Zain Verjee began her career as the midnight love show DJ in Nairobi, and made it as a towering figure in journalism during 15 years at CNN.
A regular feature on the world stage – she hosted Bloomberg's Qatar Economic Forum in Doha last June – the Kenyan journalist has embraced web3 and stands with one leg in NFT Twitter and the other amongst the most influential political and business leaders in the world.
Growing up in Kenya, she is acutely aware of what blockchain can do for payments (even beyond existing non-web3 solutions like M-PESA), and as a journalist is excited about what it means for media and news. She spoke with Leo Nasskau about her journey from the lonely hearts radio show in Nairobi to CNN and NFTs and how to break down African stereotypes and see the diverse countries in the continent to fully realise the opportunity that web3 presents.
Our favourite quote? “At the Qatar Economic Forum, there was definitely a recognition by all leaders — thought leaders, business leaders, heads of state — that blockchain and crypto are here to stay.”
Leo is part of the founding team at Culture3. An award-winning editor, he is also the Chair of UniReach, an EdTech non–profit he founded whilst studying at the University of Oxford. He writes about technology, change, and culture.
