Jay-Z and Jack Dorsey-Backed Bitcoin Non-Profit ₿trust Appoints Bitcoin Core Contributor As Interim CEO

₿trust, a non-profit focused on training and funding developers from The Global South for Bitcoin open-source development, recently announced Bitcoin Core contributor and one of its board members, Abubakar Nur Khalil, as Interim CEO.

The non-profit, founded in 2021, received initial funding from Jay-Z and Jack Dorsey. It’s since nurtured an ever-expanding network of Bitcoin developers in Africa, Latin America and India.

₿trust has trained hundreds of developers, supports projects such as Librería de Satoshi and Bitshala, kickstarted BitDevs meetups across five African cities and sponsors annual events like the African Bitcoin Conference.

Nur Khalil will serve as Interim CEO for one year, beginning in August 2024. During this period, he’ll retain his board seat and serve as a non-voting member.

This role should be familiar to Nur Khalil, as he co-founded Qala, the African Bitcoin developer training program that ₿trust acquired and rebranded to ₿trust Builders in September 2023.

Other ₿trust board members have expressed faith that Nur Khalil will be an excellent leader for the organization given his expertise as a developer, the fact that he’s a resident of The Global South (Nigeria) and is one of the leading voices in the African Bitcoin ecosystem.

“Ever since I first met him, Abubakar has resolutely focused on supporting the advancement of Bitcoin and open-source development in Africa, the Global South, and beyond,” said founding ₿trust board member and CEO of Fedi, Obi Nwosu, in a press release shared with Bitcoin Magazine. “I’m grateful that he has taken on the challenge of leading ₿trust through this early formative stage, and I’m excited to see what he will achieve in the role.”

As Interim CEO, Nur Khalil will focus on growing ₿trust’s developer pipeline, increasing the number of grants the institution distributes and improving its developer program to push forward with its mission of decentralizing Bitcoin open-source development.

“I am truly grateful for the board’s trust in me to take on this role over the next year,” said Nur Khalil in the press release. “I look forward to growing our initiatives, ensuring ₿trust cements itself as the primary driving force behind Bitcoin’s development in Africa, and cultivating a unique Bitcoin FOSS ecosystem in the regions we serve.”