Why we invested in KZen Networks
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Today we’re excited to share news of one of our newest investments: KZen Networks, which is building a super secure, non-custodial, and -- most important -- easy-to-use software cryptocurrency wallet.
The company came out of stealth today to announce its first round of funding, and it will soon be releasing its wallet to consumers. We were interested in the company due to its team and technical approach to solving a problem that is central to the adoption of cryptocurrency.
Cryptocurrency owners and investors today need to either trust centralized exchanges or platforms with protecting their digital assets, or take care of their own with hardware-based wallets or sometimes software wallets. Either way, they are exposed to cybertheft or being locked out of their being able to trade if they lose their private key.
We saw in KZen a solution that was not just more secure than current alternatives, but also had a truly delightful ease-of-use. It enables users to generate and manage private keys in a way that all but eliminates security breaches and human error through a range of cutting-edge cryptographic and security techniques.
While KZen’s tech stack was built first and foremost to power a better cryptocurrency wallet, we see opportunities for them to extend the offering within the ecosystem.
The company was founded by CEO Ouriel Ohayon, a serial entrepreneur who has exited multiple B2C startups, and chief cryptography officer Omer Shlomovits, a Psagot and IDF elite tech unit alumnus who is working on a PhD in advanced cryptography. Their team has a wealth of experience in cybersecurity, cryptography, and building large-scale products at companies like Amazon and Microsoft.
Eyal Miller and I have known Ouriel since our Google Launchpad days, and we were excited to partner with him when we learned what he was working on. KZen was a guest startup in the Samsung NEXT Tel Aviv office before they were an investment, and we look forward to helping them grow and expand their business into new markets.