From NFTs to token sales and memes, there is no shortage of hype around crypto. Beneath this noise, though, Chicago has been hard at work creating a premier crypto and Web3 ecosystem driven by purposeful public and private leadership. Building on the momentum of being recognized as one of the country’s leading innovation hubs last year, Chicago is uniting the Midwest as the gateway to some of the world’s most cutting-edge innovation in this sector.
In addition to homegrown talent, many crypto companies have chosen to locate significant parts of their teams in the Windy City. Chicago is home to over 70+ crypto and Web3 industry innovators, such as Galaxy, Gemini, Stripe, PayPal, and most recently, FTX.
Although my firm, HPA, has expertise in this sector and has invested in firms such as Stacked, an investment platform enabling smart crypto investing for everyone, and Glidera, which was acquired by cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, I turned to blockchain expert, Paul Hsu, founder and CEO of Decasonic, and his team to help spotlight some of the top innovators in Chicago.
As is true with any list of this kind, it is impossible to include everyone, so we’ve tried to provide a cross section of categories to give you an overview of what’s happening in the city. We missed many; some notables not included are Zero Hash, Secret Network, Kadena, Decred, Bloq, and bloXroute. However, I will continue to write on the topic, so follow my Forbes column for future stories.
20 Top Innovators Building the Chicago Crypto and Web3 Ecosystem
Digital Assets Infrastructure
Crypto Exchanges: FTX US
FTX CEO and founder Sam Bankman-Fried (widely known as SBF) and President Brett Harrison launched one of the leading cryptocurrency exchanges with the goal of building a system “by traders, for traders” in mind. SBF’s altruistic, hyper-growth focus has led the team to launch FTX Ventures, a $2B venture fund, in Q1 2022, giving the firm tremendous investment flexibility when tapping into the crypto start-up market. It’s no wonder that the fastest scaling exchange out there has decided to set up shop in Chicago, the firm announced yesterday it has opened its new FTX US headquarters in Fulton Market.
Continue reading: https://www.forbes.com/sites/peterandrewwilkins/2022/05/11/20-top-innovators-building-the-chicago-crypto-and-web3-ecosystem/?sh=71d540e9bbc2
In addition to homegrown talent, many crypto companies have chosen to locate significant parts of their teams in the Windy City. Chicago is home to over 70+ crypto and Web3 industry innovators, such as Galaxy, Gemini, Stripe, PayPal, and most recently, FTX.
Although my firm, HPA, has expertise in this sector and has invested in firms such as Stacked, an investment platform enabling smart crypto investing for everyone, and Glidera, which was acquired by cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, I turned to blockchain expert, Paul Hsu, founder and CEO of Decasonic, and his team to help spotlight some of the top innovators in Chicago.
As is true with any list of this kind, it is impossible to include everyone, so we’ve tried to provide a cross section of categories to give you an overview of what’s happening in the city. We missed many; some notables not included are Zero Hash, Secret Network, Kadena, Decred, Bloq, and bloXroute. However, I will continue to write on the topic, so follow my Forbes column for future stories.
20 Top Innovators Building the Chicago Crypto and Web3 Ecosystem
Digital Assets Infrastructure
Crypto Exchanges: FTX US
FTX CEO and founder Sam Bankman-Fried (widely known as SBF) and President Brett Harrison launched one of the leading cryptocurrency exchanges with the goal of building a system “by traders, for traders” in mind. SBF’s altruistic, hyper-growth focus has led the team to launch FTX Ventures, a $2B venture fund, in Q1 2022, giving the firm tremendous investment flexibility when tapping into the crypto start-up market. It’s no wonder that the fastest scaling exchange out there has decided to set up shop in Chicago, the firm announced yesterday it has opened its new FTX US headquarters in Fulton Market.
Continue reading: https://www.forbes.com/sites/peterandrewwilkins/2022/05/11/20-top-innovators-building-the-chicago-crypto-and-web3-ecosystem/?sh=71d540e9bbc2
