From working at McDonald's to steering the Robinhood encryption business: Johann Kerbrat's comeback journey

Fifteen years ago, 21-year-old Johann Kerbrat lived in a small apartment near the French Riviera, working at a fast food restaurant during the day and teaching himself programming at night. Today, he has become the Senior Vice President and Head of Encryption Business at a well-known fintech company, leading the launch of the company's ambitious encryption product suite.

Starting a Business

Kerbrat recalls his entrepreneurial journey: "My studio might be smaller than the average person's bathroom." Before enrolling at the University of Nice, he quit his job to start his first fintech startup—a no-code payment company that helps small merchants establish e-commerce websites without a technical background.

"That was the stage when e-commerce was just starting. At that time, merchants either spent huge amounts of money hiring agencies or were unable to conduct online business. Our idea was to allow people to set up their own stores without any technical knowledge - similar to a certain well-known e-commerce platform today."

This idea comes at the right time. In the early 2010s, online commerce was booming, and Kerbrat's tools provided small businesses with the opportunity to compete. This experience also made him realize the fragility and high costs of the global financial system.

Cryptocurrency Enlightenment

Kerbrat later recalled that a conversation with a Greek classmate made him realize the limitations of the traditional banking system. The classmate's family had their bank accounts frozen during the Eurozone crisis, leading to a difficult living situation. At the same time, merchants on his platform also reported high transaction fees, complicated refund processes, and credit card fraud becoming an uncontrollable cost.

"Later I read the Bitcoin white paper," he said, "and I thought to myself: 'This might be the solution to all problems.'"

That was in 2010. Kerbrat began assembling mining machines, deploying wallets, and attempting to build a payment interface based on Bitcoin. He did not speculate on Bitcoin but was dedicated to understanding the true potential behind this technology.

"At that stage, you will realize that cryptocurrency is not just an asset, but a structural transformation."

Career Development and Encryption Business Leadership

After that, Kerbrat worked as a core engineer at several well-known technology companies. Before joining the current company, he also served as Vice President of Engineering at a blockchain project focused on privacy technology, concentrating on privacy technologies like zero-knowledge proofs. These experiences brought him back to the encryption field and made him realize that user experience is the biggest shortcoming in the encryption industry.

In 2021, he officially joined the encryption business department of the current company as Chief Technology Officer, and in 2023, he was promoted to Senior Vice President and General Manager. At this time, it had been 13 years since he first came into contact with the Bitcoin white paper.

Under the leadership of Kerbrat, the company has successively launched several important products:

• Launched a non-custodial wallet in 2022, aiming to become "a Web3 browser built for the average person."
• Starting from 2023, support for Bitcoin transfers and on-chain asset withdrawals marks the company's transition from "trading interface" to "encryption infrastructure."
• In 2024, it aims to acquire a certain European encryption exchange, attempting to enter the European market through its multiple licenses.

Kerbrat emphasized that "compliance is not a barrier, but a market barrier." This is also the key for the company to establish a foothold in the encryption business.

New Product Launch and Future Outlook

Recently, Kerbrat participated in the most ambitious encryption product suite launch in the company's history. The new products include:

• Expand the issuance of tokenized US stocks and ETFs in Europe
• Launching encryption currency staking services in the United States
• Provide perpetual futures for eligible EU traders
• Launching a new Layer 2 blockchain optimized for real-world asset settlement and 24/7 trading.

Kerbrat stated that their goal is to make encryption technology "invisible" in the background, like infrastructure. "You don't think about how the water flows to the faucet, you just expect it to be available when you turn it on."

These new initiatives aim to integrate traditional finance with blockchain infrastructure. The company's stock price hit a historic high after the announcement, with an increase of over 100% this year.

For Kerbrat, this product launch not only symbolizes a significant advancement in his career but also represents a continuation of his entrepreneurial spirit from his early years. From a 17-year-old boy fixing the flaws of the internet economy to now leading innovation in encryption finance as an industry leader, Kerbrat's journey showcases how technological innovation can change individual destinies and entire industries.

"When we talk about mass adoption," Kerbrat said, "this is what it looks like. A product that people use—without needing to understand how it works."