#66: Becoming a Web3 CFO with Greg Mocnik from Celestia Labs

14 snips

Jun 15, 2024

In this engaging chat, Greg Mocnik, the CFO of Celestia Labs and former Head of Finance at dYdX Foundation, shares his journey from Ernst & Young to the forefront of Web3 finance. He discusses the value of skills like SQL for analyzing data, and the intense hiring process at dYdX. Greg also sheds light on innovative financial practices in the crypto space, including the use of advanced accounting tools and the unique challenges faced by CFOs in Web3. His insights are both inspiring and informative for aspiring finance professionals.

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Intro

00:00 • 3min

From Accounting to Blockchain: A Financial Journey

02:39 • 17min

Navigating Web3 Financial Reporting

19:41 • 10min

Navigating Financial Management in Web3

30:10 • 9min

Navigating Accounting in Web3

39:26 • 10min

Conclusion and Listener Engagement

48:57 • 2min

A recurring theme among the CFOs I've interviewed is their common starting point: many began their careers at top accounting firms, such as the Big4.

And the benefits of working for them are not insignificant - you are often surrounded by the brightest minds in accounting, work with some of the biggest clients, and your experience commands respect.

Despite the long hours and relatively low initial compensation, many professionals accept these challenges, hoping that the skills and experiences gained will provide a competitive edge later in their careers.

The Accountant Quits aims to highlight the stories of CFOs who have successfully made the leap from traditional finance to blockchain.

On Episode 66, I spoke with Greg Mocnik, the CFO at Celestia Labs and previous Head of Finance at dYdX Foundation, supporting the growth of the dYdX protocol, one of the most prominent decentralized exchanges.

Greg spent nearly five years at EY in their advisory department, and since many of you have similar backgrounds and aspirations to start working in web3, I hope this episode will serve as a source of inspiration.

Topics covered:

Episode intro (00:47)
Early years working at E&Y (2:39)
Working at Meta & learning SQL (8:18)
Getting hired at dYdX Foundation (9:36)
Hiring process at dYdX Foundation (12:41)
Challenges starting at dYdX Foundation (14:25)
Extracting information from block explorers through Etherscan API (19:49)
Thanks to our sponsor Web3Finance Club (23:47)
Using Acctual as an AR & AP tool (25:30)
Other tools for the web3 CFO (30:25)
Learning from external audits & need for documentation (31:38)
Skills required to be a web3 accountant (39:25)
Taking time off (43:31)
Greg’s favourite maxim (47:55)

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LinkedIN: linkedin.com/in/gregmocnik/

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