{"id":"sebastian-melendez","title":"Sebastian Melendez","content":"**Sebastian Melendez** is a data engineer with experience in [blockchain](https://iq.wiki/wiki/blockchain)-related research and development. He is one of the co-founders of [Saturn Labs](https://iq.wiki/wiki/saturn) and was previously involved in academic research and startup acceleration initiatives at the Wharton School. [\\[2\\]](#cite-id-ug9eO3kpFchYolvB) \n\n## Education\n\nMelendez graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a BSE in Computer Engineering in 2023. [\\[3\\]](#cite-id-BupZ2ilm4ZToeCL7) \n\n## Career\n\nMelendez worked as a software engineer at the UPenn Students Federal Credit Union from September 2020 to September 2021, contributing to mobile feature development and website updates. From June 2021 to October 2023, he served as a research assistant at the Stevens Center for Innovation in Finance at the Wharton School, while also co-founding Cypher Accelerator, a [blockchain](https://iq.wiki/wiki/blockchain)-focused startup accelerator. In October 2023, he joined [Artemis](https://iq.wiki/wiki/artemis) as a data engineer, a role he held until January 2026. [\\[3\\]](#cite-id-BupZ2ilm4ZToeCL7) \n\n### Saturn\n\n​[Saturn](https://iq.wiki/wiki/saturn) is a financial protocol that issues a [stablecoin](https://iq.wiki/wiki/stablecoin) and related yield-bearing assets designed to connect traditional financial instruments with [blockchain](https://iq.wiki/wiki/blockchain)-based systems. Its core product, USDat, is a dollar-[pegged](https://iq.wiki/wiki/currency-peg) [stablecoin](https://iq.wiki/wiki/stablecoin) initially backed by tokenized U.S. Treasury assets, while sUSDat is a staked version that provides exposure to yield generated by [Bitcoin](https://iq.wiki/wiki/bitcoin)-linked credit instruments such as STRC. The protocol is structured to separate stability and liquidity from yield generation, allowing users to hold a stable asset or access returns through [staking](https://iq.wiki/wiki/staking). [Saturn’s](https://iq.wiki/wiki/saturn) design is based on the concept of using [Bitcoin](https://iq.wiki/wiki/bitcoin) as a foundational [collateral](https://iq.wiki/wiki/collateral) layer for credit creation, with the goal of making these credit-based yields accessible and usable within on-chain financial applications. [\\[1\\]](#cite-id-VnroiWJu7nd2raIE) \n\n![](https://ipfs.everipedia.org/ipfs/QmYZ2Lt63s34su9qqrQiec77Jd8g9uFvjgydYfTpxyPX6m)","summary":"Sebastian Melendez is a data engineer and blockchain researcher. UPenn BSE 2023. He worked at UPenn Students FCU, was a Wharton Stevens Center research assistant and Cypher Accelerator co‑founder, and served as a data engineer at Artemis (2023–2026).","images":[{"id":"QmYTJAPScknqT8RACxyGyna7yCsgBXbfNCwmbas2uhLJx9","type":"image/jpeg, image/png"}],"categories":[{"id":"people","title":"people"}],"tags":[{"id":"PeopleInDeFi"},{"id":"Developers"},{"id":"Founders"}],"media":[{"id":"QmYTJAPScknqT8RACxyGyna7yCsgBXbfNCwmbas2uhLJx9","name":"WEN2FOTBjAaVP8BK.jpeg","caption":"","thumbnail":"QmYTJAPScknqT8RACxyGyna7yCsgBXbfNCwmbas2uhLJx9","source":"IPFS_IMG"},{"id":"QmcgyvHRzfVapFqbpLEZ3s8v7awfHBnUkd6qdZEuCcySfS","type":"GALLERY","source":"IPFS_IMG"},{"id":"QmYZ2Lt63s34su9qqrQiec77Jd8g9uFvjgydYfTpxyPX6m","name":"Vos3Wsm7AqCU4A62.png","caption":"","thumbnail":"QmYZ2Lt63s34su9qqrQiec77Jd8g9uFvjgydYfTpxyPX6m","source":"IPFS_IMG"}],"metadata":[{"id":"references","value":"[{\"id\":\"VnroiWJu7nd2raIE\",\"url\":\"https://www.web3researchglobal.com/p/saturn\",\"description\":\"Web3 Research profile\",\"timestamp\":1777555918544},{\"id\":\"ug9eO3kpFchYolvB\",\"url\":\"https://saturn.credit/\",\"description\":\"Saturn site overview\",\"timestamp\":1777555918544},{\"id\":\"BupZ2ilm4ZToeCL7\",\"description\":\"Sebastian Melendez | LinkedIn\",\"timestamp\":1777574308218,\"url\":\"https://www.linkedin.com/in/sebastian-melendez-56a7881b3/\"}]"},{"id":"twitter_profile","value":"https://x.com/0xpastaman"},{"id":"linkedin_profile","value":"https://www.linkedin.com/in/sebastian-melendez-56a7881b3/"},{"id":"commit-message","value":"\"Added Sebastian Melendez biography to people category\""}],"events":[{"id":"838a447f-503b-43c5-acbc-018547f967fd","date":"2020-09","title":"Joined UPenn Students FCU as Software Engineer","type":"DEFAULT","description":"Started software engineering role focusing on mobile features and website updates at the UPenn Students Federal Credit Union.","link":"https://www.linkedin.com/in/sebastian-melendez-56a7881b3/","multiDateStart":null,"multiDateEnd":null,"continent":null,"country":null},{"id":"e23bdbc0-1a1f-4a23-a7a8-ed0cd20fb72e","date":"2021-06","title":"Became Research Assistant at Wharton Stevens Center","type":"DEFAULT","description":"Joined the Stevens Center for Innovation in Finance at the Wharton School as a research assistant.","link":"https://www.linkedin.com/in/sebastian-melendez-56a7881b3/","multiDateStart":null,"multiDateEnd":null,"continent":null,"country":null},{"date":null,"title":"Co-founded Cypher Accelerator","type":"DEFAULT","description":"Co-founded Cypher Accelerator, a blockchain-focused startup accelerator, during his tenure at Wharton.","link":"https://www.linkedin.com/in/sebastian-melendez-56a7881b3/","multiDateStart":null,"multiDateEnd":null,"continent":null,"country":null,"id":"3564462c-8cc8-4dbd-b276-e01870e5fb10"},{"date":null,"title":"Graduated from the University of Pennsylvania","type":"DEFAULT","description":"Earned a BSE in Computer Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania.","link":"https://www.linkedin.com/in/sebastian-melendez-56a7881b3/","multiDateStart":null,"multiDateEnd":null,"continent":null,"country":null,"id":"c60894e9-9a73-4a36-a9ee-cf8b09ddda53"},{"id":"3bcf0cdb-79ff-4b1d-8695-6d1b0cb9c6c3","date":"2023-10","title":"Joined Artemis as Data Engineer","type":"DEFAULT","description":"Started as a data engineer at Artemis, working on blockchain-related data engineering.","link":"https://www.linkedin.com/in/sebastian-melendez-56a7881b3/","multiDateStart":null,"multiDateEnd":null,"continent":null,"country":null},{"id":"f2f3ffb2-b656-4055-916b-0264dbb7757b","date":"2026-01","title":"Concluded role at Artemis","type":"DEFAULT","description":"Ended his data engineer role at Artemis.","link":"https://www.linkedin.com/in/sebastian-melendez-56a7881b3/","multiDateStart":null,"multiDateEnd":null,"continent":null,"country":null}],"user":{"id":"0x8af7a19a26d8fbc48defb35aefb15ec8c407f889"},"author":{"id":"0x8af7a19a26d8fbc48defb35aefb15ec8c407f889"},"operator":{"id":"0xacb6c5AD52b8f605299B0d774CE97F26e3DB80c2"},"language":"en","version":1,"linkedWikis":{"blockchains":["saturn"],"founders":[],"speakers":[]}}