Briana Marbury

President & CEO

Briana Marbury is the CEO of the Interledger Foundation (ILF), a nonprofit organization committed to expanding digital financial inclusion to vulnerable populations. ILF invests in organizations, communities, and entrepreneurs working towards the shared goal of enabling interoperable and frictionless payments around the globe.

As CEO of ILF, Briana leads the strategic vision of the organization and has grown ILF from a small team of three to a global workforce of changemakers. Bringing her own firsthand experience with navigating the challenges associated with the lack of equitable financial access, Briana brings her skills, values and lived experience to the crucial work of enabling communities to create and lead their own financial futures.

Before joining ILF, she consulted for 350.org and held financial leadership roles at Repair the World, Uncommon Schools, and the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation. At each organization, Briana built and grew the financial and operational systems that enabled significant progress towards achieving their mission. Additionally, Briana served as an Education Pioneer Graduate Fellow, exploring ways to increase positive educational outcomes in the nation’s most underserved schools.

Briana holds a BA in Accounting from the University of Michigan, an MBA from Wayne State University, and has completed post-graduate work in strategic leadership at Stanford University. Originally from Detroit, Briana has lived in many cities across the US and has even spent a brief period as a digital nomad. When she’s not exploring new cities, she’s spending time with her pup, Seamus.

Alex Lakatos

CTO

Alex has spent the past 11 years working on the Open Web within Browser, Communications, and FinTech organizations. With a background in web technologies and developer advocacy, he's helped organizations build developer-friendly products while engaging with the developer community at large. As the CTO for the Interledger Foundation, he focuses on lowering the barrier to entry into the Interledger ecosystem and drive the adoption of the web standards powering the Interledger Protocol. An avid traveller, it's likely you'll bump into him at developer conferences around the world.

Catherine Fukushima

Sr. Director Philanthropy & Partnerships

Catherine Fukushima has over 25 years experience matching breakthrough ideas and talented people with the resources needed to realize their ambitions and create transformative and sustainable change. As Director of Philanthropy & Partnership for Interledger Foundation, Catherine is working to increase support for open-source financial inclusion efforts around the world while building a community of philanthropy, business, and thought leaders who share the Foundation’s vision for a future in which open payment standards and technologies seamlessly connect our global society.

Chris Lawrence

Head of Programs

Chris is an experienced nonprofit professional who has spent the last 15 years as a dedicated educator, network builder, and advocate for non-profit organizations. Chris is currently the Head of Programs at the Interledger Foundation. He oversees all aspects of the programatic activity of the foundation.

Erika Drushka

Head of Operations

Erika has spent the last 12 years in social impact and technology organizations, leading teams in pursuit of mission-based goals. An expert cat-herder with a background in advocacy and communications, she uses strategic thinking, process, and collaboration to channel creativity around a project into intentional, focused activity. Prior to joining Interledger Foundation, Erika was a Program Director at Loup Design and Innovation, and a Program Designer and Manager at the Mozilla Foundation. She holds an MA in Intercultural Communication and is a Rockwood Leadership Institute alumnus.

Ginny Barahona

Director of Strategy

Ginny has spent 15 years in international development, partnerships, and social impact. She has worked in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the U.S. across government and private sectors. At Interledger, she focuses on short term and long term organizational goals, and creating plans to get there. She’s dedicated to turning ideas into action that support access, inclusivity, and empowerment.

Amber Marie

HR Manager

Meet Amber, an experienced Human Resource professional with over 10 years of expertise in people management, employee relations, and organizational development. She has previously worked in diverse industries, including healthcare, technology, and consulting, managing HR functions for companies of various sizes. Amber is passionate about fostering a positive work environment and implementing employee engagement programs and enjoys helping employees achieve their career goals. Amber strives to make a positive impact in the workplace and contribute to the growth and continued success of Interledger Foundation. When she’s not busy at work, Amber indulges in her love for crafting and spending quality time with her family.

Anna Sheard

Communications Manager

Anna has a background working with open standards. As Communications Manager at Interledger Foundation she helps to connect technical capabilities with human impact stories. She is passionate about sharing stories of the transformative nature of open payments and the importance of inclusive, open working practices.

Ayesha Ware

Awardee Support

Ayesha has spent close to 20 years in non-profit and museum education. She previously worked for the New York Hall of Science engaging children and adults in S.T.E.M learning. Prior to that, she worked for the New York Department of Education and The Brooklyn Museum. Ayesha is a novice street photographer and an avid art enthusiast. As Awardee Support for Grant for the Web, Ayesha onboards awardees, shares important project information, and is the liaison between awardees, the GftW program team and partners.

Blair Currey

Software Developer

Blair is an experienced developer committed to enhancing the accessibility of the interledger network for other developers. With a background in web monetization and a strong focus on supporting small businesses and the creator economy, Blair brings valuable expertise to the Foundation’s efforts to promote financial inclusion through open payments. As a passionate advocate for open source software, he also enjoys contributing to various projects in his free time.

Dena Mitchell

Executive Assistant

Dena is a dedicated office professional with 20+ years of experience as an Executive Assistant and Office Manager who is passionate about supporting senior level executives and making sure that they are able to focus on their core responsibilities. While providing a wide range of operational, administrative, event planning, and executive support, she has worked in several different industries, including insurance, bio-tech, community health, retail, and medical devices. Dena approaches her role as an executive business partner who is invested in making sure that her executives succeed. She loves being able to help people and make a positive impact on their lives.

Erika Keresztes

Executive Assistant

As an executive assistant, Erika Keresztes is a resourceful and organized person, who's sole purpose is to help her executive be the best version of himself at work. She is focused and consistent, managing multiple schedules and maintaining communication across teams. Having held positions in the education, research, development and business fields, Erika is able to tailor her skills to meet the needs of various team members. She holds a doctorate degree in Mathematical Optimization and prior joining ILF, she was a teacher and an automation test engineer. In her free time, Erika enjoys running and spending time with her family.

Hui Jing Chen

Developer Experience Engineer

Hui Jing is a self-taught designer and developer living in Singapore, who loves CSS way more than the average web developer. With more than a decade of experience working on the web, her main focus is building performant and responsive frontend interfaces. And yes, Hui Jing is a two-word Chinese first name. She can often be found spanning routes in some local climbing gym.

Julaire Hall

Programs Outreach Manager

Julaire is a highly accomplished project and program management professional with 10+ years of extensive experience in planning, executing, and overseeing the successful delivery of programs in government and the global services sector. She’s previously worked for Jamaica’s investment and promotions agency and the private sector-led industry outsourcing association. As Programs Outreach Manager for the Interledger Foundation, Julaire will help build the programmatic aspects of the Foundation. Julaire enjoys traveling and spending time with her daughter. She’s a children’s book author and blogger.

Lawil Karama

Program Officer

Lawil has a broad range of experience in open technologies and design. She is a multidisciplinary artist using her practice to explore multiple themes of human awareness. She brings her perspective to work with global communities at the Interledger Foundation as a Programs Officer, supporting individuals grow through open payments.

Max Kurapov

Software Developer

As a software developer at the Interledger Foundation, Max builds open source tools and APIs that provide developers & institutions access to the Interledger network. Before joining the Foundation, Max spent 5 years working at startups: one of which a Fintech company, where he was one of the leads on the card payments processing team.

Mey Pharn

Events Manager

Mey is a creative events specialist with an expertise in leading specialized events and curating experiential programs that connect individuals and build strong communities. With 5 years of events experience, she is skilled in managing large-scale logistics, overseeing extensive operational elements and operating effectively in multifaceted environments that require flexibility and adaptability. She is committed to driving the future of meaningful progress and supporting leaders of global change.

Mohammed Islam

Junior Technical Writer

Mohammed brings 20 years of combined experience in application development, systems integration, and IT operations. On one occasion whilst working out of a former employer’s corporate office and observing a shanty town in the distance from the window, he wondered if his company’s offerings would ever make a difference in the lives of the people he saw. He came to the conclusion that it would not and then bid farewell to the corporate world shortly thereafter. Now as a technical writer at the Interledger Foundation, Mohammed is passionate about enabling creatives, change makers, and innovators in building the pathways for financial inclusion.

Sabine Schaller

Engineering Lead

Sabine has always been interested in Data Ownership and the Internet of Value. She works on specifying and implementing open standards like the Interledger Protocol (ILP), Open Payments, and Web Monetization to allow for a Web where content can be paid for with hard currency instead of data.

Vineel Reddy Pindi

Community Manager

Vineel has spent the last 12 years in community building and user engagement across Technology and Creator ecosystems. With a background in Community Strategy and Advocacy, he helped build global programs, campaigns, and events.

As a Community Manager at Interledger Foundation, he focuses on nurturing and growing the Interledger Community. Vineel is passionate about Creator Economy, Creative Problem Solving, Technology, and Design that enable and empower individuals. Before joining the Interledger Foundation, Vineel was the founder at Collab House.