Iulian Popa
AI Strategist · Full-Stack Builder · Growth Lead
London, UK
iulianpopa.my@gmail.com
+44 7507 967894
linkedin.com/in/iulianpopa-law
x.com/darthprotocol
I build brands, products, and launches end to end. Seven years across crypto, AI, gaming, and consumer-tech. Lead a DAO backed by Animoca Brands, Dragonfly, Sfermion, and Standard Crypto with $19M+ raised. Two tokens launched. Gaming ecosystem of 12+ Roblox titles, 900M+ visits, 3.3M MAU. Other work includes the $2.3M Plutus raise, the $1M+ EY3K0N NFT drop, and growth ops at Krystal DeFi ($5B+ trading volume). $23M+ raised across the career. On the same project, I've been the brand lead, the developer, and the growth manager. Most teams split that across three hires. My agency pulls in specialists when a launch needs more hands. Collaborators include Loi Luu (Kyber, WBTC), Jesse Pollak (creator of Base, who backed the $PLUS launch), Adam Pollina (ex-Marvel), Stewart Waterson (GTA OG pioneer), Paris Hilton, Steve Aoki, and Khaby Lame. LLB Law, University of Westminster (London).
7+
Years
500K+
Community
$23M+
Raised
$5B+
Volume
Experience
Founder
Darth Protocol · On-Demand Build & Growth Agency
- Run a senior-only build and growth agency. Lean core, expandable per project. At launch peak the bench has reached 50+ contributors covering moderation, ambassadors, content ops, and live launch support.
- One point of contact for the founder. Design, dev, growth, ops, and community run in parallel under one roof. No junior tax, no agency markup theatre.
- End-to-end work across DeFi, AI, NFTs, legal-tech, and consumer-tech: brand systems, websites, full product UI, token launches, tokenomics, and AI-native marketing pipelines.
- Past clients and builds include Slingshot DAO, Plutus, Krystal DeFi, Optimex, EY3K0N (Rebel Studios), and Karma Claims.
Lead Contributor, Growth & Rebrand
Slingshot DAO · Community-Owned Gaming + AI Infrastructure Network
- Named lead contributor on Slingshot DAO. Worked alongside the original team to reposition the project from GameFi into a community-owned gaming + AI infrastructure network. Backed by Animoca Brands, Dragonfly, Sfermion, Standard Crypto, and DCG with $19M+ raised across the project.
- Supervised the launch of 12+ Roblox games across the Slingshot ecosystem. Combined performance: 900M total visits, 3.2M total favourites, 3.3M monthly active users.
- Co-authored the Slingshot 2.0 Manifesto and $SHOT Tokenomics Paper: utility token, FUEL mechanics, and the ecosystem product slate (Slingly.ai, Cockpit, SlingerBoost).
- Drove the token migration strategy ($SLING to $SHOT on Base), airdrop mechanics for 50K+ legacy holders, and the premium landing page.
- Built 400K+ followers across X, Farcaster, TikTok. Drove +100K dApp users via Viral Loops and Galxe quest campaigns.
Business Development (Contract)
TxFlow · Perpetual Futures DEX (txflow.xyz)
- Carried my own book while leading the BD team day to day: daily standups, region segmentation across the desk, and pipeline review on every account in play.
- Sourced and onboarded high-volume traders onto the exchange. Built the pitch material the whole desk worked from, and walked traders through taker fees and the commission structure line by line.
- Held sign-off on upfront terms before any rep committed them to a trader, and audited outreach quality across the team.
- Wrote the internal policy for spotting AI-generated forgeries in counterparty and verification material, closing a gap the team had no process for.
- Ran hands-on onboarding for signed traders, which converted directly into volume on the book.
Marketing Director
Plutus / PlusMore · UK Crypto Neobank (plutus.it)
- Owned marketing, community, and social across the business, and ran the go-to-market for the $PLUS launch on Base. Rewards-as-a-Service (RaaS) with $10+ guaranteed redemption, endorsed by Jesse Pollak (Coinbase).
- Drove the marketing behind the $2.3M PLUS raise across multiple presale rounds. Post-launch trading volume crossed $6M+ on Base.
- Held the launch together through a mid-launch vesting breach, repositioning distribution to $700K in-app sales plus Aerodrome DEX without losing momentum.
- Grew and managed a 200K+ member community across Telegram, X, and Discord. Performance, content, mods, ambassadors, and KOLs all in one funnel.
- Personally shipped the staking dashboard, every landing page, the cinematic launch animation, the PlusMore investor deck, the #DansFixingPLU campaign, and the CMC listing copy.
Growth Manager
Optimex · Native Bitcoin DeFi (Contracted by CEO Loi Luu, co-founder of WBTC and Kyber Network)
- Opened and ran the partner pipeline. Brought in protocols like Morpho to stand up Bitcoin vaults on the platform, adding yield infrastructure the team never had to build itself.
- Ran investor and partner conversations alongside the CEO: VCs on the raise side, and distribution partners who could sell Optimex into their own user bases.
- Drove user acquisition and built the community engine from zero. X presence, Telegram, content cadence, and an ambassador funnel that converted into early platform users.
- Owned the full brand identity from zero: logo, type system, color palette, motion language, and pitch deck. Took Optimex from blank page to investor-ready brand in weeks.
- Designed the landing page and the entire go-to-market kit: investor deck, social templates, X / Telegram launch creatives, and KOL outreach assets.
- Shipped the MVP launch to real users. Positioned Optimex as a full-suite native Bitcoin DeFi platform: cross-chain swaps, lending, margin trading, all non-custodial.
Marketing Lead
Krystal · DeFi Aggregator & Wallet
- Led marketing for Token Launchpad, new listings, and feature rollouts. Grew Discord/X to 100K+. Created the memeable brand character and company mascot.
- Shipped the $CESAR memecoin launch ($2M+ market cap, $300K direct proceeds to Krystal) and built the gamification system that 10x'd user growth.
- Partnered with Quickswap, Trader Joe, Thena, Camelot. Helped run a multi-chain aggregator with $5B+ in trading volume.
Brand & Marketing Lead (Contract)
Karma Claims · UK Legal-Tech / Motor Finance Redress (karma.claims)
- Hired on contract to build the entire commercial side from zero: brand, website, go-to-market, and the growth and marketing department itself. UK legal-tech in the motor finance commission redress space, covering mis-sold PCP, HP and credit agreements.
- Owned the go-to-market end to end. Positioning, launch channels, eligibility funnels, and the acquisition mix that brought claimants through the door.
- Positioned Karma "more like a fintech than a law firm": high-velocity, consumer-first, no upfront fees. Customers reclaimed hidden commissions on car finance and credit agreements.
- Designed every customer-facing surface, then recruited and led the marketing function behind it: performance, content, partnerships, and brand.
- Operated inside a portfolio of regulated legal partners that filed claims at zero risk to the consumer.
Growth Manager
EY3K0N · Rebel Studios · Comic + NFT IP · ARG
- Ran growth for EY3K0N, a comic-book NFT IP out of Rebel Studios that crossed into culture, gaming, and Web3.
- Built the social engine from zero: Discord, X, IG. Scaled to a launch-ready community before drop day.
- Drove the NFT collection launch end-to-end. $1M+ raised across mint and secondary activity.
- Pulled in top-tier global talent for activations: Paris Hilton, Khaby Lame, Steve Aoki, Liam Payne, Pranksy, Crypto Gordon.
- Shipped Instagram AR filters and on-ground activations. Hundreds of thousands of filter shots taken. Every fan turned into a media surface.
- Worked alongside Adam Pollina (ex-Marvel, ex-DC Comics lead artist) on the comic IP, and with Stewart Waterson (GTA OG pioneer) on an alternate-reality game (ARG) concept built around the EY3K0N universe.
CMO & Co-Founder
Byolitic · Premium CBD Wellness Brand (byolitic.com)
- Conceived and launched a premium CBD wellness product end-to-end: market research, EU-compliant formulation, labeling, and contract manufacturing.
- Built brand identity and secured omnichannel distribution (pharmacies, specialty retailers, e-commerce) across Romania and Hungary within 6 months.
- Deployed SEO, social, and influencer campaigns to drive early sales traction. Negotiated lean supply chain, cutting projected COGS.
Skills & Tools
Agentic AI
Web & Full-Stack
Image & Video
Creative & Design
Growth & Marketing
Core Competencies
Tokenomics Design
Community Architecture
Brand Architecture
Product Direction
Go-to-Market Strategy
Gaming Ecosystems
NFT IP Launches
Influencer Partnerships
Exchange Listing Strategy
AI Agent Workflows
Copywriting & Content
Education
LLB Law
University of Westminster, London · 2016 - 2020
Marketing & Business
Brunel Business School, London · 2021
Languages
- English: Fluent
- Romanian: Native
- Russian: Conversational
- Spanish: Basic