Vadim Zolotokrylin is the CEO and co-founder of Holdex. Born in Kazakhstan in 1988, raised in Saint Petersburg, Russia, he studied Telecommunications Engineering and Economics and has nearly 20 years of experience in technology startups as a product owner, CEO, and business developer. He moved to Hong Kong in 2014 and since 2025 splits his time between Hong Kong and Bali with his family.
Vadim got into DeFi after experiencing banking exclusivity firsthand after moving to Hong Kong. That personal frustration is still what drives him — he genuinely believes DeFi will make financial services more inclusive, bias-free, and borderless. True interconnectivity between markets, respecting the sovereignty of communities, removing the gatekeepers — that's the endgame he's building toward.
The hardest part isn't building the app or the blockchain. It's being brutally honest about the problem, validating solutions as fast as possible, and learning quickly enough to move to what matters next. Do less, but do it perfectly. The team is everything — not funding. Values and experience beat any cap table. Experience isn't measured in years, but in the confidence to hit a goal while it's still relevant.
Vadim is a product thinker with deep technical roots — moving fluidly from strategy to smart contract architecture. He thrives in fast-paced environments with people who take ownership and never stop learning.
Books that shaped how he thinks: Start With Why, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, First Things First, Think and Grow Rich, The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari, The Power of Silence, Rich Dad Poor Dad, The Lean Startup, Leaner Bigger Stronger.
Outside work, Vadim surfs, plays tennis, practices yoga, cooks, reads, goes to music festivals and theatre, dives, camps, hikes, and travels constantly — living between Hong Kong and Bali fits that lifestyle perfectly. Family time is non-negotiable.
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Writings
Co-authored with Mark Curchin