Demystifying Cryptocurrency & Blockchain Technology

Iliana Oris Valiente, CPA, CA, CBP (Certified Bitcoin Professional) is a Managing Director at Accenture where she oversees both the Canada Innovation Hub and the Canadian blockchain practice, working with clients to support their strategic transformation journeys leveraging the latest emerging technologies.

Iliana is widely credited for being a trailblazer in the blockchain industry, leading initiatives to conceptualize and build blockchain solutions across industries – focusing on financial services, supply chain, health and public sector. Iliana has strong views on how the network effects of this technology will impact multiple industry verticals, and how it will radically change many status quo business models. Most recently, she founded ColliderX, a non-profit blockchain research and development organization, where she also chairs the board of directors. Iliana is also a contributor to the Tapscott-led Blockchain Research Institute, an Associate at the Creative Destruction Lab, and on the Emerging Leaders Advisory Council for CPA Ontario.

Based in Toronto, Iliana graduated summa cum laude from the University of Ottawa with a Bachelor’s degree in Commerce and is a certified public accountant and chartered accountant (CPA,CA).

Iliana a published author and sought-after speaker, having presented at a number of North American and European conferences and events. She has been featured in print and online media, radio and television outlets including CNBC, CBC, NPR, BetaKit, IT World Canada, American Banker, and was named one of the Top 100 Most Influential People In the Blockchain Industry by Coindesk, the main news publication in the industry in 2017.

Alex Tapscott is a globally-recognized writer, speaker, investor and advisor focused on the impact of emerging technologies, such as blockchain and cryptocurrencies, on business, society and government. He is the co-author (with Don Tapscott) of the critically acclaimed non-fiction best-seller, Blockchain Revolution: How the Technology Behind Bitcoin and Other Cryptocurrencies is Changing the World, which has been translated into more than 15 languages. His TedX San Francisco talk: Blockchain is Eating Wall Street has been viewed over 650,000 times.

In 2017, Alex co-founded the Blockchain Research Institute, a multi-million-dollar think-tank that is investigating blockchain strategies, opportunities and use-cases. Alex is a graduate of Amherst College (cum laude). He lives in Toronto, Canada.

As one of the co-founders, Andrew played a key role in the formation, structure and financing of Hut 8. He brings knowledge and skill from his 21+ years in the finance industry to his role of CEO. Under Andrew’s leadership, Hut 8 has grown to become the world’s largest publicly traded cryptocurrency miner by market capitalization and size of operations. Prior to Hut 8, he served as Managing Director in investment banking at GMP Securities, with a focus on blockchain and technology. Andrew has extensive experience in providing investment banking services to numerous public and private entities, including raising equity and debt capital in excess of C$5 billion through his career.

Kesem is a technology strategy expert specializing in blockchain powered enterprise architecture. Following a leadership position in Deloitte’s Blockchain practice, Kesem co-founded Nuco, one of the earliest enterprise blockchain platforms and a founding member of the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance. In his capacity as COO, Kesem led multiple projects, positioning blockchain at the core of future business platforms for fortune-1000 companies. In 2017, Kesem directed the launch of Aion, a decentralized interoperability network, establishing its position as a globally leading blockchain protocol. Bicameral Ventures, founded 2018, spurs Aion’s breadth and depth, by delivering world-leading projects onto the Aion Blockchain. Kesem leads Bicameral Ventures as it deploys millions of dollars in investments, significantly driving Aion’s growth.

Kesem is an experienced team leader, having served as a naval officer with the IDF for 5 years, his passion for startups and innovation led him to join UofT’s Creative Destruction Lab as a program fellow. Kesem achieved Cum Laude honors for both his undergraduate degrees of Law (LLB) and business administration (BA) and was awarded multiple scholarships towards his Masters of Business Administration (MBA) at the University of Toronto.