Jed McCaleb

$3.91 B

Ranked #1059 in World

About Jed McCaleb

Renowned American programmer Jed McCaleb, with a net worth of US$2.4 billion, is an influential figure in the cryptocurrency sphere and a major player in finance technology. As a dropout from the University of California, Berkeley, McCaleb's prolific career includes founding the Mt. Gox bitcoin exchange and co-founding the blockchain network Stellar, where he serves as CTO. His recent venture into space tech with his company Vast showcases his enterprising spirit. A committed philanthropist, he supports AI research through substantial donations to MIRI and OpenAI.

Born

January 01, 1975 in Fayetteville, Arkansas, U.S

Age

51 years

Source Of Wealth

Cryptocurrency

Industries

Finance & Investments

Citizenship

United States

Residence

Berkeley, California

Jed McCaleb, an American programmer, entrepreneur, and philanthropist, was born in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Although he attended the University of California, Berkeley, he eventually dropped out and relocated to New York City.

Jed McCaleb: Family

Information about Jed McCaleb's family is not provided in the given context.

Jed McCaleb: Career Highlights

McCaleb's career is marked by several significant achievements:

Founded MetaMachine Inc. in 2000 and released the eDonkey2000 application.
Served as CTO of MetaMachine, developing eDonkey, Overnet, and eDonkey2000.
Purchased Mtgox.com in 2007 and repurposed it as a bitcoin exchange in 2010.
Developed Ripple protocol, a digital currency verified by consensus among network members.
Co-founded Stellar Development Foundation in 2014 to develop Stellar open source protocol for cross-border monetary transactions.
Launched Lightyear.io in 2017, building on Stellar network for global payment and currency exchange.
Founded aerospace company Vast in 2021, developing artificial gravity space stations.

Jed McCaleb: Companies

McCaleb has been associated with several notable companies throughout his career:

MetaMachine Inc.
Mt. Gox
Opencoin (now Ripple)
Stellar Development Foundation
Lightyear.io
Vast

Jed McCaleb: Major Achievements

McCaleb's major achievements include:

Creating the eDonkey2000 application and growing its network to over 4 million active users.
Developing the Ripple protocol, a digital currency verified by consensus among network members.
Co-founding Stellar Development Foundation and launching Stellar, an open source protocol for cross-border monetary transactions.
Launching Lightyear.io, building on Stellar network for global payment and currency exchange.
Partnering with IBM to launch blockchain banking in the South Pacific using Stellar's lumen currency.
Founding aerospace company Vast, developing artificial gravity space stations.

Jed McCaleb: Awards & Achievements

McCaleb has received recognition for his contributions to technology and innovation:

Named one of the top 10 people leading the blockchain revolution by The New York Times in 2018.
Recognized as a Distinguished Engineer by the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) in 2019.

Jed McCaleb: Personal Life & Legacy

Information about Jed McCaleb's personal life and legacy is not provided in the given context.

Jed McCaleb: Trivia

Here are some interesting facts about Jed McCaleb:

He is known for his distinctive appearance, often sporting a long beard and a casual style of dress.

McCaleb is an avid fan of science fiction and has expressed his interest in space exploration and colonization.
He is a strong advocate for open source software and decentralized technologies.
McCaleb's net worth is estimated to be around US$2.4 billion as of March 2023.

Wealth History

Timeline

N/A

Jed McCaleb was born in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

N/A

Attended the University of California, Berkeley but dropped out.

N/A

Moved to New York City.

2000

Founded MetaMachine Inc. and released eDonkey2000 application.

N/A

Served as CTO of MetaMachine, developing eDonkey, Overnet, and eDonkey2000.

N/A

Network grew to over 4 million active users.

2006

Settled with RIAA, agreeing to cease distribution of software and paying $30 million to avoid copyright infringement lawsuits.

2007

Purchased Mtgox.com, repurposed it as a bitcoin exchange in 2010.

2011

Sold Mt. Gox to Mark Karpelès, remained a minority owner until its collapse in 2014.

N/A

Developed Ripple protocol, a digital currency verified by consensus among network members.

N/A

Recruited David Schwartz, secured investment from Jesse Powell, added Arthur Britto as chief strategist.

N/A

Chris Larsen became CEO of the new company, Opencoin.

N/A

Continued development of Ripple protocol and currency, secured investments.

July 2013

Left active role with Ripple.

2014

Co-founded Stellar Development Foundation with Joyce Kim to develop Stellar open source protocol for cross-border monetary transactions.

July 31, 2014

Stellar debuted, received $3 million loan from Stripe.

N/A

Initially based on Ripple protocol, adopted Stellar Consensus Protocol in 2015.

N/A

McCaleb serves as CTO of Stellar.

May 2017

Launched Lightyear.io, building on Stellar network for global payment and currency exchange.

October 2017

Partnered with IBM to launch blockchain banking in the South Pacific using Stellar's lumen currency.

September 2018

Negotiated merger of Lightyear and Chain.com, creating InterStellar.

2018

Named one of the top 10 people leading the blockchain revolution by The New York Times.

2021

Founded aerospace company Vast, developing artificial gravity space stations.

N/A

CEO and sole funder of Vast.

N/A

Donated US$500,000 worth of XRP to Machine Intelligence Research Institute (MIRI), remains one of its largest donors, and joined its advisory board.

February 2018

Announced as a new donor to OpenAI.

Jed McCaleb : FAQs

What is Jed McCaleb's current net worth?

Jed McCaleb's current net worth is $3.91 billion.

What is Jed McCaleb's current global rank among billionaires?

Jed McCaleb holds the 1059th position globally among billionaires.

What is Jed McCaleb's current ranking within the United States?

Jed McCaleb holds the 392nd position in United States.

What was the change in Jed McCaleb's net worth compared to the previous year?

Jed McCaleb's net worth increased by 1.06 billion dollars compared to the previous year 2025, when his net worth was 2.85 billion dollars.

What are Jed McCaleb's main sources of wealth?

Jed McCaleb's main source of income comes from Cryptocurrency.

In which industry does Jed McCaleb primarily operate?

Jed McCaleb is primarily involved in the Finance & Investments industry.

How old is Jed McCaleb?

Jed McCaleb is 51 years old.

Who is Jed McCaleb and what is his role in cryptocurrency?

Jed McCaleb is an American programmer, entrepreneur, and philanthropist known for founding the aerospace startup Vast, where he serves as CEO. He is also a co-founder and the Chief Technical Officer (CTO) of Stellar, a platform for cross-border monetary transactions, and was the former CTO of Ripple. Notably, he created the Mt. Gox bitcoin exchange, eDonkey, Overnet networks, and the eDonkey2000 application. As of March 2023, his net worth is estimated to be US$2.4 billion.

What are some of the major milestones in Jed McCaleb's career?

Jed McCaleb founded MetaMachine Inc. in 2000, where he released the eDonkey2000 application. His platforms, eDonkey and Overnet, grew to over 4 million active users. After a legal settlement with RIAA, he purchased and transformed Mtgox.com into a bitcoin exchange. Following his tenure at Mt. Gox, he developed the Ripple protocol and later co-founded the Stellar Development Foundation. He launched the aerospace company Vast in 2021, aimed at developing artificial gravity space stations.

How has Jed McCaleb contributed to blockchain technology?

Jed McCaleb has been a pioneer in blockchain technology, contributing significantly by developing the Ripple protocol and co-founding Stellar, which provides an open source protocol for cross-border monetary transactions. He partnered with IBM to launch blockchain banking using Stellar's lumen currency and has worked on merging Lightyear with Chain.com to create InterStellar.

What philanthropic efforts is Jed McCaleb known for?

Jed McCaleb has made notable contributions to philanthropy, including donating US$500,000 worth of XRP to the Machine Intelligence Research Institute (MIRI), where he remains one of the largest donors and serves on the advisory board. Additionally, he was announced as a new donor to OpenAI in February 2018, cementing his involvement in technological advancements and artificial intelligence research.