Before NFTs made headlines and Bitcoin was a household word, Meltem Demirors was already in the trenches—betting big on crypto when most people hadn’t even heard of Ethereum. Today, she’s the Chief Strategy Officer at CoinShares, a publicly traded digital asset firm with billions in assets under management. But don’t mistake her for just another suit in blockchain. She’s a rebel in heels with a mission: take the power out of banks and put it back in people’s hands.
Born to Turkish parents and raised between the U.S. and Europe, Meltem grew up deeply aware of how money works—and how it doesn’t. Her international upbringing, combined with elite education at Rice and MIT Sloan, made her fluent in both global finance and Silicon Valley disruption.
After a stint in oil and gas finance, and then traditional asset management, she saw the potential of crypto not just as an investment class—but as a social and economic revolution. While most men in suits laughed off blockchain, Meltem rolled up her sleeves and helped launch one of the first institutional crypto investment products at Digital Currency Group.
Now at CoinShares, she’s shaping the future of how institutions, governments, and individuals think about digital assets. Her job? Help clients build intelligent exposure to Bitcoin, Ethereum, and beyond—without the noise, fear, or hype.
But Meltem isn’t just about markets. She’s about movement.
She’s a frequent voice on CNBC, Bloomberg, and global stages, where she calls out crypto bro culture, educates the public, and dares to ask hard questions about transparency, wealth inequality, and who gets to win in this new financial era. Her TEDx talk, “Bitcoin, Not Blockchain,” has been watched by thousands—and sets the record straight about what really matters.
And unlike many executives, she doesn’t hide behind jargon or ivory towers. Her social media presence is bold, intelligent, and unfiltered. She breaks down complex macro trends, claps back at mansplainers, and drops finance memes with the precision of a Wall Street sniper.
Her biggest flex? She’s not trying to be palatable. She’s trying to be powerful.
Demirors is part of a new wave of women who aren’t asking for a seat at the table—they’re creating their own economies. And her presence has opened the door for other women, minorities, and global voices in a space that was once seen as “for coders only.”
Whether you believe in crypto or not, one thing’s clear: Meltem Demirors believes in freedom—financial, intellectual, and institutional. And she’s building it, one token at a time.
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