Hey everyone,
I’m Dr. Georgios Sfakianakis, and I’m running for the Special Council for the March 2026 cohort. I’ve been with Horizen since the ZenCash days, as an early miner, builder, and advocate, and I’m ready to contribute at the governance level.
Background
I joined the ecosystem in 2017, right after the ZEN chain launched, and have actively supported Horizen through its early growth and major transitions. Over the years I’ve stayed engaged both technically and socially, helping maintain community momentum during critical phases.
I hold a Ph.D. in Power Electronics Modelling and have 15+ years of experience in software engineering and production systems, with a strong focus on AI integration and CyberSecurity. My professional work spans designing, building, and operating reliable software products, often in security‑sensitive environments.
For Horizen specifically, I have:
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Contributed heavily to the Arizen light wallet, a key early wallet that helped onboard and serve thousands of Horizen users across desktop platforms.
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Supported the community as an advocate: promoting ZEN at crypto conferences, onboarding new users, and distributing Horizen merchandise across Europe like “Chainges”, where I met and collaborated in person with core community members and leadership, including Rolf Versluis in Amsterdam, maintaining long‑standing relationships within the ecosystem.
Why I’m Running
The Special Council is tasked with stewarding the Horizen DAO, providing oversight of the Horizen Foundation, and acting as a line of defense for the ecosystem, including reviewing ZenIPs/EONIPs and responding to security issues affecting $ZEN protocols and token holders. With my background in software engineering, AI, and security, I believe I can add practical, technically grounded value to this role.
I want to help ensure that:
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Governance remains transparent, accountable, and technically informed.
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Proposals are not only visionary, but also secure, feasible, and implementable in real‑world conditions.
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The interests of long‑term community members and builders remain at the center of decision‑making.
What I Would Bring to the Special Council
If elected, I would focus on:
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Security‑first review of ZenIPs/EONIPs – applying my cybersecurity and production‑systems experience to help identify technical and operational risks before proposals go to a DAO vote.
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Builder and user perspective – bringing hands‑on development experience (e.g., Arizen) and daily user mindset into governance discussions, keeping decisions grounded in the needs of real users and developers.
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Clear, consistent communication – actively engaging with the community on Discourse and other channels, explaining decisions and trade‑offs in plain language and helping bridge the gap between technical proposals and token holders.
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Long‑term alignment – advocating for decisions that strengthen Horizen’s position as a privacy‑first, EVM‑native ecosystem and support sustainable growth for years to come.
Personal
I am currently residing in Switzerland, which has a strong tradition in both finance and technology. This environment reinforces my focus on robust governance, regulatory awareness, and security‑conscious infrastructure.
Thank you for reading and for your consideration. I’ve been here since the start—mining, coding, and advocating—and I remain deeply committed to Horizen’s success. It would be an honor to help steward Horizen’s next chapter as a Special Council member.
Dr. Georgios Sfakianakis
LinkedIn: gsfakianakis | GitHub: gsfakianakis (G. Sfakianakis) · GitHub