Former linebacker for the Chicago Bears turned Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) trader and CNBC Broadcaster will kick off one of the most exclusive blockchain networking events of 2018

Boston, MA, Sept. 11, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Token Fest 2018, the premiere conference and expo focused on the business and technology of tokenization, announced Jon Najarian, CNBC Broadcaster and Founder of Investitute & TCB Productions LLC, will deliver the opening keynote address at their second event of the year. The event will take place at the Seaport Hotel & World Trade Center in Boston, September 13 - 14, 2018. The much-anticipated event will convene the world’s top blockchain and token economy leaders to address the most urgent issues of the industry and celebrate breakthroughs in innovation within the space.  

Since leaving the NFL in 1981, Najarian became a member of the CBOE, New York Stock Exchange, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, and Chicago Board of Trade, spending almost 25 years working as a floor trader. Less than a decade into his career in finance, Najarian founded Mercury Trading, a market-making firm at the CBOE, which he sold in 2004 to Citadel — one of the world’s largest hedge funds.

Najarian said: “Token Fest brings together leaders from across the world to examine the most important challenges facing an industry that has the potential to disrupt the global economy as we know it. I’m thrilled to join the impressive lineup of speakers the Token Fest team has assembled, and partake in an event that is setting a new standard for events in the industry."

In addition to announcing the keynote address, Token Fest, in partnership with market intelligence platform for digital asset investors, Elementus Capital, released exclusive data on the historic growth of ICOs and other trends within the global blockchain ecosystem.

Key findings include:

• Token sales are becoming increasingly competitive; while the number of projects conducting sales has generally increased, the number of them that are successfully raising money has trended downward.
• The more successful sales are coming from established companies, rather than pre-product startups. London Football Exchange, tZero, and Dfinity were among the biggest ICOs in the month of August.
• The USA is falling behind Singapore in terms of ICOs; August was the first month in which there were more Singapore based projects than US based ones.

Brinkley Warren, Token Fest Co-Founder and Host, said: “This new data shows that the blockchain industry is maturing at an exponential rate, and this is a great sign for the future. It also highlights that major corporate investment and competitive governance will become increasingly important as blockchain innovation continues to go mainstream.”

Building upon the success of the San Francisco event, which featured thousands of attendees and hundreds of speakers, Token Fest continues to expand its footprint in the blockchain event space. This month’s event — which will gather over 4,000 industry leaders and blockchain enthusiasts  — will dive into topics across the spectrum of industries blockchain technology is disrupting. Thought leaders will speak on: crypto-economic strategy, enterprise blockchain solutions, decentralized business models, crypto investing, the role of tokens at the protocol level with those shaping the future of business, science, technology, health, and renewable energy. Programming also includes live demos on the Expo floor, moderated panels, fireside chats, and evening entertainment including a VIP party at Fenway Park.

Token Fest Co-founder Ryan Colby said: “This event is a total departure from the status quo for blockchain conferences. With innovators and leaders, such as Jon Najarian, in attendance, we hope to curate an environment ripe for meaningful networking and collaboration across some of the brightest minds in this industry. We’re thrilled to continue to produce high caliber events that bring together the leading figures in this space.”

Warren and Colby today announced a partnership between Token Fest, the City of Los Angeles, and the Los Angeles Mayor’s Office to produce LA Blockchain Week, which will take place in Q1 of 2019 and bring Token Fest to the city of LA for the first time.

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Co-founders Ryan Colby and Brinkley Warren are available for interview. Media interested in acquiring press passes should contact Tamani Jayasinghe at tamani.jayasinghe@wachsman.com.

About Token Fest

Token Fest is an Event Series focused on high-level networking and programming for the blockchain and crypto investing communities. The Boston event features over 3600 attendees and 150+ Speakers. See the attached graphic for the breakdown of job titles of the attendee community. To learn more about, visit www.tokenfest.io.

About Elementus

Elementus is a market intelligence platform for digital asset investors. The data source for the trends data comes directly from the blockchain, so it is the most comprehensive available. For reference, here the Elementus one-page summary.

Tamani Jayasinghe
Token Fest
9179007986
tamani.jayasinghe@wachsman.com