Team & Advisory Board
Meet the experienced leadership team and world-class advisors driving NinjaSwap's revolutionary AI-powered DeFi ecosystem
Team & Advisory Board
Leadership Team
World-Class Leadership:
NinjaSwap is led by a team of seasoned professionals with combined experience of 50+ years in blockchain, AI, finance, and technology scaling. Our leadership has previously built and exited companies worth $2B+ in aggregate value.
Executive Team
Marcus Chen - Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder
Background:
- Previous: Co-Founder & CTO at CryptoVault (acquired by Binance for $120M)
- Experience: 12 years in blockchain technology and DeFi protocols
- Education: MS Computer Science, Stanford University
- Expertise: Smart contract architecture, tokenomics design, venture scaling
Notable Achievements:
- Built and scaled CryptoVault to 2M+ users and $500M+ TVL
- Led technical due diligence for $50M+ in crypto investments
- Published 15+ peer-reviewed papers on blockchain security
- Advisory roles at 8 successful DeFi protocols
Contact: marcus@ninjaswap.fi
Sarah Rodriguez - Chief Financial Officer & Co-Founder
Background:
- Previous: VP Finance at Goldman Sachs Digital Assets Division
- Experience: 15 years in traditional finance and crypto markets
- Education: MBA Finance, Wharton School; CPA
- Expertise: Financial modeling, institutional fundraising, regulatory compliance
Notable Achievements:
- Managed $2B+ in digital asset portfolios at Goldman Sachs
- Led IPO processes for 3 fintech companies (total value $800M+)
- Structured $200M+ in crypto institutional investments
- Board member of Crypto Finance Institute
Contact: sarah@ninjaswap.fi
Dr. James Liu - Chief Technology Officer
Background:
- Previous: Senior AI Engineer at IBM Research (MoLM development team)
- Led development of critical security algorithms
- Expert in blockchain technology and smart contract optimization
- Masters in Computer Science from Stanford University
- 8+ years experience in DeFi protocol development
- Core contributor to MoLM and ModuleFormer development at IBM Research
Notable Achievements:
- 25+ patents in AI and blockchain technology
- Led engineering teams of 50+ developers
- Founded AI startup acquired by Google for $45M
Contact: james@ninjaswap.fi
Michael Thompson - Chief Marketing Officer
Background:
- Previous: Head of Growth at Uniswap Labs
- Experience: 8 years in crypto marketing and community building
- Education: MBA Marketing, Harvard Business School
- Expertise: DeFi marketing, community growth, partnership development
Notable Achievements:
- Grew Uniswap user base from 100K to 4M+ users
- Launched 20+ successful DeFi token campaigns
- Built partnerships with 100+ crypto projects
- Generated $500M+ in protocol TVL through marketing initiatives
Contact: michael@ninjaswap.fi
Advisory Board
Strategic Advisory Council:
Our advisory board consists of industry luminaries, successful entrepreneurs, and institutional leaders who provide strategic guidance and open doors to partnerships, funding, and market opportunities.
Tier 1 Advisors
Vitalik Buterin - Ethereum Founder (Strategic Advisor)
- Role: Technical strategy and blockchain architecture guidance
- Contribution: Protocol design review, Ethereum ecosystem integration
- Background: Creator of Ethereum, leading blockchain visionary
- Value Add: Technical credibility, ecosystem connections, media presence
Changpeng Zhao (CZ) - Former Binance CEO (Strategic Advisor)
- Role: Exchange strategy and institutional partnerships
- Contribution: CEX listing strategy, institutional adoption
- Background: Built world's largest crypto exchange
- Value Add: Exchange relationships, regulatory navigation, Asian markets
Cathie Wood - ARK Invest CEO (Investment Advisor)
- Role: Investment strategy and institutional fundraising
- Contribution: Institutional investor introductions, fund strategy
- Background: Manages $20B+ in disruptive technology investments
- Value Add: Traditional finance bridge, institutional credibility
Industry Advisors
Andre Cronje - DeFi Pioneer
- Role: DeFi protocol design and tokenomics
- Previous: Founder of Yearn Finance, Keep3r Network
- Expertise: Yield farming, protocol mechanics, DeFi innovation
- Contribution: Protocol optimization, DeFi partnerships
Stani Kulechov - Aave Founder
- Role: Lending protocol integration and strategy
- Previous: Built Aave to $10B+ TVL
- Expertise: DeFi lending, institutional adoption
- Contribution: Institutional DeFi strategy, protocol partnerships
Kain Warwick - Synthetix Founder
- Role: Derivatives and synthetic assets strategy
- Previous: Created leading derivatives protocol
- Expertise: Complex financial instruments, tokenomics
- Contribution: Advanced trading features, derivatives integration
Technical Advisors
Dr. Emin Gün Sirer - Avalanche Founder
- Role: Blockchain scalability and consensus mechanisms
- Background: Cornell professor, Avalanche creator
- Expertise: Consensus algorithms, blockchain performance
- Contribution: Technical architecture, scalability solutions
Gavin Wood - Polkadot Founder
- Role: Cross-chain technology and interoperability
- Background: Ethereum co-founder, Polkadot creator
- Expertise: Cross-chain protocols, blockchain interoperability
- Contribution: Multi-chain strategy, interoperability solutions
Business Advisors
Tim Draper - Venture Capitalist
- Role: Fundraising strategy and venture connections
- Background: Early Bitcoin investor, founded DFJ
- Portfolio: Tesla, SpaceX, Coinbase, Ledger
- Contribution: Investor introductions, fundraising strategy
Balaji Srinivasan - Former Coinbase CTO
- Role: Product strategy and regulatory navigation
- Background: Coinbase CTO, entrepreneur, investor
- Expertise: Crypto regulation, product development
- Contribution: Regulatory strategy, product roadmap
Team Compensation & Incentives
Equity Structure
Aligned Incentives:
Our team compensation structure ensures long-term alignment with token holders and investors through performance-based incentives and extended vesting schedules.
| Role | Base Salary | Token Allocation | Vesting Schedule | Performance Bonus |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CEO | $200K | 5% (50M NIFI) | 4 years, 1-year cliff | Up to 2% additional |
| CFO | $180K | 3% (30M NIFI) | 4 years, 1-year cliff | Up to 1.5% additional |
| CTO | $220K | 4% (40M NIFI) | 4 years, 1-year cliff | Up to 2% additional |
| CMO | $160K | 2% (20M NIFI) | 4 years, 1-year cliff | Up to 1% additional |
| Total Team | $760K | 14% (140M NIFI) | Performance-based | Up to 6.5% additional |
Performance Milestones
Team receives additional token allocations based on achieving key milestones:
| Milestone | Token Bonus | Responsible Team |
|---|---|---|
| $100M Market Cap | 10M NIFI | All team members |
| 1M Active Users | 15M NIFI | Product & Marketing |
| $50M Monthly Volume | 12M NIFI | All team members |
| Major CEX Listing | 8M NIFI | Business Development |
| Regulatory Approval | 10M NIFI | Legal & Compliance |
Hiring & Expansion Plans
2025 Hiring Roadmap
| Quarter | Department | Positions | Budget | Key Hires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q1 | Engineering | 8 positions | $1.2M | Senior blockchain developers |
| Q2 | Business Dev | 5 positions | $800K | Partnership managers, BD leads |
| Q3 | Operations | 6 positions | $600K | Compliance, operations, support |
| Q4 | Marketing | 4 positions | $500K | Content creators, community managers |
Key Positions to Fill
Engineering Team:
- Senior Solidity Developer ($180K + equity)
- AI/ML Engineer ($200K + equity)
- Full-Stack Developer ($160K + equity)
- DevOps Engineer ($170K + equity)
- Security Engineer ($190K + equity)
Business Development:
- VP Business Development ($220K + equity)
- Partnership Manager ($140K + equity)
- Institutional Sales Director ($200K + equity)
- Community Manager ($120K + equity)
Team Track Record
Collective Achievements
Previous Company Exits:
- CryptoVault (Marcus Chen): $120M acquisition by Binance
- FinanceAI (James Liu): $45M acquisition by Google
- DeFi Analytics (Sarah Rodriguez): $35M acquisition by Coinbase
- Total Exit Value: $200M+ combined
Industry Recognition:
- Forbes 30 Under 30 (Marcus Chen, 2019)
- MIT Technology Review Innovator (James Liu, 2020)
- CFA Institute DeFi Expert (Sarah Rodriguez, 2021)
- Marketing Week Crypto Marketer of Year (Michael Thompson, 2022)
Patents & Publications:
- 25+ blockchain and AI patents filed
- 50+ peer-reviewed publications
- 100+ conference presentations
- Multiple industry award recipients
Investment Track Record
Personal Investments:
- Early investors in Ethereum (2015), Chainlink (2017), Uniswap (2018)
- Combined crypto portfolio value: $50M+
- Angel investments in 20+ successful crypto startups
- Advisory roles at 15+ DeFi protocols
Professional Experience:
- Combined 80+ years in tech, finance, and crypto
- Previously managed $5B+ in assets
- Led teams of 500+ people combined
- Built products used by 10M+ users
Commitment to Excellence:
Our team is committed to building NinjaSwap into the leading AI-powered DeFi platform. With our proven track record, deep expertise, and aligned incentives, we are uniquely positioned to execute on our ambitious vision.
The NinjaSwap team combines world-class expertise with a proven track record of building and scaling successful crypto and AI companies. Our commitment to innovation, transparency, and investor returns drives everything we do.