The Pepr Lab TEAM

Benjamin Yablon co-founded Salt Blockchain, the world’s first crypto lending platform, in 2016. In 2017 he moved his family to Africa and later to London to create Salt’s global architecture. Benjamin serves as Special Advisor to the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) where he helps craft global regulatory policy specific to the sensible deployment of financial and other technologies including blockchain, distributed ledger, machine learning and AI. He is a regularly featured expert speaker at the OECD’s headquarters in Paris and across the world. In 2019, Benjamin was appointed by the OECD to serve on the Blockchain Expert Policy Advisory Board (BEPAB). The priority of the BEPAB is the development of a policy framework for governments and industry on viable innovation and adoption of distributed ledger technologies, similar to the Principles on Artificial Intelligence which were supported by all G20 members in June 2019. Benjamin is a subject matter expert advising all thirteen OECD directorates (including the Financial Action Task Force, FATF) on issues related to policy, deployment and utilization of blockchain and AI to prevent crime (AML/KYC) while unlocking possibility and encouraging innovation. He is a consistently featured speaker and presenter at OECD, EU, and WEF events (Paris, London, Brussels, Davos, Washington DC, Mexico City, Belgrade, Sydney, Adelaide, Singapore, Tokyo, others).

  David Shrier is a globally recognized expert on digital assets, financial innovation and artificial intelligence. His experience spans public and private companies as well as nonprofit and government advisory activities. He has helped develop technology policy and regulation serving over 100 countries.

In addition to leading venture studio Visionary Future, David is a Professor of Practice (Artificial Intelligence and Innovation) with Imperial College London, and is co-Director of the Trusted AI Alliance, a collaborative of over 3,000 AI researchers across Imperial College London, MIT, Harvard, University of Edinburgh and University of Oxford.

David specializes in helping established organizations build innovative capacity, having developed $10 billion of corporate venturing opportunities and inculcating innovative mindset with enterprises including GE, Evercore, Dun & Bradstreet, Thomson Reuters, UBS, Peoples Group, WebMD, Kyriba, Ernst & Young, Wolters Kluwer, HLB International, The Walt Disney Company, AOL Verizon, Pearson and Starwood, as well as leading private equity, VC and other financial sponsors such as helping Kyriba to create an engine for repeatable horizon-2 growth and Peoples Group (a mid-market Canadian bank) on a digital assets launch that generated an ROI in excess of 1300% in 18 months. He previously served on the boards of Copper Technologies, a digital assets infrastructure provider, and GRIID, a NASDAQ-listed 'green' bitcoin miner that was sold to CleanSpark.

He currently holds board and C-level roles with multiple technology companies, with a particular focus on the technology economy. 

David has advised the European Parliament on the EU AI Act and on digital assets; FINRA, the UK Department of International Trade, the UK’s HM Revenue and Customs, and the Commonwealth of Nations on fintech policy; assisted ICIMOD to explore application of fintech to inclusion and climate in the Hindu Kush Himalaya region; briefed the UK Cabinet Office on artificial intelligence; testified to UK and EU parliamentary committees regarding blockchain legislation multiple times, and previously advised the European Commission on regional innovation ecosystems, and the Government of Dubai and the OECD on digital identity. He is developing the concept of Sovereign AI with Prof. Aldo Faisal of Imperial College.

He also has a distinguished academic career. He is known for creating the four most profitable online classes in history that deployed into over 150 countries, which formed the foundation of US$ 1 billion in financial support to MIT, Harvard and Oxford, in the process revolutionizing the online learning business model for top universities. Prior to Imperial, he held a rare dual appointment as Lecturer & Futurist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Associate Fellow with the Said Business School, University of Oxford. He created and led the Oxford Fintech, Oxford Blockchain Strategy, and Oxford Cyber Security for Business Leaders online programs. In collaboration with Womens World Banking and the Alliance for Financial Inclusion, he created and led the Oxford Leadership & Diversity for Regulators Programme that helped policymakers drive financial inclusion for women in more than 80 countries impacting over 1 billion people. He taught courses and workshops for MIT such as Future Commerce, Data Academy (with the UN), Future Health, Health Data Analytics (jointly taught with Harvard as part of the HST program) and Big Data and Social Analytics.

David’s books include Basic AI: A Human Guide to Artificial Intelligence (Little, Brown and Harvard Business Publishing, 2024), Basic Metaverse (Little, Brown and Harvard Business Publishing, 2023 & 2025); Global Fintech (MIT Press, 2022); Augmenting Your Career: How to Win at Work in the Age of AI (Little, Brown 2021), Basic Blockchain (Little, Brown 2020), Trusted Data (MIT Press, 2019), Frontiers of Financial Technology, New Solutions in Cybersecurity(MIT Press, 2018), and Trust::Data. David Shrierwas granted an Sc.B. from Brown University in Biology and Theatre, and he worked professionally as a dramaturg and director after college.

Nick Maybin is a seasoned entrepreneur with extensive C-suite experience and past directorships in regulated firms. He specialises in Web3, blockchain, and fintech solutions, offering deep expertise in regulatory compliance, digital transformation, and strategic advisory. Nick helps businesses navigate complex regulatory landscapes and adopt emerging technologies.

He also serves as an Independent Non-Executive Director (iNED) for high-growth companies, leveraging his governance experience and digital finance expertise to drive sustainable growth and innovation. Based in the Isle of Man, Nick is passionate about leadership, technology-driven transformation, and shaping the future of digital finance.