Fireblocks co-founder/CEO. Check Point alumnus. Built the MPC custody standard securing $10T+ in digital asset transfers. $8B+ valuation. The cybersecurity-to-crypto pipeline personified.
The Builders | Olam.business
Michael Shaulov is the co-founder and CEO of Fireblocks, the Israeli-founded institutional digital-asset infrastructure platform that has secured the transfer of more than $10 trillion in digital assets. A Unit 8200 alumnus and former Check Point engineer, Shaulov built Fireblocks on multi-party computation technology after investigating a $200 million North Korean cryptocurrency theft in 2017.
At a Glance
| Role | Co-founder and CEO, Fireblocks |
| Company founded | 2018, with Pavel Berengoltz and Idan Ofrat, following departure from Check Point |
| Background | IDF Unit 8200; former Check Point engineer |
| Core technology | Multi-party computation (MPC) — cryptographic key-shares distributed across multiple locations, eliminating single-key vulnerability |
| Scale | $10 trillion-plus in digital assets secured; 1,800+ institutional clients (banks, exchanges, lending platforms, payment providers) |
| Funding | $550 million-plus raised; valuation above $8 billion; investors include Sequoia Capital, Paradigm, Coatue, Ribbit Capital, BNY Mellon |
| Headquarters | New York (commercial); Tel Aviv (R&D) |
From a $200 Million Theft to an Institutional Custody Standard
In 2017, Shaulov and co-founders Pavel Berengoltz and Idan Ofrat investigated a $200 million North Korean cryptocurrency theft. Their conclusion was that the institutional custody model underlying digital assets was structurally broken: private keys stored in hardware security modules represented a single point of failure that a sufficiently motivated attacker could exploit. The three left Check Point in 2018 to build Fireblocks around a different architecture — multi-party computation, which splits cryptographic key-shares across multiple locations so no single point of compromise can expose the underlying asset.
Fireblocks has since raised more than $550 million in venture capital, reaching a valuation above $8 billion, with investors including Sequoia Capital, Paradigm, Coatue, Ribbit Capital, and BNY Mellon. The platform now serves more than 1,800 institutional clients — banks, exchanges, lending platforms, and payment providers — and has secured the transfer of more than $10 trillion in digital assets.
The Check Point-to-Crypto Pipeline
The Check Point-to-crypto pipeline is one of the defining talent corridors in Israeli technology. Gil Shwed built the firewall category at Check Point; Nir Zuk left Check Point to build Palo Alto Networks; Shaulov left Check Point to build the institutional crypto-custody standard. The recurring pattern is cybersecurity engineers identifying structural vulnerabilities in adjacent markets and building infrastructure companies to address them.
Shaulov sits alongside Eli Ben-Sasson (StarkWare) and Yoni Assia (eToro) in the top tier of Israeli crypto founders by company valuation and institutional impact. Fireblocks is the infrastructure layer — the custody and transfer plumbing. StarkWare is the protocol layer — the cryptographic math. eToro is the distribution layer — the consumer trading interface. Three Israeli companies, three distinct layers of the same digital-asset stack.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Michael Shaulov?
Michael Shaulov is an Israeli entrepreneur, co-founder and CEO of Fireblocks, the institutional digital-asset custody and infrastructure company. A Unit 8200 alumnus and former Check Point engineer, he co-founded Fireblocks in 2018 with Pavel Berengoltz and Idan Ofrat.
What is Fireblocks?
Fireblocks is an Israeli-founded digital-asset infrastructure platform built on multi-party computation technology. It has secured more than $10 trillion in digital-asset transfers for over 1,800 institutional clients including banks and exchanges.
Why did Shaulov found Fireblocks?
After investigating a $200 million North Korean cryptocurrency theft in 2017, Shaulov concluded that hardware-security-module-based custody created a single point of failure. Fireblocks' MPC architecture distributes key-shares to eliminate that vulnerability.
What is Fireblocks' valuation?
Above $8 billion, following more than $550 million raised from investors including Sequoia Capital, Paradigm, Coatue, Ribbit Capital, and BNY Mellon.
More From The Builders
- Eli Ben-Sasson: StarkWare and the Zero-Knowledge Standard
- Yoni Assia: eToro Co-Founder and CEO
- Gil Shwed: The Firewall Inventor Who Built Israeli Cyber
- The Builders
מי הוא מייקל שאולוב?
מייקל שאולוב הוא שותף-מייסד ומנכ"ל Fireblocks, פלטפורמת תשתית הנכסים הדיגיטליים המוסדית הישראלית שאבטחה העברת נכסים דיגיטליים בהיקף של מעל 10 טריליון דולר. בוגר יחידה 8200 ולשעבר מהנדס בצ'ק פוינט. שווי החברה מעל 8 מיליארד דולר.
The Olam Editorial Team | The Builders / הבונים
