Ex-Starknet and Yuga Labs Execs Join Kraken-backed $100M L1 Nibiru Chain

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Sead Fadilpašić

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Sead Fadilpašić

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May 2, 2024

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Nibiru Chain

, a $100 million HashKey and Kraken Ventures-backed Layer 1 blockchain, has announced two senior hires from Yuga Labs and Starknet Asia as part of its Asia expansion.

The project has appointed Yura Nam, an ex-head of StarkNet Asia, and Nicholas Lo, a former APAC Growth Manager at Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) developer Yuga Labs, as Asia Growth and Asia Business Development leads, respectively.

Expanding Across Asia

The US-based Nibiru’s expansion goal is to cultivate local brand presence and adoption in each Asia region, said a press release sahred with Cryptonews.

Therefore, the team will focus on driving forward adoption, forging strategic partnerships, public relations, marketing engagements, offline events, community management, business development, and developer relations.

The targeted regions include Korea, Japan, India, Southeast Asia (SEA), and Chinese-speaking countries.

Furthermore, Nibiru will be hiring local community leads in each country.

The Asia team will continue to expand with ongoing role searches for Community Growth in countries such as India, Japan, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines, it said.

The team already has relationships with “some of the major players in the region,” including builders, validators, and media companies.

It is pursuing partnerships and collaborations and is exploring opportunities to engage with the developer community through grants, hackathons, accelerators, VC funds, and other initiatives.

🌍 Join the Nibiru Cataclysm Hackathon and build the next "killer-dApp" on @NibiruChain! With $160,000 in prizes, seed funding opportunities, and a platform to showcase your skills, this is your chance to make a lasting impact.

Learn more: https://t.co/aJeVUxW6eD

— DoraHacks (@DoraHacks) April 30, 2024

Navigating the Complexities of Local Markets

The Nibiru Chain team suggested that the two latest hires are a key part of the project’s expansion plans.

As Asia Business Development, Lo will lead efforts to establish Nibiru’s presence in key APAC markets.

Lo previously worked as an analyst at JPMorgan and held the position of business development manager at Hong Kong FinTech Week, D3 Bahamas, and Finoverse.

Furthermore, he previously led Asia expansion at “numerous exchanges,” the announcement said.

At Nibiru, he will work at building relationships with major protocols, ecosystem dapps, conglomerates, gaming companies, financial institutions, and local partners.

Lo will also work closely with Asian media companies to create exposure for the project’s L1 offering, targeting verticals in gaming, DeFi, NFTs, and RWAs, it said.

Meanwhile, Nam has seven years of experience in the financial services industry.

Her previous positions also involved working on partnerships, sponsorships, agreements, and event planning and facilitation.

She has significant experience hosting conferences, meetups, and tours, among other events, and is an active member of the Korean blockchain community Nonce.

Lo and Nam will utilize their experience, industry connections, and regional cultural insights to “navigate the complexities of the Asia market,” the announcement said.

COO Jonathan Chang remarked that the new hires will support Nibiru in “incorporating best practices for go-to-market, leveraging their track record of relationship building and execution.”

“Going forward, they will helm a multitude of Nibiru’s events, partnerships, and growth initiatives in the region.”

Who's down for #Nibiru Unchained Bangkok nighttt🔥#SEABlockchainWeek pic.twitter.com/lXoIpxayfc

— Yura (@namyura_) April 25, 2024

Nibiru Chain Has A $100 Million Valuation

Nibiru came out of stealth at the end of 2022. It reported that “dozens of projects” have begun building on the chain since then across sectors like RWAs, gaming, and DeFi.

In April 2023, it raised $8.5 million in seed funding at a $100 million valuation.

The round was led by Tribe Capital, Republic Capital, NGC Ventures, and Original Capital.

It saw participation from Acacia Digital, Alves Ventures, Basis Set Ventures, BECO Capital, Broadhaven, CapitalX, Cerulean Ventures, Cogitent Ventures, Cosmostation, HashKey Capital, Helikon Investments, Imperatore Travel World, Lecca Group, Meteorcap Ventures, SaxeCap, The Picks & Shovels Co., Token Metrics, VC3 DAO, and others.