Former a16z Execs To Launch Institutional Crypto Custody Agency

Former senior know-how and safety executives from enterprise capital big Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), Riyaz Faizullabhoy and Nassim Eddequiouaq, have reportedly began an institutional-focused cryptocurrency custody agency.

The duo, who had held the positions of Chief Expertise Officer and Chief Data Safety Officer at a16z, have acquired the agency’s blessing and seed backing for the brand new enterprise.

Earlier than becoming a member of a16z, the tandem co-created the crypto custody infrastructure for Fb’s Novi (previously Calibra) pockets. Calibra, launched by Fb in June 2019, was designed as a digital pockets to facilitate transactions utilizing the proposed cryptocurrency Libra. The venture confronted vital backlash from regulators and policymakers, resulting in the withdrawal of assist from a number of founding members of the Libra Affiliation. In December 2020, Fb rebranded Calibra as Novi and the Libra Affiliation modified its identify to Diem Affiliation, signaling a shift in focus.

The Diem Affiliation redesigned the venture right into a stablecoin pegged to the US greenback and different main currencies, aiming to adjust to regulatory necessities. Novi, as a digital pockets, helps Diem and different cryptocurrencies, offering customers with a safe platform for digital asset transactions. All through Novi’s growth, safety has been a high precedence, with Nassim and Riyaz taking part in a major position in constructing its crypto custody infrastructure.

Beforehand, a16z Crypto had onboarded Nassim and Riyaz to seek the advice of with initiatives within the a16z Crypto portfolio, serving to scale the agency’s operations. The pair ventured additional into the crypto area at Anchorage, specializing in securing non-public keys inside giant distributed infrastructures. Institutional crypto custody is a aggressive area, with varied applied sciences accessible to handle cryptographic keys for hedge funds, asset managers, and banks.

Earlier than their involvement with blockchain applied sciences, the duo met at Docker, the place they labored on securing utility provenance, authentication programs, and designing the safe OS utilized in Docker Desktop. Docker is an open-source platform that automates the deployment, scaling, and administration of cloud functions by shaping containerized environments for cloud deployment. Containers are light-weight, moveable items that enable builders to bundle an utility together with its dependencies, corresponding to libraries, configuration information, and runtime surroundings, ensuring that an app runs constantly and predictably throughout totally different environments, whatever the underlying infrastructure.

With this expertise, the 2 are actually shifting their focus to constructing a brand new crypto custody agency, leveraging their experience in blockchain safety and engineering. Crypto custody is an important part of the blockchain ecosystem, providing safe storage and administration of digital property for institutional traders. With their stable background in crypto custody infrastructure growth, Nassim and Riyaz are well-equipped to deal with the rising want for safe and dependable custody providers within the quickly evolving crypto panorama.

Disclaimer: This text is supplied for informational functions solely. It’s not provided or supposed for use as authorized, tax, funding, monetary, or different recommendation.