About Us
Valkyrie Investments is a top-tier financial services firm that bridges the gap between traditional finance and the rapidly evolving digital asset industry. Based in Nashville, the team boasts a wealth of technical expertise in the blockchain economy and a track record of successfully launching investment vehicles across conventional markets.
Valkyrie is led by financial industry veterans with an extensive background across firms including Guggenheim Partners, MUFG, Ernst & Young, Chicago Board of Trade, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, and The World Bank.
With collective experience and proficiency, Valkyrie is positioned as the go-to solution for institutional investors seeking access to cutting-edge cryptocurrency trusts, ETFs, SMAs, and hedge funds.
Our leaders
The Valkyrie team has deep expertise in traditional asset management with extensive backgrounds in building, launching, and scaling financial products with major financial firms. We aim to be the experts across the universe of investment management and digital assets.
Co-Founders
Leah Wald
Chief Executive Officer
Leah Wald is an economist with an expertise in asset management focusing on value investing. As a direct report to the CEO of Vital Financial, Wald spearheaded investment strategies for multi-billion dollar asset managers on global macro strategy.
Read BioLeah Wald
Chief Executive Officer
Leah Wald is an economist with an expertise in asset management focusing on value investing. As a direct report to the CEO of Vital Financial, Ms. Wald spearheaded investment strategies for multi-billion dollar asset managers on global macro strategy.
Prior, Ms. Wald was a Partner at Lucid Investment Strategies, an asset management firm specializing in cryptocurrency investments. Ms. Wald worked at the World Bank Group and co-founded Veterati, a mentorship platform assisting unemployed and transitioning US veterans to secure meaningful employment.
Ms. Wald is a contributing writer for Forbes and co-authored the book Hyperwave Theory: The Rogue Waves of Financial Markets. Ms. Wald has a BA in International Political Economy and a MSc in Management specialized in International Business from IE Business School.
She studied at University of Beijing, University of Haifa, and served as a research assistant to the Director of University of Cambridge's Lauterpacht Centre for International Law where she researched and coded algorithms for a dataset examining the role of arbitrator background for outcomes in international investment arbitration.
Steven McClurg
Chief Investment Officer
Steven McClurg has considerable traditional finance and Fintech experience, ranging from insurtech and payments to blockchain. Previously, Mr. McClurg was a Managing Director at Guggenheim Partners, where he was a...
Read BioSteven McClurg
Chief Investment Officer
Steven McClurg has considerable traditional finance and Fintech experience, ranging from insurtech and payments to blockchain.
Previously, Mr. McClurg was a Managing Director at Guggenheim Partners, where he was a portfolio manager and responsible for portfolio construction and strategy for fixed income and private equity. Most recently, Mr. McClurg founded Theseus Capital, a blockchain-powered asset management platform which was acquired by a merchant bank, Galaxy Digital, where he continued as Managing Director, building their asset management and public funds businesses. He also co-founded payments company, Paydrop. He also has experience in leadership roles in technology companies such as Electronic Arts and Crowdfunder. Mr. McClurg holds a Master of Science and an MBA from Pepperdine University, where he has served as an adjunct professor.
Investment Management & DeFi
Sean Rooney
VP, Research and Trading
Sean Rooney graduated from Pepperdine University with a degree in Business Administration and an accomplished D1 volleyball career. After four All-American seasons and one NCAA championship, Sean joined the United States National Team and competed in two Olympic Games...
Read BioSean Rooney
VP, Research and Trading
Sean Rooney graduated from Pepperdine University with a degree in Business Administration and an accomplished D1 volleyball career. After four All-American seasons and one NCAA championship, Sean joined the United States National Team and competed in two Olympic Games, earning a gold medal at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. While playing professionally in Russia, Italy and South Korea, Sean became fascinated with analyzing, investing, and trading financial markets. Especially in the latter country where advanced smartphone and payment technologies were colliding with the fast-developing world of fintech and cryptocurrency. In 2014, Sean retired from volleyball due to injury and returned to Orange County, California where he helped launch a successful fitness startup as well as a family operated business in the floral industry. In 2015, Sean began exploring the crypto currency space while managing his own trades. He has continued his passion for the digital asset market and is thrilled to return to a fast-paced team environment with Valkyrie.
Bill Cannon
Head of Portfolio Management
Prior to joining Valkyrie, Bill Cannon was a Managing Director at Guggenheim Partners Investment Management, where he was member of the insurance portfolio management division responsible for $80 billion of assets under management. Before that, Mr. Cannon...
Read BioBill Cannon
Head of Portfolio Management
Prior to joining Valkyrie, Bill Cannon was a Managing Director at Guggenheim Partners Investment Management, where he was member of the insurance portfolio management division responsible for $80 billion of assets under management. Before that, Mr. Cannon worked at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and the Chicago Board Of Options Exchange as a derivatives broker for equity index and interest rate futures and options. Mr. Cannon earned a BA in Chemistry from the University of Vermont and an MBA from the Quinlan School of Business at Loyola University Chicago.
Josh Olszewicz
Head of Research
Josh Olszewicz is a seasoned crypto analyst and trader with nearly a decade of experience trading crypto markets. Prior to joining Valkyrie, Josh led the crypto research team at BraveNewCoin and was a portfolio manager for Techemy Capital. Josh holds a BS in Human Biology...
Read BioJosh Olszewicz
Head of Research
Josh Olszewicz is a seasoned crypto analyst and trader with nearly a decade of experience trading crypto markets. Prior to joining Valkyrie, Josh led the crypto research team at BraveNewCoin and was a portfolio manager for Techemy Capital. Josh holds a BS in Human Biology from Michigan State University and an MS in Biotechnology from Johns Hopkins University. Before his involvement in crypto, Josh taught laboratory sciences courses at the undergraduate and graduate level, and worked several years as an ophthalmic and neuro-ophthalmic technician.
Kristy-Leigh Minehan
Technical Advisor
Formerly of Core Scientific and Genesis Mining, Minehan has spent over twelve years building cryptocurrency infrastructure for multiple countries and companies; researching and writing about consensus algorithms and network incentives; and contributing to...
Read BioKristy-Leigh Minehan
Technical Advisor
Formerly of Core Scientific and Genesis Mining, Minehan has spent over twelve years building cryptocurrency infrastructure for multiple countries and companies; researching and writing about consensus algorithms and network incentives; and contributing to the design and implementation of various proof-of-work algorithms (including Ethereum’s controversial ProgPoW). She currently serves as a Technical Advisor for Merkle Standard and Valkyrie Investments.
Operations & Compliance
Nick Bonos
Head of Fund Operations
Nikolaos (Nick) Bonos has been in the financial services industry for more than 32 years. He has worked in various senior operational roles for State Street, JP Morgan Chase, Rydex Investments, Security Benefit Corp., Guggenheim Investments, and MUFG Investor Services (US), LLC.
Read BioNick Bonos
Head of Fund Operations
Nikolaos (Nick) Bonos has been in the financial services industry for more than 32 years. He has worked in various senior operational roles for State Street, JP Morgan Chase, Rydex Investments, Security Benefit Corp., Guggenheim Investments, and MUFG Investor Services (US), LLC. He also has held various senior officer roles for the Rydex Funds, Rydex ETF’s, Rydex Specialized Products LLC, Security Funds, Guggenheim Funds, and Guggenheim ETF’s throughout the years.
He also assisted in the transaction of Rydex Investments to Security Benefit Corporation in 2006.
He was President of Rydex Fund Services when it was sold to MUFG in 2016.
Nick graduated with a BSBA cum laude from Suffolk University in 1986.
Benjamin Gaffey
Fund Controller
Ben Gaffey is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) with over a decade of experience in auditing financial services companies and funds. As a senior manager at Ernst & Young, he worked with a number of financial institutions including Guggenheim, State Street, US Bank and...
Read BioBenjamin Gaffey
Fund Controller
Ben Gaffey is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) with over a decade of experience in auditing financial services companies and funds. As a senior manager at Ernst & Young, he worked with a number of financial institutions including Guggenheim, State Street, US Bank and BNYM. With a focus in wealth and asset management, Ben provided assurance services to trusts, hedge funds, private equity funds, and registered investment companies, ranging from $1 million in assets to over $10 billion.
Ben graduated from The College of William & Mary with a degree in accounting in 2008.
Drew Hill
General Counsel
Drew Hill is a seasoned blockchain, token, and cryptocurrency attorney, with particular expertise related to securities law and regulatory compliance. Prior to joining Valkyrie, Drew was in private practice at Frost Brown Todd LLC where he was a key member of the firm's...
Read BioDrew Hill
General Counsel
Drew Hill is a seasoned blockchain, token, and cryptocurrency attorney, with particular expertise related to securities law and regulatory compliance. Prior to joining Valkyrie, Drew was in private practice at Frost Brown Todd LLC where he was a key member of the firm's nationally prominent Blockchain Practice. In addition to advising Valkyrie as outside legal counsel, his practice ranged from mergers and acquisitions, private fund formation, start-up fundraising, and securities law compliance for token and cryptocurrency issuers to general corporate matters, entity formation and structuring, and corporate governance.
Prior to his time at Frost Brown Todd, Drew launched the blockchain practice at a regional CPA firm and was a member of the transaction advisory services team specializing in tax structuring for mergers and acquisitions, spin-offs, and split-offs.
Drew holds a BA in Finance and Spanish from the Clark Honors College at the University of Oregon and a JD from Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law.
Deborah Mickelson
Director of Operations
Deborah Mickelson brings over two decades of business operations and administrative support in varied fields, from finance to non-profit. Deborah prides herself in leading and supporting teams in both innovative and intelligent ways while cultivating and nurturing successful...
Read BioDeborah Mickelson
Director of Operations
Deborah Mickelson brings over two decades of business operations and administrative support in varied fields, from finance to non-profit.
Deborah prides herself in leading and supporting teams in both innovative and intelligent ways while cultivating and nurturing successful relationships with executives, clients and employees alike. More recently, she spearheaded the capital campaign for a new $11.4 million dollar Senior Center facility located in Santa Clarita, California.
Deborah also managed the build-out, launch and daily operations of Tri Star Sports & Entertainment's West Coast offices. Deborah graduated cum laude from California State University, East Bay with a bachelors in Business Administration with an option in finance.
Kelsey Janas
Senior Operations Analyst
Kelsey Janas has over a decade of operational, legal, and administrative experience in both the public and private sector. She held various senior level company positions as a former Army officer. Prior to the Army, she worked for the Department of Veterans Affairs...
Read BioKelsey Janas
Fund Operations Analyst
Kelsey Janas has over a decade of operational, legal, and administrative experience in both the public and private sector. She held various senior level company positions as a former Army officer. Prior to the Army, she worked for the Department of Veterans Affairs. Her other previous operational and administrative positions at the Department of Defense and CARCO Group, Inc. built upon the knowledge and experience she gained at the University of Nevada, Reno where she graduated with a Bachelor's in cursu honorum magna cum laude.
Lee Germeroth
Web & Marketing Manager
Lee Germeroth has over a decade of experience providing marketing and web services to a wide range of organizations from small brick and mortar businesses to large national and international companies, and non-profits. He uses his diverse background experience...
Read BioLee Germeroth
Web & Marketing Manager
Lee Germeroth has over a decade of experience providing marketing and web services to a wide range of organizations from small brick and mortar businesses to large national and international companies, and non-profits. He uses his diverse background experience to find the best solution for organizational challenges both large and small. At Valkyrie, Lee manages both the trust site and the funds site including data feeds, SEO and content development. He also manages marketing communications and sales data.
Distribution
Shannon Smith
VP, Institutional Distribution & Investor Relations
Shannon Smith brings over 5 years’ experience in the alternative asset management space. Prior to joining Valkyrie, she worked in investor relations and business development at asset-based credit specialist Raven Capital Management. She began her career...
Read BioShannon Smith
VP, Institutional Distribution
Shannon Smith brings over 5 years’ experience in the alternative asset management space. Prior to joining Valkyrie, she worked in investor relations and business development at asset-based credit specialist Raven Capital Management. She began her career at DG Capital Management, a middle market distressed manager, focused on investor relations and client servicing. Shannon graduated with honors from The University of Texas at Austin with a bachelor's degree in journalism and a finance minor.
