{"version":1,"id":"jon-kol","title":"Jon Kol","summary":"Jon Kol is a technology executive and investor known for leading Abacus Works and developing Hyperlane, a permissionless blockchain interoperability protocol.","content":"**Jon Kol** is an investment professional and technology executive with a background in financial markets, venture investing, and [digital assets](https://iq.wiki/wiki/digital-assets). He is the Chief Executive Officer of Abacus Works, having previously held investment and leadership roles at [Galaxy Digital](https://iq.wiki/wiki/galaxy-digital) and Passport Capital, as well as an analyst position at Morgan Stanley.  [\\[7\\]](#cite-id-iSxYzu0dfu6o4gy8) \n\n## Education\n\nKol graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, with a Bachelor’s in Economics. [\\[1\\]](#cite-id-lyxoxa4co4) \n\n## Career\n\nKol began his career in the Israeli Defense Forces, where he served as a Corporal from 2008 to 2010. He later joined Morgan Stanley as a Summer Analyst in 2015, then returned in 2016 as a Fixed Income Analyst. Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, he worked in fixed-income markets until February 2018. In February 2018, Kol joined Passport Capital as a member of its Investment Team, where he worked until September 2019. He subsequently joined [Galaxy Digital](https://iq.wiki/wiki/galaxy-digital) as a Managing Director, leading the firm's investments in projects including [1inch](https://iq.wiki/wiki/1inch), [Terra](https://iq.wiki/wiki/terra), [Radicle](https://iq.wiki/wiki/radicle), Gelato, [Chaos Labs](https://iq.wiki/wiki/chaos-labs), Sovryn, [Ramp](https://iq.wiki/wiki/ramp-network), and Hashflow. He held the position until March 2022. In March 2022, Kol became Chief Executive Officer of Abacus Works, where he leads the organization. [\\[2\\]](#cite-id-jp59g9lzfu) \n\n## Interviews\n\n### Hyperlane\n\nIn a May 2025 appearance on the On Gelato podcast, Kol discussed his transition from traditional finance into [crypto](https://iq.wiki/wiki/cryptocurrency) and the challenges of connecting separate [blockchain](https://iq.wiki/wiki/blockchain) networks that led to the development of Hyperlane. He explained Hyperlane’s modular messaging architecture, in which developers send messages through onchain mailboxes, select security modules to verify them, and use relayers to deliver them across chains. The discussion also covered the distinction between messaging protocols and token-bridging applications, comparing liquidity-based bridges with permissionless [mint](https://iq.wiki/wiki/minting)-and-[burn](https://iq.wiki/wiki/token-burn) mechanisms that let assets move between networks without relying on [liquidity pools](https://iq.wiki/wiki/liquidity-pool) but depended on the security of their verification systems. Kol discussed how these mechanisms could support long-tail tokens and an expanding number of [blockchain](https://iq.wiki/wiki/blockchain) networks, while noting that market makers could still help rebalance and maintain fungibility. He also outlined Hyperlane’s ability to integrate native chain verification and more efficient [zero-knowledge proofs](https://iq.wiki/wiki/zero-knowledge-proofs-zkps) through its modular security architecture, alongside upcoming onchain rebalancing capabilities and the Open [USDT](https://iq.wiki/wiki/tether) collaboration with [Chainlink](https://iq.wiki/wiki/chainlink) and other partners. Finally, he discussed Hyperlane’s aim to serve both smaller developers and institutional asset issuers, including organizations that wanted to operate the open-source infrastructure themselves to address their security and compliance requirements. [\\[4\\]](#cite-id-00wkiumiiq) \n\n[YOUTUBE@VID](eXq7RI1H7UU)\n\n### Interoperability\n\nIn a December 2024 appearance on The Scoop with [Frank Chaparro](https://iq.wiki/wiki/frank-chaparro), Kol discussed the growing importance of [blockchain](https://iq.wiki/wiki/blockchain) interoperability as the number of networks and tools for connecting them expanded. He described interoperability as a specialized version of the [oracle](https://iq.wiki/wiki/oracle) problem, in which [blockchains](https://iq.wiki/wiki/blockchain) needed reliable mechanisms to verify and transmit information about events occurring on other networks. Kol argued that the value of interoperability infrastructure would increase as [blockchains](https://iq.wiki/wiki/blockchain) proliferated, while emphasizing that security requirements should adjust to the value and risks of individual transfers. He explained that Hyperlane provided an open framework that lets anyone connect [blockchains](https://iq.wiki/wiki/blockchain), deploy and operate the infrastructure, and customize security configurations. He identified [blockchain](https://iq.wiki/wiki/blockchain) networks and token-based applications as potential customers, noting that fully cross-chain applications had progressed more slowly because developers needed to account for asynchronous transactions and the lack of atomic execution across different networks.  [\\[3\\]](#cite-id-jv7ws2ujbh) \n\n[YOUTUBE@VID](j7ghJp2OOK0)\n\n## Panel\n\n### Building a Chain\n\nIn a July 2025 panel at [Permissionless IV](https://iq.wiki/wiki/permissionless), Kol joined Nick Pai of [Across Protocol](https://iq.wiki/wiki/across) and Barry Plunkett of Interchain Labs, with [Robbie Klages](https://iq.wiki/wiki/robbie-klages) of [The Rollup](https://iq.wiki/wiki/the-rollup) moderating, to discuss the growing importance of [blockchain](https://iq.wiki/wiki/blockchain) interoperability as adoption expanded and potentially led to thousands of networks, including enterprise-operated chains. The panelists compared intent-based bridges, which facilitated faster transfers through competitive market makers, with messaging-based approaches that supported newer networks and existing token representations. They also examined how [liquidity providers](https://iq.wiki/wiki/liquidity-providers) evaluated the costs of entering new networks, inventory turnaround times, and the potential risks and returns of supporting newly launched chains, as well as the gradual adoption of standards such as ERC-7683. Other topics included the potential for faster and cheaper [zero-knowledge proofs](https://iq.wiki/wiki/zero-knowledge-proofs-zkps) to reduce the competitive advantage of fast bridges, while differences between virtual machines continued to create interoperability challenges. The discussion concluded with the role of front ends and aggregators in simplifying cross-chain transfers, which users continued to perceive as risky, and the possibility of bridging functionality becoming more closely integrated into trading interfaces and developer tools.  [\\[5\\]](#cite-id-b8w46zu4y9) \n\n[YOUTUBE@VID](7NEgoQHISl8)\n","categories":[{"id":"people","title":"people"}],"tags":[{"id":"Investor"},{"id":"Speaker"},{"id":"Founder"}],"images":[{"id":"QmSxVuTXjw35jHXeP98BKc55wmrdfDk6yfgPhoEhU5SgZR","type":"image/jpeg, image/png"}],"media":[{"id":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXq7RI1H7UU","name":"eXq7RI1H7UU","source":"YOUTUBE","thumbnail":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXq7RI1H7UU","caption":""},{"id":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7ghJp2OOK0","name":"j7ghJp2OOK0","source":"YOUTUBE","thumbnail":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7ghJp2OOK0","caption":""},{"id":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7NEgoQHISl8","name":"7NEgoQHISl8","source":"YOUTUBE","thumbnail":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7NEgoQHISl8","caption":""}],"metadata":[{"id":"references","value":"[{\"id\":\"lyxoxa4co4\",\"url\":\"https://www.linkedin.com/in/jon-kol-4bb37a9b/\",\"description\":\"LinkedIn profile\",\"timestamp\":1793985314633},{\"id\":\"jp59g9lzfu\",\"url\":\"https://www.linkedin.com/in/jon-kol-4bb37a9b/details/experience/\",\"description\":\"Career history\",\"timestamp\":1793985314633},{\"id\":\"jv7ws2ujbh\",\"url\":\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7ghJp2OOK0\",\"description\":\"The Scoop interview\",\"timestamp\":1793985314633},{\"id\":\"00wkiumiiq\",\"url\":\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXq7RI1H7UU\",\"description\":\"On Gelato podcast\",\"timestamp\":1793985314633},{\"id\":\"b8w46zu4y9\",\"url\":\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7NEgoQHISl8\",\"description\":\"Permissionless IV panel\",\"timestamp\":1793985314633},{\"id\":\"q91y7crj6w\",\"url\":\"https://x.com/thepalenimbus\",\"description\":\"Jon Kol’s public statements\",\"timestamp\":1793985314633},{\"id\":\"iSxYzu0dfu6o4gy8\",\"description\":\"Hyperlane\",\"timestamp\":1793985994638,\"url\":\"https://www.hyperlane.xyz/\"}]"},{"id":"website","value":"https://www.hyperlane.xyz/"},{"id":"twitter_profile","value":"https://twitter.com/thePalenimbus"},{"id":"linkedin_profile","value":"https://www.linkedin.com/in/jon-kol-4bb37a9b"},{"id":"main-image-origin","value":"{\"imageId\":\"QmSxVuTXjw35jHXeP98BKc55wmrdfDk6yfgPhoEhU5SgZR\",\"originalId\":\"QmSxVuTXjw35jHXeP98BKc55wmrdfDk6yfgPhoEhU5SgZR\"}"},{"id":"previous_cid","value":"QmV1qbDLmTfy6oPSY6HCYkoJkgez5Z3yqjk3CfthDeLqCr"},{"id":"commit-message","value":"Make minor edits to the Jon Kol wiki"},{"id":"previous_cid","value":"QmV1qbDLmTfy6oPSY6HCYkoJkgez5Z3yqjk3CfthDeLqCr"}],"events":[{"type":"DEFAULT","title":"Co-founded Abacus Works","date":"2022-03-01","description":"Jon Kol co-founded Abacus Works, the company behind Hyperlane.","link":null,"multiDateStart":null,"multiDateEnd":null,"id":"be94ea4e-6585-46f4-ab65-d3e0a96c80a6"},{"type":"DEFAULT","title":"Hyperlane raised $18.5 million in seed financing","date":"2022-09-01","description":"Hyperlane announced an $18.5 million seed financing round to build the interchain highway.","link":null,"multiDateStart":null,"multiDateEnd":null,"id":"254423f8-4337-4d8a-9933-d151461535de"}],"linkedWikis":{"founders":[],"blockchains":[],"speakers":[]},"user":{"id":"0x8af7a19a26d8fbc48defb35aefb15ec8c407f889"},"author":{"id":"0xacb6c5ad52b8f605299b0d774ce97f26e3db80c2"},"language":"en","operator":{"id":"0xacb6c5ad52b8f605299b0d774ce97f26e3db80c2"}}