In a risk-off environment where cryptocurrency has plummeted to a fraction of its previous valuation, it’s no secret raising capital in 2022 has become a challenge for startups and industry behemoths alike.
But for those still building in the space, bear markets are pivotal for creating a foundation for the next market frenzy. While the markets are quiet, decentralized protocols are laying the groundwork for the future of crypto.
Among these protocols is Origin Protocol, an Ethereum-based application aggressively recruiting the top talent in crypto. After raising $275 million for DeFi protocol 1inch, Andra Nicolau found herself taking the next step in her career as head of BD for Origin Protocol’s OUSD stablecoin.
Benzinga interviewed Andra Nicolau on venture funding in Web3, her experience raising nine figures in 2021, and why she chose Origin Protocol as the next step in her career.
BZ: Tell us about your crypto journey up to this point. Where did it all start?
“My exposure to crypto started during my days at UC Berkeley, but I was more so adjacent to the industry than a part of it. Many people were still skeptical of the industry back then, but after seeing more signals in the news, I dove in head first and ended up working within crypto in 2017, right before the first mainstream bull market.
I started my crypto journey working for products that were focused on privacy of personal data; this was a hot topic in 2017. I continued the privacy trend and worked for a decentralized VPN protocol and then found my way to the Ethereum Infrastructure world.
As DeFi took off in 2020, I joined 1inch as Head of Growth.”
BZ: What is 1inch and what were you focusing on there?
“1inch is a top decentralized exchange (DEX) aggregator with a novel execution algorithm and the deepest liquidity. DEX aggregators find the best rates for crypto trading across multiple exchanges, such as Uniswap, Curve, and Sushiswap, allowing traders to find the best liquidity pool to…
