Our Story
Built by people who have
been here before.
We didn't arrive at BASIS by accident. We arrived with years of hands-on experience building, shipping, and operating live products in decentralized finance. Our team has launched platforms with real users and real traction, maintained products that are still running and generating profit today, and produced 439 consecutive podcasts with over 900 hours of DeFi content. Building in the open when most teams hide behind anonymous profiles.
That depth of experience is what makes BASIS different. We've already solved the problems that kill most DeFi projects in their first year: smart contract architecture, sustainable tokenomics, real user acquisition, and the discipline to keep shipping. BASIS is the product of a team that's been through full market cycles, knows what works, and built accordingly.
We incorporated in Switzerland. We retained one of the top digital asset law firms in Europe. We assembled a team that spans smart contract engineering, offensive security, tokenomics design, and institutional go-to-market strategy. And we built what we believe is the most complete DeFi ecosystem on BNB Chain: prediction markets, token launches, lending, trading, and staking, all designed from the ground up for both humans and AI agents.
Every action on BASIS is programmable. Every contract is live on mainnet. Fourteen smart contracts, two SDKs, an MCP server with 172 tools, and a full-stack frontend serving real users today. We didn't write a whitepaper and wait for funding. We built the product first.
The Team
Builders, not speculators.
“The right people, empowered to execute, are the foundation of any successful venture.”
George "Atlas" Rotella
Founder & Chairman
Seasoned business leader with over two decades of experience spanning the energy sector. Since 1996, Atlas has operated in global crude oil trading, renewable energy project development & finance, structured trade finance across the US, Latin America, the Caribbean, the UAE, and China.
Entered crypto in 2017 and did what he does best: recognized trends, exceptional talent, and built teams around it. Recruited and assembled high-performing teams across multiple Web3 ventures. Shipped live products used by thousands. Not just whitepapers. Not just roadmaps. Working products.
Co-hosted 439 consecutive live podcasts with co-founder Brett Nordin. 900+ hours of public, on-the-record discussion. Most founders disappear when things get hard. Atlas broadcast. A testament to radical transparency and consistent execution.
Built a no-KYC offshore crypto debit card product. Still fully operational. Still serving its customers and generating yield. Today.
At BASIS, Atlas sets the strategic vision, leads business development, and drives the relationships that position the platform for mass adoption. Every key hire on the Basis team was personally recruited by Atlas and has been onboard since 2022. His conviction is simple: the right people, empowered to execute, are the foundation of any successful venture. Because the only thing that actually matters is people. Everything else is a consequence of getting that right.
“Atlas's right hand since the earliest days. Every podcast. Every product. Every decision.”
Brett Nordin
Co-Founder & CTO
Technology entrepreneur and business development leader with over 25 years of experience building, marketing, and scaling digital businesses. Founded Halo Effects, LLC, a Scottsdale-based digital marketing agency specializing in B2B lead generation and search strategy, and authored Legally Dominate Google, an early playbook on local search optimization published in 2010. Certified in AI business strategy (Section, 2025) and an active member of the Arizona Technology Council. Atlas's right hand since the earliest days of the team, Brett co-hosted all 439 consecutive podcasts totaling over 900 hours of live DeFi content. An unmatched track record of building in public.
At BASIS, Brett bridges the gap between commercial strategy and technical execution, driving engineering direction, overseeing product development, and leading the conversations that move the platform from prototype to institutional-grade infrastructure.
“Every mechanism from bonding curves to fee distribution. Mathematically sound, built to sustain.”
Duncan "Diamond" Howard
Co-Founder & Tokenomics Architect
Quantitative thinker and tokenomics designer with five years of experience modeling economic systems for blockchain protocols. Background in quantitative modeling for high-value real estate transactions, bringing rigorous analytical discipline to digital asset design. Originally recruited by Atlas to the Ark Finance development team, Duncan earned his co-founder role at BASIS through his work designing the platform's tokenomics model and modifying the AMM formulas that power the ecosystem's trading mechanics. His work underpins 14 deployed smart contracts on BNB Smart Chain, spanning token creation, lending, leverage, staking, and prediction markets.
At BASIS, Duncan architects the economic layer, ensuring every mechanism from bonding curves to fee distribution is mathematically sound and built to sustain long-term growth.
“Wrote every smart contract, built every interface, shipped every SDK. From zero to mainnet.”
Alex de Vogel
Co-Founder & Lead Developer
Full-stack Web3 developer and the technical engine behind the BASIS platform. Two years specializing in the EVM ecosystem with prior experience building across Stacks, Canton, and multiple blockchain environments. Previous work includes validator monitoring infrastructure, bot logic systems, and integrations for projects including Maestro Bots. Originally recruited by Atlas to the Ark Finance development team, Alex earned his co-founder role at BASIS through hands-on technical execution, writing the smart contracts and building the decentralized application that powers the platform.
Responsible for coding all 14 smart contracts deployed on BNB Smart Chain, developing the full frontend and backend, building two SDKs with nearly 500 combined methods, and delivering the MCP server that makes BASIS the first truly agent-native DeFi platform.
“Seven Layer-1 ecosystems. Knows how to build blockchain systems and how to break them.”
Jan "crypt0jan"
Head of Security
Senior software engineer and DevSecOps specialist with deep roots in both blockchain infrastructure and offensive security. A veteran of seven major Layer-1 ecosystems, including LISK, ARK, NEAR, SEDA, IOTA, Stacks, and Canton, with hands-on expertise in DPoS consensus systems and network-level security. An accomplished offensive security researcher specializing in penetration testing, vulnerability assessment, and secure infrastructure design. Originally recruited by Atlas to the Ark Finance team, where he led security operations, managed the mobile app development team, and engineered the verifiable random wallet selection system for the daily rewards pool.
At BASIS, Jan owns the full security vertical, hardening backend infrastructure, securing DevOps pipelines, and ensuring the platform's architecture remains resilient against threats. Brings the rare combination of knowing how to build blockchain systems and how to break them.
Teddy Pornprinya
Advisor
Co-Founder & Chief Business Officer of Plume Network, the leading Layer-1 blockchain for Real World Assets with 180+ ecosystem projects, SEC-registered transfer agent status, and an ADGM commercial license. Previously at Coinbase, where he sourced and evaluated early-stage crypto investments. Background in investment banking at DC Advisory. UC Berkeley graduate. A long-standing ally of the BASIS team, Teddy brings deep expertise in go-to-market strategy, institutional partnerships, and venture fundraising.
Darko Stefanoski
Ernst & Young AG, Zurich
Digital Law Leader for Financial Services at Ernst & Young AG, Zurich. Attorney-at-law and Notary Public with over 15 years at EY advising financial institutions on regulatory compliance, digital assets, and blockchain technology. Holds a law degree, an LLM in International Banking & Finance Law, and a CAS in Financial Market Law, all from the University of Zurich, where he also lectures on financial market regulation. Specializes in token structuring, cryptocurrency compliance, and regulatory engagement, bringing deep expertise in navigating the intersection of traditional finance and decentralized technology to the BASIS ecosystem.
Corporate Entity
Veilon AG
Oberdorfstrasse 12, 8853 Lachen SZ, Switzerland
Publicly searchable on the Swiss Federal Commercial Registry (Zefix) and Moneyhouse.
CHE-258.053.888
May 2024
Built by people who have been here before. Backed by advisors who know where this is going. Partnered with brands that prove the tech works. Structured for the long term.