efficiency for technology research and advisory services. Before that, as Global Manager of Enterprise Sales at China Telecom Americas in Herndon, Virginia, Shervin spearheaded sales strategies for high-stakes telecom infrastructure projects, contributing to multimillion-dollar revenue growth across North American and Asian markets. Fun fact: placed among top-4 at World Cyber Games (2000) in Unreal Tournament!

Travis Godwin Good, PhD (IridiumEagle on X) is a deep tech contrarian who previously made waves in biotech, where he pioneered approaches using machine learning and computational chemistry for drug discovery (ultimately selling the platform his company developed to SC Johnson which now uses it for biopesticide discovery) and in transportation, where he implemented the world’s first mathematically optimal freight movement planner, an innovation that sped up Union Pacific (the US’ largest railroad) by over 2mph+ leading to a $400 million annual ROI. Travis’ current project, Ambient (ambient.xyz, ambient_xyz on X) might be characterized as “OpenAI if it were truly open and powered by AI Bitcoin”; it’s an upcoming useful PoW L1 that overturns the tentpole assumptions made by CryptoAI protocols for the last 8 years. Travis holds a PhD in IT from Univ of Nebraska @ Omaha and an AB from Harvard from which he graduated Magna Cum Laude.

Davinci Jeremie, also known as Davincij15 across all Social Media platforms, is a skilled software developer, YouTuber, Public Speaker, Crypto Educator, and Entrepreneur. Davinci became famous in the crypto world when his YouTube video begging his audience to spend just $1 to buy bitcoin went viral.

Mr Sim was the global operations director at HUOBI (2017-2018) and CMO of russian crypto exchange – Cryptology. He is currently CMO of AICEAN.IO – AI ‘Text to Video’ project, backed by renown film maker & actor – Stephen Chow.
Mr Sim has a MBA from University of Wolverhampton, UK; and BA in Mass communications from Oklahoma City University, USA.
Mr Sim, is legacy verified ‘blue tick’ public figure across all major social media platforms since 2015, with over 3-million followers.
Mr Sim, is behind philosophies such as Transhumanism.com (EST 1997), CounterEconomics.com (EST 2011), and more.

Carl Runefelt – Entrepreneur, Investor, Speaker. Founder of The Moon Group & Co-Founder of Crypto Kid
Carl Moon’s transformative journey from a grocery store cashier in Stockholm to a crypto industry titan in Dubai is a testament to the power of visualization coupled with relentless perseverance. His significant reach on social media, with a combined audience of over 4.5 million followers across all plaforms, shows that hard work, strategic investments and a robust mindset pay off. He has since dedicated his life to crypto, philatropy, music and, over the last year, racing.

Efe Kelemci, better known as Crypto Kid, discovered Ethereum as a 12-year-old during the pandemic. After realising the potential of crypto, he begged his parents to let him attend crypto events in Dubai at age 13, which changed his life. His motivation and enthusiasm did not go unnoticed by the crypto giants, ultimately leading him to co-found Crypto Kid with Carl Moon, and co-host on one of the largest crypto YouTube channels, The Moon Show. Since then, he has spoken at multiple crypto conferences and grown his YouTube channel to 60K subscribers.

Founder of Soter Insure with 25 years as a senior executive in financial services. Henson recently served as the first CEO of Dubai’s Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority (VARA) and was previously the President and Acting CEO of Komainu, a digital asset custodian backed by Nomura and Ledger.

Erika is the Founder & Chief Content Officer at Lucidity Insights, the Middle East & Africa’s largest online research & matchmaking platform for founders and startup investors.
Erika is also host to The Perfect Pitch podcast and the Startup Spotlights podcast, both focused on giving entrepreneurial advice from either a startup founder or investor perspective. She is also the Chief-Editor of Special Reports for Entrepreneur Media and is an active angel investor and startup advisor, with a personal passion for startups at the intersection of technology and human prosperity.

Laura K. Inamedinova – an award-winning serial entrepreneur, investor, and keynote speaker sharing her insights on the Web3 space since 2016.
She currently holds a dual role within the Gate ecosystem, managing global growth of the exchange and attracting new investments to its venture arm – GVC.
In her position as a CGEO at Gate.com, she builds cross-border partnerships, and as a Principal at Gate Ventures, Laura oversees investments, partnerships, and development of the fund.
Before joining Gate.com, she founded a Web3 marketing agency, LKI Consulting, that she grew to 8-figures. This led her to be globally acclaimed as one of the “10 Women Entrepreneurs” by Entrepreneur Magazine and among “Top 10 Women in International Business” by Silicon Valley Times.
In 2024, she transferred the leadership of LKI Consulting to a new management team, while Laura retained her position as a majority shareholder.
Laura was also recognized as one of the “Forbes 30 Under 30 Blockchain Visionaries” by Forbes Mexico in 2025, highlighting her impact on the Web3 industry.
On a personal level, Laura is a successful angel investor with 40+ projects in her portfolio, an ex-Forbes and Huffington Post columnist, and an internationally renowned speaker with a track record of 205+ conferences in 25+ countries.

Yasmina Kazitani is a pioneering tech leader, global strategist, and the first female Co-President of the Blockchain Game Alliance (BGA), the world’s largest organization dedicated to Web3 gaming and cutting-edge technology. With over 20 years of international experience in marketing, innovation, and digital transformation, Yasmina is an author and Fractional CMO specializing in Web3, AI, and blockchain ecosystems. She is a passionate advocate for diversity in tech and economic empowerment, co-founding Numidia Valley to bridge technological gaps and champion sovereignty, innovation, and digital adoption across emerging markets in Africa and the Middle East

Laura Estefanía is the Founder and CEO of Conquista PR, a global strategic communications consultancy advising leading Web3 companies on media, public affairs, and market positioning.
With a BA in Journalism (University of Vienna) and MSc in Political Economy (King’s College
London), she helps emerging tech companies navigate the intersection of finance, internet
culture, and policy.
She has spoken at London Blockchain Week, NFT Paris, Taipei Blockchain Week, Zebu Live London, Merge Madrid, and South Summit, and is a recurring radio guest in Spain, offering expert commentary on digital assets, regulation, and the evolving global economy.

Countessina Anna De Bacci is a principal of her family’s private investment platform,
headquartered in Dubai, where she helps steward a multigenerational legacy of ethical
ventures, godly leadership and strategic investment.
Raised within a lineage renowned for its contributions to commerce, finance, global
enterprise, and diplomacy, Countessina draws inspiration from her father—a distinguished
multi-portfolio businessman—and continues the family tradition of shaping ventures that
transcend mere capital returns, fostering enduring societal and economic impact.
Countessina proudly serves as the CEO of De Bacci Capital (DBC), an exclusive vetted
network of over 50,000 members worldwide, uniting visionary entrepreneurs and a trusted
circle of angel investors, fund managers, family offices, venture capitalists, and institutional
partners. The DBC portfolio is meticulously curated, spanning transformative sectors such
as AI, Web3, advanced technology, infrastructure, healthcare, energy, and
sustainability—each opportunity rigorously vetted to ensure alignment with long-term
value creation and the family’s legacy values.
Beyond investment leadership, Countessina is a sought-after speaker at international
forums and conferences. She is particularly passionate about the future of family
enterprises, the evolution of startup ecosystems, capital raising, and the intersection of
private capital with global affairs.

Denitza Valjavec is the Co-Founder and GCC CEO of Propy, a Silicon Valley–based proptech company that leverages blockchain to streamline real estate transactions. She leads business development and has been instrumental in expanding Propy’s global reach, positioning the company at the forefront of property tokenization and cross-border real estate innovation. With a background in international business and marketing, Denitza combines strategic vision with practical experience in scaling technology-driven startups.

Ahad is a serial entrepreneur with a strong background in media, technology, venture capital, and more, and has a passion for innovating, building, and breaking boundaries.

Olga Vox is a venture builder and founder of Vox Ventures, with over a decade of experience at the intersection of Blockchain, Web3, FinTech, and AI. She specializes in strategic growth and capital advisory, having helped over 40 startups scale across stages-from pre-seed to multi-billion dollar valuations. Her work has supported over $2 billion in company valuations and $500 million in funding raised.

A three-time founder and former executive at SwissBorg, Olga has worked hands-on with some of the most influential ecosystems in the space. She serves as a mentor and advisor at leading accelerators including Alchemist, Algorand,, and Moonbeam, where she supports high-growth teams on go-to-market, fundraising, token strategy, and ecosystem design.

Having lived and worked in Zurich, London, and San Francisco, Olga brings a global lens to her work-bridging capital, innovation, and community to help visionary founders turn complex ideas into category-defining ventures.

Eljaboom is a notable figure in the cryptocurrency and tech space known for his involvement in blockchain technology, crypto investments, and portfolio advising. He is the founder and CEO of Ajoobz, a company focused on helping investors build their crypto portfolios. Eljaboom has been featured on Forbes for his work and holds a Guinness World Record certification, indicating his significant impact or achievements in his field.
He is also recognized for his social media presence where he shares insights on cryptocurrency trends and strategies, amassing a large following. His approach emphasizes understanding market dynamics over following internet tips, and he has a background in computer and industrial engineering, which underpins his strategic approach to investments.

United States of AmericaRhett Power is the CEO and Co-founder of Accountability Inc., a leadership consultancy that has advised global giants including the United States Department of State, United Airlines, McDonald’s, FIFA, and Vodafone. A six-time founder, bestselling author, and respected Rolling Stone and Forbes columnist, Rhett is recognized by Global Gurus as one of the world’s leading management and startup thinkers and was named the #1 Thought Leader on Entrepreneurship by Thinkers360. He is a member of Marshall Goldsmith’s 100 Coaches and a Fellow at the Institute of Coaching at McLean Hospital, a Harvard Medical School affiliate. A sought-after global speaker, Rhett has delivered keynotes at premier events such as SXSW, TEDx, Web Summit, and the World Economic Forum in Davos. His third book, Headamentals (October 2025), explores how self-talk shapes leadership and performance, and introduces the groundbreaking concept of “Team Talk” to transform organizational culture.

Chetan Varma is the founder of the epow ecosystem and the lead developer behind its core infrastructure on Ethereum Proof-of-Work (ETHW). He has architected and deployed production-grade DeFi platforms spanning token creation, decentralized trading, liquidity locking, on-chain analytics, and fair meme-coin launch mechanisms—each built with a focus on permissionless access, transparency, and long-term utility.
His past experience includes serving as the lead developer for condobase.io and building rwapros.com, platforms focused on real-world asset data, analytics, and on-chain finance. Across all projects, Chetan’s work reflects a builder-first approach centered on scalable architecture, real usage, and sustainable ecosystems rather than short-term hype.