Viktor Bunin is the co-founder of the investment firm Credibly Neutral and is widely recognized for his expertise in proof-of-stake (PoS) protocols, staking infrastructure, Maximal Extractable Value (MEV), and decentralized governance. ^{[1] [2]} Bunin has held key roles at major crypto-native organizations, including Coinbase, Bison Trails, and ConsenSys, and is credited with pioneering the "Protocol Specialist" role, which has become an industry standard. ^[3]​

Early Life and Education

Viktor Bunin was born in Moscow, Russia, and immigrated to the United States in 1999. ^{[4] [5]} He resides in Brooklyn, New York. ^[6]

Publicly available sources provide conflicting information regarding his university education. Several sources, including his speaker biography for the Devcon conference and his profile at his investment firm, state that he graduated Magna Cum Laude from Drexel University's LeBow College of Business with a Bachelor of Science, having dual-majored in Finance and Business Analytics. ^{[7] [1]} Other sources report that he attended Rutgers University, graduating from the Business School with a Bachelor of Science in Finance and Management Information Systems in 2016, or with a degree in Finance and a minor in Economics between 2011 and 2015. ^{[8] [4]} Additional sources alternatively name Lehigh University, the University of Delaware, the University of Florida, the University at Albany (SUNY), or Baruch College as his alma mater. ^{[9] [10]} One source also indicates he earned an inactive Certified Public Accountant (CPA) license. ^[10]

Career

Bunin's career began in traditional finance and technology before he transitioned full-time into the blockchain industry. His early roles are reported to include positions as a Quantitative Analyst at JPMorgan Chase, a Business Technology Analyst at Deloitte, an Audit Senior at Deloitte, a consultant at FactSet, and a Senior Consultant in digital strategy at Ernst & Young (EY). ^{[1] [2]}

Transition to Crypto and ConsenSys

Bunin's entry into the crypto industry involved roles at several startups. Around 2017-2018, he worked at firms such as Smith + Crown and Fluidity, a blockchain company that was later acquired by ConsenSys. ^{[11] [10]} He joined ConsenSys, a leading Ethereum software company, where he worked in roles described as Blockchain Product Strategist and Solutions Architect. During his time there, he focused on token design and helping enterprises leverage the Ethereum blockchain. ^{[6] [8]}

Bison Trails and the "Protocol Specialist" Role

In 2019, Bunin joined Bison Trails, a pioneering blockchain infrastructure and staking-as-a-service provider, as an early employee. ^[1] It was here that he created and defined the "Protocol Specialist" role, becoming the first person in the industry to hold such a title. ^[3] The role combines deep technical protocol knowledge with business strategy to help design, launch, and support new blockchain networks. This function has since been widely adopted by other major crypto organizations, including Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) and Blockdaemon. ^[1] At Bison Trails, Bunin conducted in-depth research on PoS protocols and helped design staking strategies for institutional clients. ^[2]

Coinbase and Public Advocacy

In January 2021, Coinbase acquired Bison Trails to form the foundation of its Coinbase Cloud division. ^[6] Bunin transitioned to Coinbase, continuing his work as a Protocol Specialist and later becoming Protocol Operations Lead. ^[1] His team managed Coinbase's staking infrastructure, and he was involved with integrating new protocols, engaging in governance, and contributing to public policy. He was a credited co-author on Coinbase's formal public responses to regulators concerning decentralized exchanges (DEXs) and proposed definitions of an "exchange". ^[4]

During his tenure at Coinbase, Bunin was a vocal supporter of the company's role in the industry. On September 8, 2022, he announced Coinbase's decision to fund a lawsuit against the U.S. Treasury Department's sanctions of the Tornado Cash smart contracts, framing it as a defense of privacy and open-source software. ^[10]

Career Setbacks and "Failing Upward"

Bunin has been transparent about experiencing multiple layoffs during his career and has framed these events as pivotal growth opportunities. He detailed this philosophy in articles and posts titled "How to Fail Upward After Being Laid Off." Sources state he wrote about being laid off from EY in 2018, from Smith + Crown during the 2018 crypto bear market, from ConsenSys in 2019, and from Coinbase during its workforce reductions in 2022 or 2023. ^{[9] [11] [6]} In a May 2023 article, he reflected on being laid off from Coinbase, emphasizing the importance of building a strong professional reputation and network to navigate such setbacks. ^[8]

Post-Layoff Career Paths

Following his departure from Coinbase, sources report several different career paths for Bunin. In May 2023, he co-founded the venture capital fund Credibly Neutral. ^[10] During this period, he also reportedly took on an advisory role at the decentralized staking protocol Rocket Pool (starting April 2023) and joined the Prague-based crypto venture firm RockawayX as Protocol Lead (starting January 2024). ^[8] Another source indicates he joined institutional staking provider RockX as Chief Protocol Advisor in August 2022. ^[2]

Contradicting these reports, one analysis states that Bunin was rehired by Coinbase in August 2023 to a senior leadership position as the Head of Protocol Specialists. ^[4]

Ventures and Investments

Credibly Neutral

In May 2023, Bunin and Lisa Cuesta announced the launch of Credibly Neutral, a 50,000 to $250,000. ^{[10] [1]} The firm's philosophy is rooted in the principle of "credible neutrality," which posits that protocols achieve greater success when they are designed to be fair and not discriminate against any group of users. ^[1]​

Angel Investing

Bunin is a prolific angel investor in the Web3 space, with a stated thesis of "backing exceptional founders building the picks and shovels of crypto." ^[5] His portfolio focuses heavily on foundational infrastructure, including Layer 1 and Layer 2 blockchains, interoperability protocols, and DeFi projects. His publicly listed investments include EigenLayer, Celestia, Arbitrum, Polygon, Aptos, Lido, Socket, and WalletConnect. ^{[5] [7]}​

Industry Contributions and Expertise

Bunin is recognized for his contributions to protocol design, governance, and community building.

• Pioneering the Protocol Specialist Role: His most noted contribution is the creation of a specialized role bridging technical development with ecosystem strategy, which has since become a standard in the industry. ^[1]
• Decentralized Governance: He has led and facilitated complex on-chain governance events. He drove the initiative for the decentralized mainnet launch of NEAR Protocol and led the effort for the first-ever on-chain merger of two protocols, Keep Network and NuCypher, which formed the Threshold Network. ^[1]
• Maximal Extractable Value (MEV): Bunin has been active in addressing the challenges of MEV. He created and led the Flashbots Eth2 Working Group to research the integration of Flashbots with Ethereum's consensus layer to mitigate MEV's negative externalities. ^[1]
• Community and Events: He has served as a lead organizer for the major Ethereum community conference ETHDenver and as a council member for Polygon Labs. ^[6]

Interviews

Viktor Bunin on Crypto Economics and Incentives #01

In an interview released on the YouTube channel Wholesome Crypto on January 19, 2022, Viktor Bunin discussed his career trajectory in the cryptocurrency sector and outlined his views on crypto economics, incentive structures, and the relationship between digital assets and traditional finance.

Bunin described his academic background in economics and psychology and explained how these disciplines informed his analytical approach to blockchain systems. He noted that he initially pursued finance before changing fields, citing dissatisfaction with conventional banking frameworks. His early professional experience included consulting work at EY, where he was involved with risk assessment, compliance processes, digital strategy, and user experience initiatives within financial institutions.

According to Bunin, his engagement with Bitcoin began in 2017 through personal exposure to the asset, which led him to study the Bitcoin white paper and the economic models underlying cryptocurrency networks. He stated that, in his assessment, the defining characteristic of cryptocurrencies lies in their incentive mechanisms, which coordinate the behavior of network participants such as miners, developers, and users. He argued that incentive design plays a central role in determining whether a network can function over time.

Bunin also discussed behavioral factors associated with crypto markets, referencing the price volatility commonly observed in digital assets and the psychological responses it generates among participants. He linked his subsequent work in crypto-focused roles to his interdisciplinary background, which he said supported his involvement in areas such as protocol analysis, token incentives, and network economics. This path later included work at Bison Trails, a company that was acquired by Coinbase.

During the interview, Bunin referenced his participation in the decentralized merger between Keep Network and NuCypher, using it to illustrate challenges related to governance coordination, economic alignment, and community integration in decentralized protocols. He emphasized the relevance of clearly communicating trade-offs and design limitations when developing and maintaining blockchain systems.

He also addressed interactions between cryptocurrency systems and traditional banking institutions, recounting an experience involving restricted access to bank-held funds. He used this example to contrast custodial banking models with crypto-based self-custody arrangements. While acknowledging that banks provide services such as fraud mitigation and account protection, he suggested that competition from crypto-native organizations may influence changes in financial service design and accessibility.

The interview concluded with Bunin commenting on the social dimension of the cryptocurrency sector, noting his involvement in supporting others seeking to enter the industry and describing these interactions as a recurring aspect of his professional experience. ^[12]

Why Coinbase Is Adding Bitcoin Lightning #02

In an interview published on September 22, 2023, on Galaxy’s YouTube channel, Viktor Bunin discusses developments in cryptocurrency infrastructure and outlines Coinbase’s rationale for adding support for Bitcoin’s Lightning Network. At the time of the interview, Bunin worked as a protocol specialist at Coinbase, a role focused on analyzing blockchain protocols and translating protocol-level characteristics into operational and product considerations within the company.

According to Bunin’s account, the decision to integrate the Lightning Network aligns with Coinbase’s approach to supporting Bitcoin-related infrastructure while addressing scalability and transaction efficiency. He describes Lightning as a second-layer network designed to facilitate faster and lower-cost Bitcoin transactions, particularly for functions such as deposits and withdrawals. In his explanation, the initial scope of the integration prioritizes transactional functionality rather than broader application development.

Bunin also describes changes in the crypto infrastructure landscape since his earlier work at Bison Trails. He notes the expansion of services related to custody, staking, and protocol operations, alongside increasing participation from institutional actors. From his perspective, public and permissionless blockchains provide characteristics such as open access and decentralized settlement that distinguish them from permissioned systems, which he characterizes as having more limited applicability in global financial contexts.

The interview further addresses broader structural trends in blockchain design. Bunin outlines a view in which future systems consist of multiple interconnected layers, including distinct Layer 1 and Layer 2 networks with specialized roles related to settlement, execution, or data availability. He presents this modular approach as a response to scalability constraints observed in single-layer architectures.

In discussing Bitcoin, Bunin frames its primary contribution as the introduction of a monetary system based on decentralized consensus. He also references personal experiences with traditional financial institutions to contextualize his professional interest in blockchain systems, particularly features related to transparency, self-custody, and the ability for users to operate independently of centralized intermediaries. ^[13]