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The Best Hyperledger Developers to Watch | 20 Picks

hyperledger developers - The Best Hyperledger Developers to Watch | 20 Picks

Hyperledger has emerged as a cornerstone of enterprise blockchain, powered by a passionate community of innovators.

From maintainers of Fabric, Besu, Aries, and Iroha to governance leaders shaping the ecosystem’s future, these individuals drive the adoption of decentralized technologies across industries. They include hands-on engineers, startup founders, academic researchers, protocol architects, and champions of self-sovereign identity. Below is a handpicked and updated list of the most influential contributors in the Hyperledger ecosystem—recognized for their real-world impact, technical leadership, and dedication to open source.

  1. Matt Nelson
  2. Marcus Brandenburger
  3. Stephen Curran
  4. Conor Svensson
  5. David Enyeart
  6. Tracy Kuhrt
  7. Peter Somogyvari
  8. Jim Zhang
  9. Bobbi Muscara
  10. Danno Ferrin
  11. Grace Hartley
  12. Makoto Takemiya
  13. Timo Glastra
  14. Yacov Manevich
  15. Kamlesh Nagware
  16. Sam Curren
  17. Venkatraman Ramakrishna
  18. Hart Montgomery
  19. Sally MacFarlane
  20. Arun S M

Now, let’s delve deeper into their remarkable contributions and impact.

Matt Nelson

YouTube Video

Nationality: American

Matt Nelson is a Product Manager turned maintainer of Hyperledger Besu, the Ethereum client in Hyperledger’s portfolio. At ConsenSys, Matt works on the protocol engineering team and has been deeply involved in Besu’s evolution from its origins as PegaSys Pantheon. He’s contributed to critical roadmap initiatives like Ethereum network upgrades (including The Merge) and performance optimizations for enterprise use cases.

Matt often represents Besu in technical workshops and conferences – he’s given talks on running Besu in production Ethereum networks and co-authored blogs on best practices for Ethereum client operations. In 2024, Matt joined the Hyperledger TOC, bringing an enterprise Ethereum perspective to Hyperledger’s governance. His blend of product vision and hands-on engineering ensures Besu meets the needs of both public Ethereum and permissioned networks.

Marcus Brandenburger

Nationality: German

Marcus Brandenburger is a senior researcher at IBM Research–Zurich focused on blockchain security and confidential computing. A maintainer of Hyperledger Fabric’s core, Marcus has been instrumental in advancing Fabric’s security, co-authoring solutions like Fabric Private Chaincode that integrate Trusted Execution Environments for smart contracts.

He serves on the Hyperledger Technical Oversight Committee (TOC) for 2024, helping steer the project’s technical direction. With a Ph.D. in Computer Science and over a decade at IBM, Marcus has contributed research on preventing blockchain rollback attacks and regularly shares his insights at Hyperledger events and webinars. His work exemplifies the blend of academic rigor and practical innovation driving Hyperledger Fabric’s evolution.

Stephen Curran

We’re not just writing code—we’re building trust frameworks that can empower individuals and transform how institutions operate.

Nationality: Canadian

Stephen Curran is a veteran software developer turned leader in self-sovereign identity on blockchain. Based in British Columbia, he helped define and launch the Verifiable Organizations Network (VON), a pioneering production system using Hyperledger Aries, Indy, and AnonCreds to issue verifiable credentials for business registrations.

Stephen contributes extensively to Hyperledger’s identity projects by driving open standards, protocols, and code for privacy-preserving solutions. He serves as a Hyperledger TOC member and was elected to Hyperledger’s Technical Oversight in recognition of his community leadership. A frequent speaker and educator, Stephen has co-authored government digital ID frameworks and regularly shares best practices with the Aries/Indy community. His work bridging government needs with open-source innovation has made him a global influencer in decentralized identity.

Conor Svensson

Conor Svensson - The Best Hyperledger Developers to Watch | 20 Picks

Nationality: British

Conor Svensson is the founder of Web3 Labs and a maintainer of Hyperledger Besu, known for bringing enterprise-grade Ethereum to Hyperledger. He created Web3j, the popular Java API for Ethereum downloaded over 3 million times, demonstrating his deep commitment to open-source blockchain tooling.

Under Conor’s leadership, Web3 Labs joined the Hyperledger Foundation to provide long-term support for Besu. Now a Hyperledger TOC member, Conor has helped diversify Besu’s maintainer community and roadmap. He’s also an author of Blockchain Innovator’s Handbook and frequently blogs about enterprise blockchain trends. Conor’s work on privacy and permissioning features in Besu and contributions to Ethereum client interoperability showcase his dual talent as a hands-on engineer and thought leader. He is bridging the gap between public Ethereum and private consortia, making Besu a versatile platform for both.

David Enyeart

Nationality: American

Dave Enyeart is one of the lead maintainers of Hyperledger Fabric’s core, with over 20 years in enterprise software engineering. As an IBM Open Technologies engineer, he has been a driving force behind Fabric’s architecture and stability.

David played a key role in Fabric’s 2.x releases and the ongoing development toward Fabric 3.0. He focuses on Fabric’s data architecture, chaincode lifecycle, and consensus, bringing deep enterprise experience to the project. Enyeart is a frequent presenter of Fabric updates (often alongside colleagues like Arnaud Le Hors) and advocates for community-driven innovation in enterprise blockchain. He also serves on Hyperledger’s Technical Oversight Committee for 2024, ensuring Fabric’s roadmap aligns with industry needs. Dave’s steady leadership and hands-on contributions have made him a linchpin of the Fabric developer community.

Tracy Kuhrt

Nationality: American

Tracy Kuhrt is the Chair of the Hyperledger Technical Oversight Committee and a Senior Technology Architect at Accenture. With 20+ years in software development, she has been involved in blockchain since 2015, helping Fortune 500 clients implement enterprise DLT solutions.

Tracy was a Hyperledger Community Architect before joining Accenture, and she spearheaded the open-sourcing of Accenture’s Blockchain Automation Framework, which became Hyperledger Cactus. As TOC Chair (2022–2024), Tracy champions inclusion and diversity in the community and mentors the next generation of blockchain architects. She frequently speaks on enterprise blockchain adoption and best practices, and played a key role in aligning Hyperledger’s projects under the new LF Decentralized Trust umbrella. Tracy’s leadership in both the technical and community realms has been pivotal in Hyperledger’s growth.

Peter Somogyvari

Nationality: Hungarian

Peter Somogyvari is a lead maintainer of Hyperledger Cacti (formerly Cactus), spearheading blockchain interoperability efforts. As a Software Architect at Accenture, Peter has guided Cacti from an incubator project to a growing interoperability framework.

He co-authored Cacti’s architecture enabling secure transactions between networks like Fabric, Quorum, and Besu. Peter is also active in the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) standards for blockchain interop, reflecting his commitment to open standards. A TOC member in 2024, he provides cross-project expertise, often collaborating with researchers like Venkatraman Ramakrishna on interoperability protocols. Peter regularly demos Cacti’s latest features (asset swaps, secure key management) at Hyperledger workshops and has mentored contributors via the Hyperledger Mentorship Program. His work is breaking down silos between enterprise blockchains, a crucial step toward broader adoption.

Jim Zhang

Jim Zhang - The Best Hyperledger Developers to Watch | 20 Picks

Nationality: American

Jim Zhang is co-founder of Kaleido and a veteran Hyperledger contributor across multiple projects. He is a maintainer of Hyperledger FireFly (contributed the FabConnect API) and was previously a core maintainer of Hyperledger Fabric, where he led development of the Node.js chaincode SDK.

Jim served as IBM’s blockchain lead architect before founding Kaleido, bringing deep enterprise expertise to the startup world. At Kaleido, he spearheads blockchain R&D, contributing to both Ethereum-based and Fabric-based solutions. Jim sits on the Hyperledger TOC and has been a driving force in improving interoperability between Fabric and Ethereum networks (hence projects like FireFly). With 15+ years in enterprise software, Jim is known for making blockchain accessible – from writing production deployment guides to speaking at Hyperledger Global Forum.

Bobbi Muscara

Education is the key to adoption. If we want blockchain to go mainstream, we must make it understandable and accessible.

Nationality: American

Barbara “Bobbi” Muscara is the founder of Ledger Academy, a blockchain training firm, and a longtime Hyperledger community activist. She chaired the Hyperledger Learning Materials Development Working Group for over five years, developing open-source training and documentation standards.

Bobbi was elected to the Hyperledger Technical Steering Committee (TSC) in 2021–2022, recognizing her contributions in onboarding and mentoring new community members. An award-winning educator and TEDx speaker, she helped author the Hyperledger edX course “Blockchain for Business”, reaching over 100,000 students worldwide. Bobbi also leads social impact initiatives like The Giving Chain, a blockchain charity network, reflecting her passion for using DLT for public good. Through countless meetups, webinars, and working group sessions, Bobbi Muscara has empowered a global audience to understand and leverage Hyperledger technologies.

Danno Ferrin

Nationality: American

Danno Ferrin is a veteran blockchain engineer and a core maintainer of Hyperledger Besu. Now at Swirlds Labs (contributing to Hedera Hashgraph), Danno integrates Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) support into new environments, drawing on his expertise as Besu’s former lead at ConsenSys.

He was previously Lead Protocol Engineer for ConsenSys’ Ethereum client team and has over a decade of experience at tech giants (even a stint at Google). Danno’s impact on Besu includes contributions to core consensus code and the Ethereum 2.0 merge preparedness. He also served on Hyperledger’s TSC, advising on security and cryptography initiatives like Hyperledger Ursa. Known by the handle “shemnon”, Danno is active in the Ethereum Core Devs community and frequently shares insights on Ethereum and Besu at conferences (Consensus, Devcon). His cross-ecosystem experience (public crypto and enterprise) makes him a key influencer in bridging Hyperledger with the broader blockchain world.

Grace Hartley

Nationality: American

Grace Hartley is a senior leader on ConsenSys’ protocol engineering team and was one of the driving forces behind Hyperledger Besu’s enterprise adoption. As Strategy & Operations Lead at PegaSys (ConsenSys), Grace helped launch Besu (then Pantheon) and fostered its community, earning a seat on Hyperledger’s TSC in 2021.

She has coordinated Besu’s roadmap for enterprise features like permissioning and privacy, and worked to increase diversity among its maintainers. Grace frequently speaks on Ethereum in the enterprise (e.g., at the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance) and co-chaired Hyperledger’s Diversity, Civility & Inclusion initiative. In 2023, she served as a “code guide” at AnitaB.org’s Grace Hopper Celebration, representing Hyperledger Besu and mentoring women developers. Her blend of technical know-how and community advocacy has been pivotal in making Besu a trusted blockchain platform for both startups and major financial institutions.

Makoto Takemiya

Makoto Takemiya - The Best Hyperledger Developers to Watch | 20 Picks

Nationality: Japanese

Dr. Makoto Takemiya is the co-founder and CEO of Soramitsu and the original architect of Hyperledger Iroha, known for deploying blockchain in national finance. An experienced blockchain developer with a Ph.D., Makoto led the Soramitsu team that built the Bakong digital currency system for Cambodia’s central bank using Hyperledger Iroha.

He champions open source for its code quality benefits: “Open source motivates higher-quality code…everyone cares more because anyone can see it”, Makoto says, reflecting his philosophy. Before Soramitsu, he was a research engineer in Japan, and he co-authored the Iroha white paper to contribute a C++ blockchain to Hyperledger. Under Makoto’s guidance, Iroha 2 has introduced robust Byzantine Fault Tolerance and simplicity tailored for CBDC and supply chain use cases. He’s a frequent speaker at fintech forums and Hyperledger events, advocating blockchain’s role in financial inclusion. Makoto’s blend of deep technical skill and entrepreneurial vision has made him a respected figure in both East and West’s blockchain communities.

Timo Glastra

Nationality: Dutch

Timo Glastra is a young innovator leading development in decentralized identity. As co-founder and CTO of Animo Solutions (Netherlands), he is a maintainer of Hyperledger Aries, driving new features for digital credentials and secure agent communication. Timo played a key role in advancing AnonCreds (Anonymous Credentials) and integrating zero-knowledge proofs into Aries protocols – work for which he’s been praised for “outstanding leadership” in the community.

He has helped global interoperability efforts by contributing to Aries protocols adopted in European digital identity pilots. Timo is an active voice in the SSI community, frequently demoing Aries agent technology and contributing to DIF (Decentralized Identity Foundation) standards. Under his guidance, Animo Solutions has collaborated with governments and enterprises on self-sovereign identity proofs of concept. Still in his twenties, Timo’s open-source contributions and technical mentorship have made him one of the most impactful developers in the Hyperledger Aries and digital identity space.

Yacov Manevich

Nationality: Israeli

Yacov Manevich is an IBM software engineer and a core maintainer of Hyperledger Fabric, guiding the platform’s development as it advances toward a 3.0 release. With expertise in distributed systems, Yacov focuses on improving Fabric’s performance and governance features.

He has spoken about the challenges of onboarding and network governance in Fabric, noting the “blessing and curse” of its powerful but complex permissioned model. At IBM Blockchain, Yacov has led contributions to chaincode infrastructure and consensus components. He was highlighted in the Hyperledger Foundation’s “Meet the Maintainers” series for his work and vision for Fabric’s future. An active community mentor, Yacov works with new contributors to grow Fabric’s developer base. His efforts help ensure Fabric remains enterprise-ready and evolves with community input.

Kamlesh Nagware

Kamlesh Nagware - The Best Hyperledger Developers to Watch | 20 Picks

Nationality: Indian

Kamlesh Nagware is a leading blockchain technologist in India and the CTO of Snapper Future Tech. He is recognized among the “Top 30 Blockchain Influencers in India” and serves as Co-Chair of the Hyperledger India Chapter. With deep Hyperledger Fabric expertise, Kamlesh has led enterprise implementations in finance and government, and he actively promotes India’s adoption of enterprise DLT.

He was elected to Hyperledger’s Technical Steering Committee, becoming one of the first from South Asia to join the global TSC. Kamlesh is also a co-founder of FSV Capital and a frequent speaker at blockchain events and TEDx, where he demystifies enterprise blockchain and India’s IndiaStack integration with DLT. He has received awards from industry bodies (including the Government Blockchain Association) for his contributions. Through workshops and mentorship, Kamlesh has built a vibrant Hyperledger community in India, exemplifying regional leadership in this global ecosystem.

Sam Curren

Nationality: American

Sam “TelegramSam” Curren is a pioneer in self-sovereign identity and a core architect in the Hyperledger Aries project. As Deputy CTO and Senior Architect at Indicio, Sam co-chairs the Hyperledger Aries Working Group and leads the development of DIDComm v2, the protocol for secure messaging between decentralized identity agents.

He has been involved with Aries (and previously Sovrin/Indy) since inception, helping spin out the agent and cryptographic components of Indy into independent Hyperledger projects (Aries, Ursa). Sam’s day-to-day work involves building open source Aries agent software and advancing interoperability standards for verifiable credentials. He is a frequent presenter at identity conferences (IIW, Rebooting Web of Trust) and an editor of several Aries RFCs. Sam’s contributions – from code to community calls – have been critical in making decentralized identity technologies practical and widely adopted.

Venkatraman Ramakrishna

Nationality: Indian

Venkatraman “Venky” Ramakrishna is a Senior Researcher at IBM Research India and a prominent contributor to Hyperledger’s interoperability projects. He co-authored Hands-On Blockchain with Hyperledger and has led the development of Hyperledger Weaver, a lab project enabling cross-blockchain transactions.

Venky’s expertise spans cryptography and distributed systems, with a focus on bridging enterprise DLT networks. He serves on the Hyperledger TOC (2024) and advocates for diversity and inclusion in open-source communities. A frequent speaker at Hyperledger and IEEE events, he has presented solutions for multi-network interoperability and secure asset transfers across Fabric, Corda, and Ethereum. Venkatraman is also an IBM Quantum Ambassador, reflecting his broad technical range. His work ensures Hyperledger technologies can integrate seamlessly into the broader blockchain ecosystem.

Hart Montgomery

Hart Montgomery - The Best Hyperledger Developers to Watch | 20 Picks

Nationality: American

Dr. Hart Montgomery is the Chief Technology Officer of Hyperledger Foundation and a renowned cryptographer. Formerly a research scientist at Fujitsu Labs, Hart proposed and led the development of Hyperledger Ursa, a library to consolidate cryptographic algorithms for all Hyperledger projects.

He has over 25 academic publications in cryptography and was a member of Hyperledger’s TSC before being named the foundation’s first CTO in 2022. Hart’s expertise ensures that security and interoperability are at the forefront of Hyperledger’s strategy. He frequently speaks on blockchain security, for example explaining how a collaborative approach to crypto tooling benefits all DLT projects. Hart also contributes to standards bodies and serves on the OpenSSF community to improve open-source supply chain security.

Under his technical leadership, Hyperledger projects have a unifying vision for robust, vetted cryptographic protocols – a critical foundation for enterprise blockchain deployments.

Sally MacFarlane

Nationality: Australian

Sally MacFarlane is a ConsenSys Protocols Engineer and a maintainer of Hyperledger Besu, playing a key role in the Ethereum client’s development. She focuses on privacy and permissioning features in Besu, helping enterprises use Ethereum technology with the security and confidentiality they require.

Sally entered the blockchain space in 2018 and quickly became an integral contributor; she has implemented improvements in Besu’s transaction validation and led interoperability testing with GoQuorum. She often represents Besu in the Hyperledger community, for instance sharing performance benchmarking results using Hyperledger Caliper. Sally is also a champion of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) in tech – highlighting the need for diverse contributors in Hyperledger projects. Through her coding, blogging, and community engagement, Sally has helped Hyperledger Besu mature into a reliable option for both public and private Ethereum network deployments.

Arun S M

Nationality: Indian

Arun S M is a Staff Software Engineer at Walmart Global Tech and the Vice Chair of the Hyperledger Technical Oversight Committee. A passionate blockchain developer, Arun has contributed to multiple Hyperledger projects, from Fabric and Cactus to security tools.

He has a background in cryptography and distributed systems and has been actively involved in Hyperledger since 2017. Arun frequently speaks at Hyperledger Global Forum and regional meetups – he gave a noted talk at Hyperledger’s Blockchain TechFest on consensus and consortia best practices. As co-chair of Hyperledger India Chapter, he helps grow the community through mentorship and evangelism. Arun’s contributions (including a VS Code debugger for Fabric chaincode) emphasize improving developer experience and network security. He exemplifies the next generation of Hyperledger leaders who still love to code hands-on.

Wrap Up

These legends represent exceptional talent, making them extremely challenging to headhunt. However, there are thousands of other highly skilled IT professionals available to hire with our help. Contact us, and we will be happy to discuss your hiring needs.

Note: We’ve dedicated significant time and effort to creating and verifying this curated list of top talent. However, if you believe a correction or addition is needed, feel free to reach out. We’ll gladly review and update the page.

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