Andrea Immenga is now only in her second week as Talent Coordinator at MoonPay, but she’s no crypto newbie. Her interest in the technology dates back as early as 2014, when she began studying Economics at the University of Cape Town. After graduating with honors, Immenga went on to spend over three years working for the cryptocurrency platform Luno, giving her ample time not only to acclimate to the industry, but to reflect on her place within it.
“When we take a look at working in this space, we see that the companies themselves, like Moonpay, are inclusive,” she told me. “They have diverse teams that stretch across continents.”
That’s great, I replied, but what about the industry as a whole? Doesn’t it have a “stale, male, and pale” problem?
“Ultimately, our industry invites people to show up as their authentic selves, regardless of gender, ethnicity or background,” she said. “And as a woman, that's something inspiring and important to me.”
I asked Immenga how she feels about taking on a new role at MoonPay. “It’s definitely nerve-racking,” she said, “but exciting.”
“Nerve-racking but exciting” seems to sum up how a lot of women feel about working in crypto: there's some apprehension stepping into a largely male-dominated industry, but there's also a lot to look forward to. After all, crypto is relatively new and full of opportunities, many of which could be hugely beneficial to women.
But don’t take it from me. Here’s what eight MoonPay employees had to say about their experience working as women in the industry.
Gen Khoo, Chief of Staff
Having worked in finance my entire career, I frequently dream of a world where all women feel confident and empowered to embrace financial knowledge and enjoy equal access in the financial sector.
The decentralized nature of Web 3.0 means that now, more than ever, women have a real opportunity to create, to lead, and to carve their own path in this new value economy. We now have the same access as men to take control of our financial destiny and fully realize the potential of blockchain. So let’s seize the opportunity now, while the industry is young, to build a solid foundation for future generations of women.
Georgina Karnasopoulos, Associate Product Manager
When I began my career in crypto, I was aware that this was a largely male-dominated space. Reflecting on the reasons why entering this industry might be intimidating for a female newcomer, I realized that a lack of inspirational female role models was, and still is, a major contributor.
So, how do we create more female role models in crypto?
We hire more.
I joined MoonPay as one of a handful of women on the Product and Engineering team, but I am excited to see these numbers rising rapidly as our company grows and our hiring efforts expand. It is up to us to build an inclusive workforce filled with inspirational women that other young women can look up to.
Our vision at MoonPay is to make cryptocurrencies accessible to one billion people by 2030, and to do this, we must continue to learn from and incorporate perspectives of all members of society.
Valma Tikkakoski, Director of Marketing
I came to MoonPay after having spent three years as Head of Marketing at Ravelin, an online payment fraud prevention company based in London. While I was confident that my background in marketing and payments would allow me to excel, and I was excited by the prospect of joining a growing startup, I also knew that I would be marketing to a largely male demographic (roughly 70% of crypto investors are male) and working alongside mostly male colleagues on MoonPay’s leadership team. This has led me not only to adapt, but to reflect.
Crypto has come a long way in a short time, but I think we’re at a crossroads–as an industry and as a community–to show to women that the door isn’t closed to them. This is a technological revolution for everyone, regardless of gender, and in order to take it mainstream, we need as much bright young talent as we can get.
MoonPay’s Gen Khoo, Lara Payton, Elise Messerli , Laura Gomez Rojas, and Valma Tikkakoski.
Lara Rodriguez Payton, Director of Partner Success
Over the past 15 years in my career I have worked in a number of different male-dominated industries, from commercial real estate to management consulting, and now crypto. Out of all the sectors, I have found crypto to be the most welcoming and collaborative!
Jumping over to crypto was a huge shift, but I’ve found that my MoonPay colleagues are energetic, open to change, and best of all, easy to work with. In addition, I’ve found that MoonPay prioritizes hiring diverse teams and is very welcoming to all employees from many different cultures. I immediately felt right at home and where I was supposed to be.
I’ve enjoyed mentoring other women in the company and hope to continue to do this throughout my career.
Gosia Palys-Dudek, Frontend Engineer
A few years ago, I changed my career path and started learning programming. At that time, I didn't know how male-dominated the field was, so my work was cut out for me. Today I am glad that I managed to go through a quite difficult path, and even though there is still a lot to learn, I’m happy that I can be an inspiration for women who also want to take the same route that I have.
I sincerely believe that products made by both women and men – by people with different life experiences and backgrounds – will be much more relevant to consumers. Since crypto is fully digitized, democratizing access whether you live in London or Wroclaw, Miami or San Francisco, there will hopefully be a growing interest on the part of women whose contributions to this industry will be invaluable.
Rosie Atkinson, Brand Project Manager
In an industry dominated by men, it’s not surprising that crypto brands mostly attract men. For crypto to become part of the norm in people’s daily lives, we need to be speaking to both men and women. Who we are as a brand and what we communicate is imperative.
In the brand team, our audience is at the forefront of our minds. We constantly interrogate and iterate, to ensure that what we put out resonates equally with men and women. Not only is this to attract more women into buying and selling crypto or collecting NFTs–we also want to get more women working in the industry. Our team is growing quickly and with that comes so much opportunity.
Lauren Borodajko, QA Engineering Coach
I work at MoonPay as a QA coach. In collaboration with the development teams, I seek to ensure that quality is at the forefront of everything that we do, and I’m very proud of the work that we have achieved. Owing to the lack of prominent female role models in the industry, I was a little apprehensive about joining a crypto start up, but I’m pleased to report that I have always been made to feel welcome and valued from the moment I joined the company.
Working in tech for several years, I have had numerous experiences of being the only woman in the room. Happily, here at MoonPay that is certainly not always the case! Diversity is fundamentally important for any ambitious startup looking to make waves in the tech industry. MoonPay is leading the charge by facilitating our growth, and helping us to become the leaders and role models of the future that the industry so desperately needs.
Ana Velichkovska, Accounting Analyst
Having been a part of the crypto industry for almost three years now, I learned that the narrative of crypto being only a male-dominated industry should start changing. More effort should be made to create opportunities for women when it comes to gender balance in the crypto and blockchain industry. Through the years I was lucky to have met a lot of women that are part of this modern tech-driven world. Female representation in the industry is very much needed, since the public understanding of crypto assets continues to be that of an industry that is unappealing for women.
Even though there is a steady rise in women entering the field and taking on leadership roles, I believe there is still room for improvement. I like working for a company whose primary goal is to make crypto accessible to everyone, regardless of gender. The crypto community as a whole should embrace this vision.
Join us!
At MoonPay, we're helping to build the foundation of a more inclusive financial system. That's why we keep diversity, equity, and inclusion at the forefront of our minds throughout our hiring process and beyond.
If you’re interested in joining our growing team, feel free to browse our Careers page for open roles.