Crypto Hipster

AKA LEUNG Regional Director MENA Bitget Crypto Exchange    Aka Leung is an accomplished professional with extensive experience in the cryptocurrency industry. With a background in operations and business development, Aka has played a pivotal role in driving growth and expanding market reach for leading digital asset platforms.   Previously, Aka served as the Senior Operations Manager at Bitget, a prominent cryptocurrency exchange. In this role, Aka demonstrated exceptional leadership and strategic acumen, overseeing operations and driving user growth across multiple regions. Aka's responsibilities spanned diverse territories, including CIS, Latam, and English-speaking regions such as the UK, Canada, Australia, India, Pakistan, Africa, and the Philippines. By implementing targeted initiatives and fostering strong relationships, Aka successfully propelled Bitget's market presence and user base in these regions. Currently, Aka holds the position of Country Manager at Bitget, where the focus is on driving business growth and enhancing user engagement in the Middle East. Aka's expertise in understanding local markets and cultural nuances has been instrumental in formulating effective strategies tailored to the unique needs and preferences of the MENA region. Through fostering strategic partnerships and implementing localized marketing initiatives, Aka continues to spearhead Bitget's expansion and solidify its position as a leading cryptocurrency platform in the Middle East.   Before joining Bitget, Aka held a significant role at Huobi Global (HTX), where they focused on user growth in the Latam and CIS regions. Aka's contributions at HTX were instrumental in establishing a strong foothold in these markets, driving user acquisition, and fostering a vibrant cryptocurrency community.   With a proven track record of success, Aka Leung exemplifies a dynamic leader who combines a deep understanding of the cryptocurrency industry with a global perspective. Aka's passion for driving innovation, fostering strategic partnerships, and delivering exceptional results continues to shape its journey as a key player in the ever-evolving world of digital assets.   Established in 2018, Bitget is the world's leading cryptocurrency exchange and Web3 company. Serving over 25 million users in 100+ countries and regions, the Bitget exchange is committed to helping users trade smarter with its pioneering copy trading feature and other trading solutions. Formerly known as BitKeep, Bitget Wallet is a world-class multi-chain crypto wallet that offers an array of comprehensive Web3 solutions and features including wallet functionality, swap, NFT Marketplace, DApp browser, and more. Bitget inspires individuals to embrace crypto through collaborations with credible partners, including legendary Argentinian footballer Lionel Messi and Turkish National athletes Buse Tosun Çavuşoğlu (Wrestling world champion), Samet Gümüş (Boxing gold medalist) and İlkin Aydın (Volleyball national team).

Firdosh Sheikh is Founder and CEO of DRIFE, an industry-disrupting decentralized ride-hailing platform built on the principles of Web3 technology. Firdosh believes it has been an incredible journey leading the charge in the DePin space, shaping DRIFE into a game-changer with an engaged user base of over 300,000 riders and a network of more than 30,000 drivers using the innovative DRIFE application.Being at the helm of the first decentralized ride-hailing company has been both an honor and a challenge for her. But it's this pioneering spirit that drives Firdosh to constantly redefine the norms of the mobility industry. By integrating blockchain technology into its platform, DRIFE has created a system that champions fairness, transparency, and user autonomy, setting a new standard for the entire industry.DRIFE isn't just a ride-hailing app; it's a testament to the potential of Web3 and a testament to the power of a community-driven vision. Firdosh is proud to have spearheaded this endeavor and to continue shaping the future of decentralized transportation. Website: drife.io

KATHY ROBERTS is CEO of Switch Reward Card - a blockchain finance ecosystem. Kathy started her career with Sears and then transferred over as an early executive (or Dawner as they called them) when Sears started Discover Card. Kathy went on to become the President of Discover Bank and served as the first female Chair of the Delaware Bankers Association. Current member of Salt Lake Chamber’s Board of Governors. Kathy Roberts’ charitable endeavors include but in no way are limited to the following organizations: Delaware Junior Achievement (Board of Directors), New Mexico Museum Foundation, WHOlives (Board of Directors), https://wholives.org/ - Providing clean water in the developing world using the innovative Village Drill. The History Makers, https://www.thehistorymakers.org/ - Documenting video oral histories of influential and sometimes unsung African Americans heroes. Kathy currently splits her time between Santa Fe, NM and Salt Lake City with her son Malachi, who is a musician. Website: www.SwitchRewardCard.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kathyrobertsswitch/ X: https://x.com/switch_rewards Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/switch.rewardcard

Johnny is founder and lead developer at Empyreal SDK. He is a seasoned Systems Engineer with a wealth of experience in enterprise-level technology. Prior to starting Empyreal, Johnny worked as a Software Engineer at a FAANG company. He brings a strong passion for programming, particularly in Rust, Python, and Functional Programming.

Graeme Moore is the Head of Tokenization at the Polymesh Association, a not-for-profit dedicated to the growth of the Polymesh blockchain ecosystem. He is also the author of B is for Bitcoin, the first ever ABC book about Bitcoin. Prior to Polymesh, Graeme was the first employee at Polymath; the creative director at Spartan Race; and an associate at Canada’s largest independent investment advisory firm.

Dr. Weijia Zhang is the Regional Head of China at Enterprise Ethereum Alliance (EEA) and Vice President of Engineering at Wanchain. He has extensive engineering experience in Blockchain, as well as research and development (R&D), cognitive sciences, mental modeling, Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD), software modeling, computer technologies and industrial standards. Weija has published over thirty research and technical papers, and is named as an inventor for over twenty patents (granted and pending) in computer and digital technology.  He also served as a technical committee voting member to publish the Solution Deployment Descriptor (SDD) by the Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards (OASIS). Dr. Weijia Zhang is also teaching the Smart Contract Development course at the University of Texas as an adjunct faculty. Dr. Weija Zhang has written and published a book called: Blockchain and Ethereum Smart Contract Solution Development: Dapp Programming with Solidity (2022).

Josh Benaron is the Founder & CEO of Irys, the first L1 programmable datachain. Seeing firsthand that the existing data infrastructures weren’t built for scalability, Josh created Bundlr, an L2 solution on Arweave that gained early success scaling Arweave from 15k transactions per day to 15 million. Bundlr evolved into what is now Irys to become the first truly programmable datachain. As a builder with a background in database architecture, Josh is committed to driving the adoption of programmable data that empower developers to continue building an onchain future.

“Bunny is the Co-Founder and CEO of DORA, a multichain search engine designed to unify and enhance the accessibility of blockchain data across various networks. Known as the "Infinite Discovery Engine," Dora aims to simplify the user experience by integrating search and action functionalities across multiple blockchains and virtual machine ecosystems. Bunny possesses considerable knowledge and deep insights on the evolution of Multichain and MultiVM block explorers, enhancing blockchain accessibility and user experience, the future of blockchain interoperability, and building and leading a blockchain startup”.

Michael Repetny is the Core Contributor at Marinade, the leading liquid staking protocol on Solana. Michael has been leading Marinade’s efforts to make Solana more secure, stable, and censorship-resistant through responsible SOL staking since 2021. Coming from an e-commerce background, Michael is passionate about promoting a decentralized future and financial freedom.

Andrew Forson is the Head of Ventures and Investments at The Hashgraph Association where he is responsible for working with portfolio companies to develop and execute strategic vision. Andrew leads capital raising for the Hashgraph Ventures Fund as well as structure instrument development. Andrew focuses on enabling SMEs, enterprises, and governments to leverage Hedera-powered solutions. Andrew is a Director of DeFi Technologies. In the past, Andrew was the Head of Quantitative Analytics and Risk at Empowa, and the Global Blockchain Business Lead at Joget.