Asheesh Birla is a seasoned entrepreneur and expert in the blockchain and fintech industries, with over 20 years of experience in Silicon Valley. He spent 9 years at Ripple, joining in 2013 shortly after the company launched, where he led the team bringing the first enterprise crypto product to market with hundreds of customers worldwide, and helped grow the company to over 1000 employees. Today, Asheesh invests in and advises early-stage tech companies. He currently sits on the board of Ripple, and has previously served on the board of Bitso, the largest LATAM crypto exchange, as well as MoneyGram and several other fintech startups. He also guest lectures on entrepreneurship and blockchain at Wharton, Haas School of Business at Berkeley, and the University of Michigan. Asheesh holds a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan and a Master’s degree from the Wharton School of Business.