About Us
Valkyrie Investments is a leading financial services firm with a focus on digital assets. Headquartered in Nashville, Valkyrie's team combines deep technical expertise in this emerging asset class with decades of experience launching investment vehicles for a wide variety of markets participants. The firm is led by financial industry veterans with decades of experience across firms including Guggenheim Partners, UBS, Chicago Board of Trade, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, and The World Bank.
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 of 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
Head of Research
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 ETF 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.
Will McDonough
Vice Chairman
In addition to his role as Vice Chairman of Valkyrie Investments, Will McDonough is the co-founder of the Valkyrie On Chain DeFi Fund. Will brings over 20 years of experience as an investor and entrepreneur with a career ranging from sports management to global finance...
Read BioWill McDonough
Vice Chairman
In addition to his role as Vice Chairman of Valkyrie Investments, Will McDonough is the co-founder of the Valkyrie On Chain DeFi Fund. Will brings over 20 years of experience as an investor and entrepreneur with a career ranging from sports management to global finance.
In 2014, Mr. McDonough led the $825 million IPO for Atlas Mara (ATMA:LSE), a network of African Banks which he co-founded with former Barclays CEO, Bob Diamond. Prior to founding Atlas, Mr. McDonough and his team in the Investment Management Division of Goldman Sachs managed more than $17 billion in private capital of the firm’s current and retired partners. Before that, he partnered with New York-based Avenue Capital Group to co-found a $250 million distressed debt fund of funds.
Most recently, Mr. McDonough co-founded and manages Corestone Capital, a merchant bank with investments across the financial services, real estate, consumer, and technology sectors. He has been active in blockchain investing since 2017 and serves as a unique bridge between traditional and decentralized worlds.
Wes Cowan
Managing Director, DeFi
In addition to his role as Managing Director of Decentralized Finance at Valkyrie, Wes Cowan is the co-founder of the Valkyrie On Chain DeFi Fund. Prior to working in the blockchain sector, Wes was a Principal at JPMorgan managing over $800 Million, before leaving to start his...
Read BioWes Cowan
Managing Director, Decentralized Finance
In addition to his role as Managing Director of Decentralized Finance at Valkyrie, Wes Cowan is the co-founder of the Valkyrie On Chain DeFi Fund. Prior to working in the blockchain sector, Wes was a Principal at JPMorgan managing over $800 Million, before leaving to start his own tech agency. He started mining Bitcoin out of his agency office in 2015 and has been deeply involved in the sector ever since. In 2020 he then co-founded On-Chain Partners and lead the development of DeFi Valuation & Yield aggregation software which was acquired through a merger by Valkyrie in 2021 to continue to scale and trade on the proprietary data. Wes graduated from New York University and is headquartered in Miami, FL. He currently holds his Series 3, the National Commodities Futures license administered by FINRA.
Liam Rafferty
Data Analyst
Liam Rafferty began his career as an Investment Analyst at JP Morgan Securities, where he held his Series 6, 7, 63, and 65 securities licenses. He left JPM in 2016 for Bain Capital, where he focused on the internal reporting for Bain Capital Credit with over $40 billion across 100+ funds...
Read BioLiam Rafferty
Consultant
Liam Rafferty began his career as an Investment Analyst at JP Morgan Securities, where he held his Series 6, 7, 63, and 65 securities licenses. He left JPM in 2016 for Bain Capital, where he focused on the internal reporting for Bain Capital Credit with over $40 billion across 100+ funds globally. Since Bain, Liam has worked as a Principal of Corestone Capital, managing the company’s investments across the financial services, real estate, consumer, and technology sectors.
Liam graduated from Florida Gulf Coast University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing. He also holds a Master’s Degree in Accounting with a concentration in Financial Analysis.
Kyle Lazernik
DeFi Analyst
Prior to joining Valkyrie, Kyle Lazernik helped build a nationwide wellness brand and played a key role in its $40 million dollar acquisition in 2021. He graduated from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelors in Finance. His passion for finance and technology...
Read BioKyle Lazernik
DeFi Analyst
Prior to joining Valkyrie, Kyle Lazernik helped build a nationwide wellness brand and played a key role in its $40 million dollar acquisition in 2021. He graduated from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelors in Finance. His passion for finance and technology led him into the digital assets space in 2017 where he has obtained deep knowledge and expertise.
Tim Hesselsweet
Quantitative Analyst
Prior to working in digital assets, Tim Hesselsweet was a portfolio manager at hedge funds and proprietary trading firms including Schonfeld, Niederhoffer Investments and SMB Capital. Since 2017, Tim has created tools to monitor blockchain activity and automated trading bots...
Read BioTim Hesselsweet
Quantitative Analyst
Prior to working in digital assets, Tim Hesselsweet was a portfolio manager at hedge funds and proprietary trading firms including Schonfeld, Niederhoffer Investments and SMB Capital. Since 2017, Tim has created tools to monitor blockchain activity and automated trading bots for exchanges including Bitmex, Bybit, and FTX. He has a B.S. in Math from the University of Texas and an M.A. in Statistics from Columbia University.
Operations & Compliance
James O'Brien
Chief Operating Officer
An entrepreneur by trade, James O’Brien joins Valkyrie with over a decade spent in the startup space founding, building, and raising capital for firms across a variety of industries and stages of growth. Previous to joining Valkyrie, James was the first hire at AltoIRA, a Nashville-based...
Read BioJames O'Brien
Chief Operating Officer
An entrepreneur by trade, James O’Brien joins Valkyrie with over a decade spent in the startup space founding, building, and raising capital for firms across a variety of industries and stages of growth. Previous to joining Valkyrie, James was the first hire at AltoIRA, a Nashville-based fintech company specializing in self-directed IRAs designed for alternative asset investing. At Alto, he helped scale operations from pre-seed through series A -- growing the team from 2 to over 100 individuals. While at Alto, James helped to establish, and then lead, the firm’s crypto product and team, with deep expertise in crypto custody, staking and DeFi infrastructure.
James advises a number of early-stage crypto projects, assisting with operational challenges and fundraising, and works with 10X Capital as a venture partner. Outside the world of crypto, James sits on the board of the Heimerdinger Foundation in Nashville, helping to provide whole ingredient, nutrient dense meals to those actively undergoing chemotherapy, and their families. He is a graduate of Colby College.
Scottland Keefer
Chief Compliance Officer
Scottland Keefer has worked in the financial services industry for over 10 years and is a licensed attorney in the state of Illinois. He began his career at Deloitte Tax, advising large trading firms and hedge funds. After moving to the in-house Legal and Compliance practice, Scottland has worked...
Read BioScottland Keefer
CCO
Scottland Keefer has worked in the financial services industry for over 10 years and is a licensed attorney in the state of Illinois. He began his career at Deloitte Tax, advising large trading firms and hedge funds.
After moving to the in-house Legal and Compliance practice, Scottland has worked at large investment advisory firms such as Neuberger Berman, gaining broad-based experience in the sector. As a Vice President at Northern Trust, he advised several large fund complexes on regulatory and governance matters. Most recently, he was tasked with building a U.S. compliance operation for a U.K.-based asset manager seeking to expand their global operations.
Scottland graduated from Indiana University with a B.S. in Finance and DePaul University with both a J.D. and M.B.A. in Finance.
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.
Kevin Farragher
Senior Product Specialist
Kevin Farragher has over thirty years of experience in the financial service and asset management industries. He has served in senior capacities in operations, product management and compliance and supervision at a number of institutions, most prominently Rydex Investments...
Read BioKevin Farragher
Senior Product Specialist
Kevin Farragher has over thirty years of experience in the financial service and asset management industries. He has served in senior capacities in operations, product management and compliance and supervision at a number of institutions, most prominently Rydex Investments. At Rydex, Kevin oversaw the firm’s ETF, Open-End Fund and Variable Annuities product divisions and helped found and served as and Chief-Compliance Officer of the firm’s introducing broker dealer. As part of the firm’s Executive Office, he helped facilitate the sale of Rydex to Security Benefit Corp.
Kevin holds a B.A. in English Literature from Colgate University and an M.A. in education from Fordham University.
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.
Deborah Mickelson
Executive Assistant to CIO
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
Executive Assistant to CIO
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.
Shawn Singh
Director/ Legal Advisor
Shawn Singh is an experienced financial services legal, compliance, fintech and business professional. Shawn was the Chief Operating Officer, General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer of a multi-billion dollar asset manager and was responsible for the Brevan Howard...
Read BioShawn Singh
Legal Advisor
Mr. Singh is an experienced financial services legal, compliance, fintech and business professional with a proven track record of accomplishment and leadership demonstrated over the last 20+ years in the United States and Canada.
Mr. Singh has an in-depth understanding of the investment management space and brings a diverse transactional, securities, cybersecurity, corporate, compliance, regulatory and fund formation expertise to bear when providing strategic and commercial legal and compliance advice to both internal and external stakeholders. He has a thorough knowledge of the Investment Advisers Act, various securities laws and an in-depth knowledge of FATCA, CRS, FCPA, UK, Asia and European regulatory and securities regimes.
He is a trusted counselor to senior management and relied upon for his commercial judgment and valued for building integrated, solutions-oriented teams within a global asset manager.
He was the Chief Operating Officer, General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer of a multi-billion dollar asset manager and was responsible for the Brevan Howard firm spin out in 2014-2015.
Previously he has overseen (from a Legal, Regulatory, Operations and Compliance perspective) advisers with assets under supervision in excess of $125 billion dollars and was previously an associate at Fried Frank, Dewey LeBoeuf, Norton Rose Fulbright and Bryan Cave.
Previous to his legal career he was a private banker for Bank of Nova Scotia, owned mKarma Productions - responsible for producing live shows and entertainment productions and consulting services for feature films. Mr. Singh is a recipient of the Commonwealth Leadership Award.
Distribution
Lori Tiernan
Chief Strategy Officer
Lori Tiernan brings over a decade of experience launching and growing financial brands. Since 2013, she has run Innovative Asset Growth where she served in an outsourced CMO capacity to several emerging and niche asset managers and FinTech brands. She was an early employee...
Read BioLori Tiernan
Chief Strategy Officer
Lori Tiernan brings over a decade of experience launching and growing financial brands. Since 2013, she has run Innovative Asset Growth where she served in an outsourced CMO capacity to several emerging and niche asset managers and FinTech brands.
Prior to launching her own firm, Ms. Tiernan ran Marketing and Investor Relations for a long only equity hedge fund. She was an early employee in Institutional Distribution and Marketing at Guggenheim investments and helped the firm expand their footprint globally and raise billions in new assets.
Ms. Tiernan is a speaker and advocate for women in the technology and financial services sector and runs a non profit in New Hampshire that provides Pro Bono marketing service to local businesses. She is a graduate of the University of Richmond.
Ryan Gorman
Chief Communications Officer
Prior to joining Valkyrie, Ryan Gorman was an independent consultant to hedge funds and institutional service providers in the digital asset space. He brings a wealth of experience from both institutional and retail asset management at both UBS and Bank of NY Mellon, as a journalist...
Read BioRyan Gorman
Chief Communications Officer
Prior to joining Valkyrie, Ryan Gorman was an independent consultant to hedge funds and institutional service providers in the digital asset space. He brings a wealth of experience from both institutional and retail asset management at both UBS and Bank of NY Mellon, as a journalist at top media outlets including the NY Daily News and Business Insider, and as a communications and branding strategist to financial firms in both traditional and digital asset markets
John Mulroy
Head of Capital Markets
John Mulroy is a Senior-Level Capital Markets Executive with 25+ years of experience specializing in ETF creation and distribution, with more than 35 years of experience in the Financial Industry as a whole. John managed the ETF team at Guggenheim Investments in Chicago and oversaw...
Read BioJohn Mulroy
Head of Capital Markets
John Mulroy is a Senior-Level Capital Markets Executive with 25+ years of experience specializing in ETF creation and distribution, with more than 35 years of experience in the Financial Industry as a whole. After graduating Cum Laude from CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice, John began his career at Spear Leeds & Kellogg in 1982 managing the NYSE Major Market Index (XMI). In 1989 John joined Hull Trading Company/Goldman Sachs, managing the New York office and their trade operations, in addition to being the floor official on the American Stock Exchange. John is an experienced market maker in several options and ETF products including SPYDERS, DIAMONDS and QQQQ’S, in addition to advising and orchestrating the launch of Barclays iShares products. More recently, John managed the ETF team at Guggenheim Investments in Chicago and oversaw 77 ETFs including the BulletShares ETFs, raising $40 billion in AUM before selling the Guggenheim ETF franchise to Invesco in April 2018.
John Key
Managing Director, Partnerships
John Key is a Managing Director responsible for Partnerships and Interim Head of Distribution at Valkyrie Investments. Prior to joining Valkyrie, John was the Principal/Founder of Key Strategic Advisors, LLC, a strategic advisory and consulting firm specializing in advising...
Read BioJohn Key
Managing Director, Partnerships
John Key is a Managing Director responsible for Partnerships and Interim Head of Distribution at Valkyrie Investments. Prior to joining Valkyrie, John was the Principal/Founder of Key Strategic Advisors, LLC, a strategic advisory and consulting firm specializing in advising asset managers on their growth strategies and corporate development initiatives. Most recently, John was a Senior Managing Director in UBS Investment Bank’s Global Financial Institutions Group focused primarily on working with asset management and related companies.
Brian McQuade
Director of Business Development
Brian McQuade brings a battle-tested Warrior mindset to the Valkyrie team with 12 years of Army experience including combat deployments to both Iraq and Afghanistan. After his Army career, Brian Co-Founded an Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) company and provided technology...
Read BioBrian McQuade
Director of Business Development
Brian McQuade brings a battle-tested Warrior mindset to the Valkyrie team with 12 years of Army experience including combat deployments to both Iraq and Afghanistan. After his Army career, Brian Co-Founded an Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) company and provided technology guidance to lawmakers on the State and federal level. Most recently he spent the last two plus years at Lincoln Financial attaining a position of Business Development Consultant for 13 External Wholesalers territories in their Special Annuity Partners (SAP) channel. During his time at Lincoln, he was selected/completed their Wholesaler Institute, mentored inbound sales representatives, and was a member of their Toastmasters International Club. Brian graduated Magna Cum Laude from Embry-Riddle with a Bachelors of Science in Aeronautics and Minors in Management/Unmanned Systems.
Nate Larrivee
Internal Sales Consultant
Nate Larrivee began his career in Financial Services at Natixis Investment Managers as an Investment Consultant. Nate is an active member of the Digital Asset Council of Financial Professionals. The DACFP is dedicated to advancing Financial Professional awareness...
Read BioInternal Sales Consultant
Internal Sales Consultant
Nate Larrivee began his career in Financial Services at Natixis Investment Managers as an Investment Consultant. Nate is an active member of the Digital Asset Council of Financial Professionals. The DACFP is dedicated to advancing Financial Professional awareness, knowledge and understanding of blockchain, bitcoin and digital assets. Nate received his bachelor's degree from the College of the Holy Cross where he played Division 1 lacrosse. His interests include golf, traveling, cryptocurrencies, and New England sports teams!
Shannon 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...
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.
Annie Little
Marketing Manager
Annie Little is nearing a decade of dynamic and successful marketing experience for freelanced clients in a range of sectors. With a BA cum laude in Advertising and Graphic Art from Pepperdine University, she specializes in graphic design, social media management, and photography...
Read BioAnnie Little
Marketing Associate
Annie Little is nearing a decade of dynamic and successful marketing experience for freelanced clients in a range of sectors. With a BA cum laude in Advertising and Graphic Art from Pepperdine University, she specializes in graphic design, social media management, and photography. Annie values the support of small business owners and creative entrepreneurs, which she puts into action through her hosting and advertising service for local artisans in the Southern California region. As well as supporting independent artists, her platform prioritizes the donation of proceeds to organizations that fight for justice, equality, and a greener planet.