TN Lee is the founder of Pendle Finance, a DeFi platform that enables users to tokenize and trade future yields on Ethereum assets. He was also a part of the Kyber Network founding team.^[3]

Career

TN Lee began his career in fintech and blockchain as a research assistant, where he explored various fintech businesses. In one of his interviews, he explained his initial interest in Bitcoin, which he found innovative compared to traditional remittance models like TransferWise or Western Union. This interest led him to explore cryptocurrencies and blockchain technologies further, particularly Ethereum during its Initial Coin Offering (ICO) in 2015. Lee actively engaged with the Ethereum community by organizing both online and offline meetup groups. He said:

"I started out as a research assistant for a professor back in school and was looking into all the different types of Fintech businesses, and chanced upon a product that utilized Bitcoin as a remittance tool. So, I thought it was a very different proposition compared to the other products out there, for example, like TransferWise or WesternUnion, so they're basically revamping an existing model with some innovation in the business model, but at a technical level, there was hardly any innovation, whereas Bitcoin was something that was fundamentally different. That got me interested in the technology, and I started to look deeper into crypto and blockchain. In 2015, I became interested in Ethereum, because that was also when Ethereum community was born at the ICO. And then I got involved peripherally as a community contributor, not quite in a technical sense, but really just forming meetup groups online and offline to just be more involved in that segment..."^[1]

In 2017, after his involvement in the Ethereum community, Lee met Loi Luu, the founder of Kyber Network, and subsequently joined the founding team.^[2]

Kyber

TN Lee served as the Head of Business at Kyber Network, overseeing the expansion of the company’s global operations. He established Kyber Network’s presence in key markets, including Korea, China, the United States, and Europe. Additionally, he developed the business and marketing units in Singapore, contributing to the company's growth in the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector.^[1]

Pendle

In October 2020, TN Lee launched Pendle, a protocol that allows users to separate future yield from their base yield-bearing assets. Pendle utilizes foundational lending layers from established DeFi protocols such as Aave and Compound, enabling the tokenization and exchange of forthcoming yield. The protocol divides assets into Yield Tokens (YT) and Principal Tokens (PT) to enhance yield speculation mechanisms. Pendle's Automated Market Maker (AMM) design minimizes impermanent loss by pairing correlated assets in liquidity pools, ensuring stability. Lee emphasizes the importance of the yield curve for traders, with maturity dates in Pendle providing flexibility based on confidence in staking.^[4]

Lee's insights on Liquid Staking Derivatives (LSDs) indicate his expectation of sector consolidation and increased Total Value Locked (TVL) due to the efficiency of ETH LSDs. He attributes Pendle's success to thorough preparation, user feedback, and strategic partnerships. The launch of Pendle V2 marks a new phase of growth, further solidifying its position in the DeFi landscape.
In discussing tokenomics, Lee highlights the interplay between price appreciation and business metrics, underscoring the positive impact of visibility on Pendle's evolution. As Pendle progresses, Lee remains dedicated to innovation, guiding its journey in the decentralized finance space.^[1][5]