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Ex-a16z Engineering and Security Heavyweights to Start Crypto Custody Firm: Source

A16z’s former CTO, Riyaz Faizullabhoy, and former CISO Nassim Eddequiouaq have the blessing and seed backing of the venture-capital giant, a person familiar with the plans said.

By Ian Allison
AccessTimeIconApr 27, 2023 at 5:09 a.m. UTC
Updated May 9, 2023 at 4:13 a.m. UTC
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Former senior technology and security executives from venture-capital giant Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) are starting an institutional-focused cryptocurrency custody firm, according to a person familiar with the plans.

Ex-Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Riyaz Faizullabhoy and former Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) Nassim Eddequiouaq have the blessing and seed backing of the VC firm, the person said. The duo both left a16z in February to pursue the new custody venture.

Institutional crypto custody is a busy space with a mix of technologies available to manage cryptography keys for hedge funds, asset managers and banks.

Faizullabhoy and Eddequiouaq began working together on crypto at digital asset custody specialist Anchorage, according to an a16z blog post. Prior to joining a16z, the pair co-created the crypto custody infrastructure for the Novi (formerly known as Calibra) wallet at Facebook.

Faizullabhoy and Eddequiouaq didn't immediately respond to requests for comment and a spokesman for a16z declined to comment.

Edited by Parikshit Mishra.

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Ian Allison
Ian Allison

Ian Allison is an award-winning senior reporter at CoinDesk. He holds ETH.

Follow @IanAllison123 on Twitter

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