An entity of EMURGO Group, EMURGO Middle East & Africa (MEA) serves as the regional entity overseeing EMURGO Africa’s business activities, including capitalizing on the rapid growth of the blockchain industry in the Middle East. EMURGO MEA partners and invests in blockchain infrastructure providers, and blockchain startups, and collaborates with regional leaders to achieve its goal of increasing the adoption of Cardano by solutions providers and users in the MEA region.
EMURGO MEA is led by Yosuke Yoshida and Shogo Ishida, who serve as co-CEOs.
Yosuke Yoshida is the former CEO of EMURGO Japan, where EMURGO Group was first established and started its entire business. Yoshida brings nearly 20 years of professional experience in M&A and business development and project management as the manager of Japan’s largest investment and cross-border trading company in the power sector. He has led multiple international and government projects in Japan, Korea, Indonesia, Vietnam, and the Philippines.
“Drawing from my experience leading EMURGO and driving Cardano adoption from the developed side of the world during my time served as CEO of Japan and CBO of EMURGO Group for the past 5 years, I now see more potential in the emerging markets, especially in the African region. I have been impressed with the enthusiasm of young local entrepreneurs and tech talents focused on utilizing Web 3.0’s decentralized properties to deliver tangible economic benefits. The beginning of the Web 3.0 revolution in the MEA region is just getting started.” said Yosuke Yoshida, co-CEO of EMURGO MEA.
Shogo Ishida is a former CEO of QRC Group, a globally awarded RegTech solutions innovator and provider for blockchain companies to meet global regulatory requirements. He led the publication of the world’s first Security Token Specification “PAS 19668”, independently facilitated and published by BSI, the UK National Standards Body. Before the venture capital and tech industries, Shogo served as a Middle East policy expert in foreign services and worked for the Japanese Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister.
“The Middle East grasps the vision of blockchain and Web3, and it has committed to providing an excellent business environment for the blockchain industry to thrive. Combined with the fast adoption of blockchain by users in the MEA, we believe that there is huge potential for synergies across the region to quickly expand adoption and awareness of Cardano, by investing in companies that can deliver blockchain products and services in need,” said EMURGO MEA co-CEO Shogo Ishida.
According to a 2022 Chainalysis report, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) was the fastest-growing crypto market in the world. The report states that MENA-based users received $566 billion in cryptocurrency from July 2021 to June 2022, 48% more than they received the year prior indicating a clear trend of broader acceptance of crypto and blockchain-based products by users in the region.