Team

Meet The Equanauts

Shawn Owen

Founder & CEO

Shawn is a serial entrepreneur and trailblazer in the blockchain world with over 25 years business operations experience. A bitcoin advocate since early 2011, Shawn pioneered cryptocurrency-backed lending with the launch of SALT where he remains involved as a Board Member.

In 2019, he started Equa to bring company formation and governance solutions into the future by leveraging his expertise in corporate structure and crypto-backed technology solutions. Shawn envisions a world of friction-less, self evident, and transparent truths beginning with corporations and extending into the daily lives of shareholders.

Bryan Cupps

Chief Technology Officer

Bryan brings deep experience in both the design and engineering of software and hardware solutions, having co-founded several technology start-ups over his 30-year career such as Food.com, iWare, and DualCore Technologies... As Equa’s CTO, he promises to drive a solution roadmap that meets the demands of today’s organizations as well as tomorrow’s investors, excelling in project management and leadership of his team.

Bryan holds six U.S. Patents and two International Patents for hardware and software, including for a 1997 technology, nominated for the 1997 Smithsonian Award by Steve Jobs of Apple Computers and archived in the Smithsonian Institute, that facilitated online takeout and delivery from individual restaurants.

Dean LaFleur

Chief Financial Officer

Dean LaFleur brings a wealth of business and financial experience to Equa with his extensive background stretching back over 30 years. Dean has improved business processes and built profit-based systems for companies all over North America. Dean believes that the simplest solution that meets all the objectives is usually the best course.

Dean Started his career as a US Navy Carrier Jet Pilot and followed that in positions such as Business Owner, Management Consultant, General Manager, CFO and Corporate Pilot, among others. Dean holds a BA in Mathematics and Computer Science from the University of Colorado and an MBA from the University of Phoenix.

Kelley J. Cochran

Director of Operations

Kelley is a passionate leader with 20+ years management experience in systems, training, design, administration, hospitality, and event planning. As Director of Operations and Design, she excels in project management, ensuring Equa’s operational and creative systems, overall communication, and the team’s production is all in alignment with Equa's big picture.

Prior to Equa, she worked with the CEO and Founder, Shawn Owen, on other projects such as SALT Lending, Southern Hospitality, and other various entities for the past 10 years so far. She is passionate about design and creativity, people, communication, organization, and houseplants! Kelley possesses a growth-mind set and studied Interior Design, Color Theory, and Space Planning at the Art Institute, as well as she is a Certified Interior Decorator.

Sten Wie, PhD

VP of Business Development

Sten is a results driven business development manager with a penchant for solving complex problems in business and science. At Equa, he is responsible for delivering exceptional client solutions and expanding the growing network of empowered owners and shareholders on Equa’s transformative platform.

Sten, whose work has been published and patented, spent much of his professional career in scientific research. He holds a BS in Biology and a PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the University of Colorado.

Stephanie Vaughan Weichsel

Transfer Agent

Stephanie is an experienced operations and finance professional with deep experience in blockchain, crowdfunding, venture capital, and investment banking. At Equa, she leverages her experience to align new company formation and management solutions to client needs.

Prior to Equa, Stephanie served as COO for David Chaum’s blockchain project, xx network. In 2012, she received an honorable discharge from the U.S. Marine Corps at the rank of Captain. Stephanie holds a BS in Quantitative Economics from the United States Naval Academy and an MBA from Columbia School of Business.

Christopher Johnson

System Architect / Tech Lead

“CJ” has been programming since 1992. He has professional experience with the following languages: C, C++, C#, CoffeeScript, Go, Groovy, Haxe, Java, JavaScript, Kotlin, LaTeX, Lua, Objective-C, Perl, PHP, Python, Ruby, SL, TypeScript, and Visual Basic. He has created his own programming language, Imp, which translates to other programming languages (https://github.com/silentorb/imp). CJ leads our software development team.

Izabella Árvai

Creative Director

Izabella has been with Equa for over 3 years, and she is a proven leader and talented designer who is passionate about visual communications and focusing on digital mediums. She enjoys working on product scoping and designs, web, and social materials, while always developing and building up her teammates along the way.

She possesses a thirst for creativity and technology, thriving on translating raw technology concepts into inspiring, visual language. Her top skills include researching, UI, prototyping, and vector graphics. She holds a Master's Degree in Advanced Communication Techniques and a Bachelor's Degree in Communications and Public Relations from the Univ. of Babes-Bolyai in Cluj-Napoca.

Jeeni Patel

Quality Assurance

Jeeni is a deadline oriented software tester with more than 12 years of experience in manual testing environment and recent experience in automation. Her expertise is in designing and developing strategic Test Plans, Test cases, Test scenarios, Test report for both manual and automation testing. She easily collaborates with developers and project managers to accomplish project milestones. Jeeni has a solid history of discovering errors, resolving defects and ensuring client expectations are met with high-quality software solutions.

Shreya Singh

Backend Software Developer

Shreya is a Software Developer with an excellent academic record. She has experience working on smart contracts and blockchain projects. She is truly passionate about her work and is always eager to connect with others. She has ability to work in different environment and has curiosity in software technologies, programming, and learning.

Aditya Bisht

Frontend Software Developer

Aditya is a Frontend and Smart Contracts Software Developer with a passion for design and providing an excellent user experience. Aditya is a results driven professional who is excited about building Equa's front end. He has an eye for detail and design, and he loves a good challenge. He is an excellent communicator and works well with devs, project managers, design teams, and executives.
Aditya holds a Bachelor of Technology from Amity University with a focus on computer systems, networking, and telecommunications.