Women Pioneers Lead Crypto Industry Charge
The crypto industry has made significant strides in recent years, and one group of individuals has been instrumental in shaping its future: women founders. According to a new list, top 20 women are making waves in the sector, with some having co-founded or founded major companies like Binance, Tezos, and Parity Technologies.
Yi He, co-founder and Co-CEO of Binance, is one such example. She joined the industry in 2014 after working in marketing and helped recruit Changpeng Zhao into the sector. Her biggest achievement was helping build Binance into the world's largest crypto exchange by trading volume.
Kathleen Breitman co-founded Tezos with Arthur Breitman in 2014, developing a blockchain that could upgrade itself through on-chain governance. The project raised approximately $232 million in its 2017 token sale, making it one of the largest early blockchain fundraises.
Jutta Steiner co-founded Parity Technologies with Gavin Wood in 2015, building core Ethereum infrastructure before the company's technology became closely associated with the development of Polkadot. Elizabeth Stark co-founded Lightning Labs in 2016 to develop infrastructure that could make Bitcoin faster and cheaper for everyday transactions.
Caitlin Long founded Custodia Bank in 2020, originally known as Avanti Bank & Trust, after spending years in traditional finance. Her objective was to create a regulated bank specifically designed for digital assets.