Jelena Djuric
Jelena Djuric is the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Noble, an asset issuance platform focused on the Cosmos ecosystem. She is also a Co-Founder of the Canadian Web3 Council, a national advocacy organization for the digital asset industry. [5]
Education
Djuric attended the University of Toronto, where she earned an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree in Peace, Conflict and Justice Studies, and Political Science. Her academic background also includes international studies through several exchange programs. She completed a semester exchange at Sciences Po in Paris, France, where she focused on International Relations and Affairs. Additionally, she participated in a summer exchange program at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, studying Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution. [3] [4] [16]
Career
Djuric began her career in public policy and international relations, holding early roles at the National Democratic Institute (NDI) as a Program Assistant in 2016 and as a Secretariat Member for the InterAction Council until 2019. Between 2017 and 2018, she served as Operations Lead at the Council of Canadian Innovators, a role that laid the groundwork for her later transition into technology and blockchain.
Her work in the blockchain sector began in 2018 at DFINITY as a Community Manager, followed by a position at cLabs—the organization supporting the Celo blockchain—as a Partner in Global Community until 2020. She later joined Informal Systems, where she worked across operations, product marketing, and business development within the Cosmos ecosystem from 2020 to 2023. She also led Developer Relations and Marketing at the Interchain Foundation, focusing on expanding adoption of the Cosmos SDK and IBC. In 2021, she co-founded the Canadian Web3 Council, a national advocacy organization for the digital asset industry, and in late 2022, co-founded Noble, where she serves as CEO. She began advising Kado in 2023.
Djuric co-founded Noble with Stefan Coolican and John Letey following the collapse of Terra’s UST stablecoin to address the liquidity and infrastructure gaps for stablecoins in the Cosmos ecosystem. Noble functions as an application-specific blockchain for native digital asset issuance, providing infrastructure that allows stablecoins and real-world assets to circulate securely across IBC-enabled chains without relying on bridges. Since launching its mainnet in September 2023 with Circle’s USDC as its first asset, Noble has expanded through partnerships with issuers such as Hashnote, Monerium, and M0. By mid-2025, the platform had processed over 15 million Series A funding round led by Paradigm, with participation from Polychain, Foresight Ventures, Wintermute Ventures, and Informal Systems, bringing its total funding to $18.3 million. [2] [3]
Interviews
Stablecoin Innovation
On March 6, 2025, Djuric participated in an episode of DeFi Decoded, hosted by Alex Tapscott and Andrew Young on the Ninepoint Partners YouTube channel. The discussion focused on stablecoins, real-world assets (RWAs), and the direction of decentralized finance (DeFi). Djuric noted that ETHDenver 2025 emphasized a transition from speculative initiatives toward projects centered on interoperability and practical applications. She described Noble’s introduction of the Noble Dollar (USDN), a stablecoin backed by U.S. treasury bills, and explained that the design includes a framework for distributing yield in a programmable and customizable way.
She also addressed the growing use of tokenized RWAs, including bonds and equities, as an area of interest for institutional participants. According to Djuric, such developments could position stablecoins as a link between blockchain-based systems and traditional financial markets. She further discussed macroeconomic and policy-related dynamics, including the possibility of synthetic digital dollars backed by multiple currencies and the potential impact of U.S. regulatory approaches on stablecoin adoption. Djuric characterized stablecoins as a segment of the crypto market that continues to expand despite volatility, suggesting they may provide a foundation for financial products that integrate ease of use with yield distribution. [17]
Stablecoins and DeFi Infrastructure
On August 14, 2025, Djuric appeared on the Replatforming Finance podcast. In the conversation, she outlined her views on the role of stablecoins within decentralized finance. She described stablecoins as a fundamental component in the transition of the internet toward enabling direct value transfer. She also explained Noble’s focus on providing infrastructure for stablecoin issuance and orchestration, drawing an analogy to a platform model for financial applications.
During the discussion, Djuric explained the idea of composable yield, in which returns from collateralized assets such as U.S. Treasury bills can be distributed in different ways, for example to incentivize users, offset protocol costs, or support other activities. She indicated that such mechanisms expand the potential uses of stablecoins beyond efficiency improvements in payments.
Djuric further commented on the predominance of U.S. dollar–denominated stablecoins and noted that adoption of stablecoins tied to other currencies, including the euro or yen, could contribute to diversification. She also addressed regulatory differences in North America, contrasting approaches in Canada and the United States, and referred to her involvement in the Canadian Web3 Council as part of her broader engagement in the sector. [18]
Crypto’s Liquidity Problem
In an October 2025 interview with the Epicenter Podcast, Djuric discussed Noble’s role as a neutral infrastructure layer built to support stablecoin transmission and expand DeFi applications. She noted that Noble was integrated with the USDC ecosystem, having issued about 250 billion, driven by regulatory clarity and technological innovation, and cited the “Genius” framework for stablecoins as a key legislative development that will encourage further growth. She explained that stablecoin yields were primarily sourced from short-term Treasury bills and shaped by regulation. She emphasized that despite challenges following the Terra collapse, the Cosmos ecosystem remained fundamentally resilient. Djuric also revealed Noble’s work on an Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) layer built on Celestia to enhance scalability and performance, with the Noble token serving as both a fee and governance asset. She concluded by noting that Noble aimed to capture long-term opportunities in stablecoin payments by specializing in secure, compliant, and scalable infrastructure for global financial applications. [18]
Terra’s Collaspe
In a July 2025 interview on the Crypto Builders of New York City podcast, Djuric discussed Noble’s growth and direction as a stablecoin issuance platform, noting it had processed over $8 billion in transactions across 50 chains. She compared the crypto environments of Toronto, New York, and San Francisco, describing New York as the most dynamic hub for builders while recognizing Toronto’s strong quality of life. Djuric emphasized New York’s emergence as the global crypto capital, supported by favorable politics and the presence of major projects, and commented on Circle’s IPO as a milestone for the broader stablecoin industry, reflecting increased confidence and investment in the sector. She also spoke about the improving U.S. regulatory environment, highlighting the Genius Act’s potential to legitimize stablecoin innovation further and strengthen Noble’s positioning.
Djuric recounted Noble’s founding after the collapse of Terra, explaining that the company was created to restore stability and credibility to the Cosmos ecosystem by issuing native stablecoins. She addressed the issue of fragmented stablecoin representations across Cosmos chains and described Noble’s approach to ensuring full fungibility and interoperability. Djuric outlined the development of USDN, Noble’s upcoming stablecoin designed with a yield component and flexible financial use cases to enhance DeFi participation. She also mentioned the company’s work on an EVM-compatible rollup built with Celestia, enabling developers to build directly on Noble’s infrastructure. Closing the discussion, Djuric described her long-term vision for Noble as a crypto-native neobank focused on improving user experience, minimizing risk, and creating more efficient stablecoin-based financial systems. [19]
Stablecoin App Store
In a June 2025 interview on the Stableminded podcast, Djuric discussed Noble’s growth from a post-Terra stablecoin issuer into a multi-currency platform designed to function like an “app store” for stablecoins. She described Noble’s focus on expanding beyond USD-backed assets and enabling developers to build applications that integrate programmable yield through its USDN stablecoin, which redirects treasury returns to users or partner applications. Djuric explained that Noble’s structure emphasizes security and transparency, contrasting it with algorithmic models, and highlighted its collaboration with M0 to manage treasury-backed stablecoins and design yield-sharing frameworks. She noted that Noble’s strategy now includes creating user-facing tools and potential flagship apps, such as privacy-oriented payment systems, while continuing to shape features based on community feedback. Following its Series A funding, Djuric added that Noble plans to grow selectively in marketing and engineering while relying on automation to maintain efficiency. [20]
Presentations
Native Asset Issuance
At ETH Belgrade in July 2024, Djuric presented Noble as a blockchain designed for stablecoin issuance and liquidity distribution across the Cosmos ecosystem, addressing issues of liquidity fragmentation through interoperability with over 37 blockchains via the IBC protocol. She noted that Noble processes about $500 million in monthly transactions and supports a range of assets beyond USDC, including yield-bearing stablecoins and tokenized treasury bills. Djuric emphasized improving usability through features like paying gas fees in native USDC and fast cross-chain finalization, supported by automated interchain account modules for streamlined multi-chain management. She also discussed partnerships, such as with Crafton for game-to-bank payouts, and highlighted user feedback as central to product development as Noble expands support for asset issuers. The presentation concluded with plans to enable off-ramping through IBC, with early collaborations involving exchanges like Coinbase to address integration challenges. [21]
Panels
Endless Summer
At ETHDenver in March 2024, Djuric joined a panel led by DeFi Dad to discuss the evolution of multi-chain DeFi and the challenges of creating seamless user experiences across ecosystems. Djuric outlined Noble’s role in addressing liquidity fragmentation and improving usability within Cosmos through native asset issuance, particularly with USDC integration. Other panelists, including representatives from Summer.fi, Zerox, and Osmosis discussed expanding DeFi access across chains, tokenizing value, and improving interoperability between ecosystems. The conversation emphasized the importance of simplifying wallet compatibility, enhancing user education, and building trust in complex multi-chain environments. Panelists also explored future innovations like cross-chain protocols and decentralized interoperability solutions, envisioning a more accessible DeFi landscape where users can move assets and interact across chains without technical barriers. [22]
Novel Primitives
At the Injective Builder House in August 2024, Djuric joined a panel with Sina Vaziri of Babylon and Burnt Banksy of XION to discuss innovation and usability in the evolving blockchain ecosystem. Djuric introduced Noble as a platform focused on native asset issuance and stablecoin liquidity across fragmented networks. At the same time, Vaziri explained Babylon’s work on non-custodial Bitcoin staking, and Banksy emphasized the importance of collaboration between protocols. The panel explored the development of novel blockchain primitives and the need for intuitive, user-centered designs amid growing system complexity. Participants agreed that meaningful innovation should focus on practical applications and accessibility rather than competition, highlighting the limited mainstream adoption of crypto and the need to build products that address real-world needs. The session concluded with reflections on how simplicity, collaboration, and tangible value are essential to attracting a broader audience to decentralized technology. [23]
