Amber Scott

Founder & Chief AML Ninja | Outlier Resources

Amber is a compliance geek with a passion for technology.

After graduating from the University of Waterloo, Amber joined the compliance group at one of Canada’s largest insurers where she focused on the implementation of technology-based processes to streamline compliance. She has since worked in in-house roles with major securities firms and banks. Somewhere along the line, she added MBA, CBP, and a few other letters after her name.

Amber joined a boutique compliance consulting firm, then larger consulting firm, before getting frustrated enough with the status quo to launch Outlier Solutions Inc. (Outlier) in 2013. Outlier specializes in anti-money laundering (AML) and privacy compliance. The company is based on one of the premises of Malcolm Gladwell’s book Outliers: that to be really good at something you need a lot of practice (about 10,000 hours). Each of Outlier’s team members has 10,000 hours or more of in-house (not consulting) compliance experience. Amber loves leading this team of entrepreneurial compliance badasses.

Brenda Beckedorf

Executive Director | Alberta IoT

Brenda Beckedorf was selected as Executive Director of Alberta IoT on August 1st, 2019 by the Alberta IoT Board. Brenda started her career in technology with Graycon Group as Director of Business Development for Canada. Brenda moved on to start her own company “ Launch Strategic Group” in 2017 with a focus on supporting growth in technology companies through sales strategies. She works closely with companies that focus on IoT Solutions across verticals such as mining. farming, and O&G to increase their markets, adding process and establishing new verticals. She has a vast array of vendor and partner connections that bring increased value to those who work with her. She has strong business acumen and many years of experience understanding the business issues of clients across a multitude of technologies. Over her many years in building teams, Brenda has demonstrated leadership with both her teams and her strategic partners. In her role as Executive Director, Brenda’s focus will be to increase government and local industry awareness of Alberta IoT through dialogue, events, and social. Investing in our IoT business community by highlighting their skills and building a community that can support and grow together will be part of her mandate. With a strong belief in social giving, Brenda volunteers regularly with the Drop in Centre, Soup Sister and participates in the CIBC Run for the Cure. She is VP of Calgary Women in Energy- a nonprofit focused on professional women in the oil and gas sector with a purpose to continuing education in the energy sector as well as community involvement.

Dave Bradley

President | Bull Bitcoin

One of Canada’s top blockchain technology experts, Dave founded Alberta’s first blockchain business in 2013. As President and Co-founder of Bull Bitcoin, Dave leads Canada’s largest and oldest Bitcoin brokerage.

David Moss

CEO | Canadian Cattlemen’s Association

David Moss is the general manager of the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association. He was co-founder and vice president of AgriClear LP – an online agri-business marketplace joint venture with the TMX Group and Natural Gas Exchange. An entrepreneur by nature, David has been in the cattle industry his entire life. He helped build ranch to retail alliances in the United States, Australia and South America. He brings a focus on innovation, data technology, and international business knowledge and experience. He holds an MA, Leadership Studies from the University of Guelph, an undergraduate degree from the University of Lethbridge and a masters certificate in Project Management from York University. He serves on numerous industry committees and is an active volunteer in his Okotoks community.

Emma Todd

CEO | MMH Blockchain Group

Emma is an Executive Board Member of Blockchain for Impact, which works alongside the United Nations, and is CEO of MMH Blockchain Group which specializes in developing strategy, marketing, corporate communications, PR and events for technology companies. Named one of 2019’s Top 100 Influencers for Sustainable Development Goals, Emma is host to the longest running crypto mining conference in the world, the largest free blockchain conference in Canada and co-organizer of the largest enterprise conference in Canada. She is also a judge for the prestigious Canadian Marketing Awards. Emma’s strengths include a proven track record of achievements and relationship building as well as completing multiple successful projects simultaneously.

Giles Dixon CCI, CBP, BA

Senior Manager, Financial Services and Virtual Asset Advisory | Grant Thonton

Giles works in Grant Thornton’s Financial Services and Virtual Assets Advisory Practice and brings with him an international consulting and anti-money laundering risk advisory background. He regularly provides consulting to a range of financial institutions and organizations operating in the virtual asset space including virtual currency exchanges, BTM operators, and others, advising clients at all levels of the organizational hierarchy. Giles’ experience includes AML and financial crime risk management compliance and transformation, as well as experience in program and operating model design, process improvement, cost optimization and strategic advisory to the C-suite.

Hubert Lau

President and CEO | Trust Bix

I am a passionate Technology Entrepreneur who wants to continue to make a difference for my customers, partners and the communities. I achieve my goals through “Collaborative Economics”. This means everyone works together to create successes socially and financially. The focus is always triple win. You win, I win and our communities win.

Jordan Cicoria

Vice Presedent of Operations | Aerium

Experienced Chief Executive Officer with a demonstrated history of working in the UAV, oil & energy industries. Skilled in Data Acquisition, Data Management, Wildlife Management, Negotiation, Gas, Budgeting, Petroleum, and Operations Management. Strong business development professional with a Bachelor of Management focused in General Studies from The University of Lethbridge.

Justin Riemer

Assistant Deputy Minister | Western Economic Development

Previously, he held several senior positions at the Government of Alberta and Alberta Health Services, providing leadership and achieving results in industry development, investment attraction and growth of advanced technologies.

As a respected, passionate, dynamic leader of industry and economic development in Alberta, Justin has an impressive depth and breadth of experience in innovation and industry development policies and programs.

Justin holds a Master’s Degree in International Affairs from Carleton University, and a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Political Science. He is married and the proud father of two young men.

Koleya Karringten

President / Founder | Absolute Combustion International

A proud Albertan technology entrepreneur, advocate and leader, Koleya Karringten has a unique perspective on the challenges and opportunities of product commercialization, ecosystem building and fostering inclusion in the technology industry. As the co-founder and CEO of Absolute Combustion, she has spent a decade successfully designing and developing ground-breaking cleantech solutions for multiple industry sectors, including aerospace and Oil & Gas. She is a driving force in Alberta’s blockchain technology industry as the CEO of Bitquest Corp., the Executive Director of the Alberta Blockchain Consortium (ABC), co-founder and board member of the Canadian Blockchain Association for Women (CBAW), and CEO of Civitas Events Corp. In her leadership role at the ABC, she has merged her passions for technology and social good to bring together blockchain companies, corporate leaders and government to build the province’s largest blockchain ecosystem organization. An influential public speaker, writer and community volunteer, Koleya strongly believes that uniting diverse voices behind a common goal is the path to creating a fairer, more sustainable and prosperous Alberta.

Lousia Bai

National Blockchain Market Leader | Deloitte Canada

Louisa is the National Market Leader for Deloitte Canada’s Blockchain practice. With over fifteen years of experience in the professional services industry across Canada, the US and Asia, Louisa leads a group of strategy specialists engaged in assisting clients to understand and apply blockchain / distributed ledger technology (DLT) concepts to their business models, technology infrastructure and operating processes. Louisa is very passionate about community development and the importance of inclusion in the technology space. She currently sits on the board of the Canadian Blockchain Association for Women (CBAW) and is a steering committee member for Toronto Blockchain Week 2020 (//TBW). Louisa has an MBA from INSEAD.

Malcolm Bruce

CEO | Edmonton Global

After spending 30 years in the military living overseas and across Canada, Malcolm chose the Edmonton Metropolitan Region as the place where his children and grandchildren could achieve their full potential without having to move elsewhere. Formerly the CEO of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region Board, Malcolm joined the newly-formed Edmonton Global in 2018. He’s proud of the region’s welcoming and inclusive community. It’s a region where people can grow, enjoy and thrive.

Mammen Tharakan

Director, E-Commerce, Cargo & Aviation Real Estate | Director, E-Commerce, Cargo & Aviation Real Estate

With over fifteen years of leadership in aviation across various ground handling, airline and airport functions, Mammen Tharakan joined Edmonton International Airport in 2018 as the Director, E-Commerce, Cargo & Aviation Real Estate. Together with a dedicated team, Mammen works with a strong customer focus to retain Canada, and Edmonton’s positions in the global supply chain. Recognizing the crucial role that air cargo provides in connecting the world, Mammen is committed to advancing the industry through collaboration and innovation.

Marek Laskowski

Chief Technology Officer | Novera Capital

Marek Laskowski earned his Ph.D. in Computer Engineering at the University of Manitoba in 2011 where Marek developed novel multi-agent simulation frameworks for modelling complex healthcare systems. His work in this field has been cited by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia. Since then, Marek co-founded the Blockchain Lab at the Schulich School of Business (York University) where he taught courses on both Data Science, and Blockchain at the graduate level and more recently Toronto Blockchain Week. He is a leading researcher in the Blockchain space, is a faculty member for the Blockchain Research Institute (BRI), and is an advisor to several Blockchain startups. He works with several international organizations on blockchain standards including NIST (USA) and the UN/CEFACT bureau and currently serves as Chief Technology Officer at Novera Capital Inc.

Mason Darabi B. Eng, B.Mgmt

National Leader, Agriculture Data | MNP

Mason M. Darabi is a Chartered Professional Accounting (CPA) candidate with an educational background in Engineering and Management. He is a blockchain enthusiast, an entrepreneurship fanatic seasoned with over 8 years of experience in Information Technology (Oracle Database and Linux) and Business Development in both Information Technology and Agriculture industries. He has demonstrated history of working in various accounting roles in Canadian Oil and Gas and Public Practice Accounting firms including MNP, Imperial Oil, RSM Canada and PwC, contributed to various Crowd-sourcing based Startup endeavours in Norway and across the globe, and has played key roles in various IT projects outside of Canada (ERP implementations, Business Process Re-engineering and Data Center projects to name a few).

Mason’s unique work-experience and skillset have enabled him to bridge the gap between the technical and financial matters which are both key pillars of a success in any venture. He has tremendous passion in supporting the technology ecosystem and collaborating as a team player at Alberta Blockchain Consortium (ABC) towards building a strong and vibrant blockchain community in Alberta as an enabler of the prosperity and diversity of the province’s economy.

Mark Anderson

Manager | Nav Canada

Mark Anderson has over seventeen years of experience as an Air Traffic controller at Edmonton Tower and Edmonton City Centre Tower. For the past three years he has been a Site Manager for NAV CANADA, currently managing Edmonton Tower, Whitehorse Tower and Whitehorse Flight Information Centre. In addition to these sites, Mark also oversees RPAS operations for the Edmonton Flight Information Region.

Martin Ferguson-Pell PhD, C.Phys. FRSA

Professor | University of Alberta, Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine

Dr. Ferguson-Pell is a biomedical engineer, credentialed clinical scientist and former Dean of the Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine at University of Alberta. He co-directs the University of Alberta’s Rehabilitation Robotics Laboratory which is based in the Edmonton Clinic Health Academy in Edmonton Alberta. He is a Principal Investigator in the University of Alberta’s inter-faculty Smart Network. His team develops virtual reality systems to create learning objects in healthcare and uses VR simulation to study the biomechanics of physical functioning. He was the Founding Vice Principal of the Peter Lougheed Leadership College at University of Alberta which he developed in close collaboration with former Prime Minister Kim Campbell. He continues to be active in promoting leadership skills development and Mentorship for undergraduate and graduate students as they transition to their early stage careers. He is also CEO of the Alberta Bone and Joint Health Institute which is a not-for-profit organization founded in 2005 by Cy Frank and Bud McCaig to improve bone and joint health in Alberta. ABJHI is a trusted custodian of clinical data which the Institute uses in collaboration with the Bone and Joint Health Strategic Clinical Network to promote improvements in care through innovation at the system level. He is a Fellow of Rehabilitation Engineering Society of America, a Chartered Physicist, a Certified Clinical Scientist and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.

Matthew Burgoyne

Partner | McLeod Law

Matthew Burgoyne is a corporate commercial lawyer and the head of the Cryptocurrency and Blockchain group at McLeod Law. Since 2013, Matthew has advised clients in digital currency law and has assisted in the formation of cryptocurrency exchanges, assisted digital token and coin developers, cryptocurrency ATM providers, cryptocurrency investors, cryptocurrency miners and cryptocurrency related investment funds. Matthew provides legal advice to businesses involved in stable coin and initial coin offerings, along with securities law and anti-money laundering law.

Melissa Smith

Partner | Borden Ladner Gervais LLP

Melissa is a partner in the Securities and Capital Markets Group in BLG’s Calgary office. Melissa focuses her practice on corporate and securities law with an emphasis on mergers, acquisitions and other business combinations of public and private issuers including take-over bids, amalgamations and plans of arrangement. She also advises clients on financing transactions including public and private offerings of debt, equity and convertible securities, and compliance with corporate and securities regulatory requirements and drafting of a large number of corporate and commercial documents including governance documents, shareholder agreements and other business agreements.

In addition, Melissa assists with plans of arrangement, mergers, acquisitions and other business combinations, prepares a wide variety of commercial, securities and corporate documents, and conducts due diligence on behalf of issuers, agents and underwriters in a variety of contexts.

Melissa is the Chair of the BLG’s Calgary Student Committee.

Michael Rabkin

Head of Institutional Sales @ DV Chain / Head of Global Partnerships | SigOne Capital

Michael Rabkin is the Head of Institutional Sales & Head of Global Partnerships at DV Chain & DVeX, respectively. Michael was the President & Founder of SigOne Capital, an institutional Over-The-Counter digital asset trading platform which was acquired by DV Chain in December 2019. Previously, Michael was also a Founding Team Member at Shorcan Digital Currency Network, a wholly owned-subsidiary of the TMX Group (TSE: X) focused on brokering Bitcoin and Ether OTC trades. Combining his past experience in the traditional financial world with his present day role in the crypto asset ecosystem allows Michael to effectively bridge the two worlds together.

Mike Allen

President and CEO | Routeique

Michael has over two decades of experience in the technology industry, from designing and creating tech solutions to marketing and demonstrating the value of the software. At Routeique, Mike leads a dynamic team of 30 specialists, from software development, to marketing, sales and support. Through his work in the supply chain and logistics industry he has gained a thorough understanding not only of technology, but also its place within the industry.

Mike Betts

VP Business Development | Agworld

Mike Betts is VP of Business Development at Agworld, a leader in global farm management software for farmers and their trusted advisors. Based in their US headquarters in the Greater Denver area, Mike works globally for Agworld, with a primary focus in North America. He manages growth of its financial oriented service provider segment which includes accounting firms, financial advisors, lenders and insurers, the company’s recent expansion into Canada and growth and expansion of many of Agworld’s large agronomy customers. Prior to Agworld, Mike was Director of Investments at AgFunder sourcing and conducting due diligence on AgTech investments and working with AgTech companies on raising capital through an online investment platform. Mike also founded AgTech Guide, an information platform and consultancy for understanding available technology in the global agriculture sector. Prior to working in the AgTech sector, Mike has been in the software and internet industries for a decade both from an operational standpoint in corporate and business development, as well as in M&A and capital raising at Credit Suisse investment bank in heir Technology group in San Francisco.

Pamela Draper

CEO | Bitvo

Pamela is the President and CEO of Bitvo Inc., a Cryptocurrency Exchange launched in Canada in 2018. Prior to joining Bitvo, Pamela spent approximately 14 years with top tier Canadian banks, involved in all facets of investment banking and advisory services. Most recently Pamela held the position of Director in BMO Capital Markets’ Equity Capital Markets group in Toronto where she was responsible for assisting North American corporate clients raising capital in public and private markets. Prior to joining Equity Capital Markets, Pamela was part of BMO’s Debt Capital Markets group where she was responsible for Canadian high yield debt issuers, assisting them in raising capital both domestically and internationally. Pamela brings a wealth of professional banking and capital markets experience to the cryptocurrency business having advised on and been involved in transactions ranging from the very small to in excess of $10 billion. With the Bitvo team, Pamela is looking forward to growing Bitvo into a successful international exchange and expanding the cryptocurrency market into institutions and professional investors.

Richard Jones

Partner | McMillan

My law practice focuses on dispute resolution and risk/litigation management. I enjoy working with clients and helping them with the myriad of issues that come along with commercial transactions and conducting business.

Specialties: complex commercial litigation, water and irrigation, environmental, municipal and planning, and agriculture and agri-food, along with tech and blockchain.

McMillan Vantage is a unique service. We offer strategic advice and messaging in government and media relations.

Stephen Maybee

Vice President of Operations and Infrastructure | Edmonton International Airport

Steve is Vice President Operations & Infrastructure for Edmonton Airports operating the Edmonton International Airport and Villeneuve Airport. He has held several positions in his 26 years with the Airport Authority including Supply Chain Management, Human Resources and Safety, and IT. His current responsibilities include Emergency Planning, Maintenance, Security, Safety, Regulatory affairs for Operational Compliance, Master Planning, Planning, and Project Delivery plus various other areas. Steve is passionate about Technology and how to leverage it to improve services, create more efficient processes and how to transform a better passenger journey while maintaining a safe and secure environment. Steve is the former Chair of the Canadian Airports Councils (CAC) Operations, Safety and Technical Affairs Committee and member of the Airports Council International – North America committee.

Wilson Acton

Chief Commercial Officer | Verge

Wilson is the Chief Commercial Officer at Verge. Wilson brings an extensive background in law and multi-generational experience in agriculture to the Verge team. As a transactional lawyer, Wilson assisted a wide range of businesses across a host of matters from seed capital raises to strategic acquisitions, including some of the largest and most complex M&A and corporate finance transactions in Canadian history.