From early investments in crypto’s chaotic boom cycles to co-founding one of Web3’s most sophisticated and transparent secondary market platforms, Omar-Shakeeb has carved out a reputation as a quiet builder with an eye for long-term value.
Today, as Co-Founder and Chief Business Development Officer of SecondLane, Omar leads strategic partnerships and complex deal executions, building more liquid, accessible, and transparent private markets for investors and founders, guided by integrity, privacy and strategic foresight. But his journey through the volatile world of digital assets started long before the rise of Bitcoin mainstream adoption.
Early Days: Learning Through Fire
Omar entered the digital asset space around 2016–2017, right at the heart of the ICO mania. In his own words during The CoinRock Show, he said bluntly:
“I started in the trenches, like 2016, 2017 ish. Did a lot of investments, lost a lot of money as well, to be bluntly honest.“
Rather than retreat after early losses, Omar leaned in. He noticed that even as Bitcoin fell from $20K to $3K, larger players were quietly preparing for the next cycle. . Observing and providing major VC firms to move into over-the-counter (OTC) deals such as Solana, Avax, Polkadots, Atom, Helium and many others, this inspired him to shift from speculative investing to mastering the art of secondary markets — where real opportunity often hides.
Building SecondLane: A Platform for the New Crypto Economy
Alongside Nick Cote, and three other co-founders, Omar helped launch SecondLane in late 2022 — a platform designed to bring regulatory-grade structure and transparency to the often murky world of crypto private markets.
Drawing from firsthand experience, Omar emphasized the need for better due diligence and operational standards:
“At SecondLane, clients often reach out to us directly, asking about buying or selling a specific asset,” he shared during his appearance on the Coinrock show.
“Whenever that happens, we conduct thorough due diligence, relying on our experience in the space and our established client network. Some of the people who reach out could turn out to be scams, so we work carefully to filter those out.“
Omar helped design a meticulous four-step transaction flow — vetting buyers and sellers, performing strict compliance checks (KYC/AML), securing preliminary agreements with foundations, and ensuring clean asset transfers through trusted custodians like BitGo, Anchorage and Fireblocks.
This attention to detail reflects his deep belief that the next generation of crypto infrastructure must combine innovation with regulation and professional-grade execution.
Watch the full episode of the show below:
A Broader Vision: Backing Web3 and AI Convergence
Beyond SecondLane, Omar has quietly built a significant presence as a Limited Partner (LP) in top venture funds such as Multicoin Capital, Alliance DAO, and Topology Ventures. His portfolio spans bleeding-edge Web3 protocols such as Solana, Celestia, Illuvium, Layerzero and promising frontier tech companies like Figure AI and Apptronik.
His investment thesis is clear: blockchain isn’t just about finance — it’s about rewiring systems at a global scale. As he shared on the show:
“I dived into it [the VC’s model], learned about it. And then from that point on, I just started building a network around that. From there it just kept growing.”
This long-term view, rooted in patience and relationships, stands in sharp contrast to the hype-driven narratives that still dominate much of the crypto landscape.
Looking Ahead
As the industry continues to mature, figures like Omar-Shakeeb are quietly laying the foundations for a healthier, more professional ecosystem — one where access to early-stage opportunities isn’t restricted to insiders, and where liquidity can unlock real innovation.
Through SecondLane and his broader investments, Omar remains focused on shaping a digital economy that is as sustainable as it is revolutionary. This tech should be transparent but mainly accessible for everyone because we are building for all types of parties such as investors, employees, founders, advisors, market makers and so on.
“On the AI side, there’s active data processing, and on the crypto side, that data is readily available. Traditional finance doesn’t have access to data in the same way,” he noted.
“You can read it, digest it, and build a product around it. Once you do that, you’re essentially good to go. These are the two biggest evolutions we’ve seen.”
Where You Can Find Omar-Shakeeb
- X (formerly Twitter): @Omar_Shakeeb
- Crunchbase: Omar Shakeeb Profile
- SecondLane Website: secondlane.io
