Jan Smejkal has established a distinguished career in building and scaling ventures, particularly in emerging markets. Currently serving as the Chief Strategy Officer and Product lead at Xverse since September 2022, he is instrumental in constructing top-tier infrastructure for Bitcoin web3 and Ordinals. In addition to his role at Xverse, Jan is the host of “The Ordinal Show,” the preeminent podcast about Bitcoin Ordinals, where he engages in conversations with notable figures from the Ordinals/Bitcoin community, amassing an impressive audience of 2000+ listeners per show.
EDUCATION
Jan holds a Master’s degree in Management from Peking University, reflecting his commitment to academic excellence. He has consistently demonstrated a keen ability to navigate complex business landscapes, contributing to the success and growth of ventures across diverse industries.
CAREER
Prior to his current roles, Jan served as a Growth Advisor at Assetario, a predictive analytics/revenue optimization SaaS AI platform, contributing significantly to lead generation, sales team establishment, and market positioning. His tenure at Packeta Group, where he held the position of Growth Advisor, involved direct collaboration with the executive team to establish a local presence in China, implement a robust sales funnel, and initiate key partnerships.
With a strong foothold in the technology and investment landscape, Jan served as a Venture Partner at Global MFO, focusing on emerging technologies. During this time, he played pivotal roles in founding two internally incubated companies in the web3 infrastructure and NFT platform startup space. Furthermore, his involvement as an Advisor at Controlant and Berlin Brands Group showcased his strategic contributions to global providers of real-time monitoring solutions and e-commerce operations in China, respectively.
Jan’s diverse experience extends to the finance sector, where he served as an Associate at Credit Suisse, providing premier China-related advisory services leveraging the global platform. His involvement with Forbes as an Advisor saw him orchestrate the Central Europe Business Summit in Hong Kong/Shenzhen, bridging business leaders from Central Europe with local Chinese entrepreneurs.
Beyond his corporate endeavors, Jan is recognized for his influential role in Startup Grind as the China & APAC Community Director. Under his leadership, the community experienced exponential growth, expanding from 4 to 25+ cities in China in less than 24 months.
