As a remote-first company, Paxos employees further our mission from all around the world. Recently, we visited Singapore to chat with Manek Shah to learn more about the important work he’s doing on the Data and Analytics team.
Tell us about yourself.
My name is Manek Shah, and I’m a Data Analyst at Paxos based in Singapore. I graduated with a degree in Economics from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, PA, then moved back home to Singapore and began my career at a fintech startup. Soon after, I discovered the dynamic world of crypto and joined Paxos over three years ago. I initially started in Product Operations, gaining invaluable insights into our products and processes. In 2022, I transitioned to the Data team, leveraging my ops experience to enhance Operational and Blockchain Analytics. In my spare time, I enjoy trading meme-coins and keeping up with the pulse of Crypto Twitter. Aviation fascinates me, and I seize every chance I can to fly — simulators in Singapore and Cessna’s in the US. Off-screen, I indulge in reading non-fiction and savoring the unique vibes of new speakeasies across Singapore.
What does your role entail?
As the Data Analytics team’s subject-matter expert on blockchain, I use our robust data stack to ensure our stakeholders and customers have access to accurate and timely on-chain intelligence to support their decision-making. This involves working with tools such as Snowflake to support a variety of business users – from Product and Engineering teams, who are interested in optimizing our expenditure on gas fees, to our Growth team and client partners, who want to understand better how our tokens, like PYUSD, are being utilized in DeFi markets. Given the dynamic crypto ecosystem, this combination of technical expertise and domain-specific knowledge is particularly exciting. There’s always something new and exciting to learn each day!
What’s a typical workday like for you?
I usually kickstart my day with a quintessential Singaporean breakfast of kopi and kaya toast from the cafe across the street. For those unfamiliar, kopi is a strong coffee with condensed milk, and kaya is a sweet coconut jam. It’s delicious!
Back at my home office, I tackle my inbox and Slack messages and catch up on the latest updates from the US-based team. Because of the time difference between our two regions, I like to split my workday into three parts:
- A morning session from 8 am to noon.
- A deep work session between 3 and 5 pm.
- A short evening session where I take meetings with our US team members.
It’s a schedule that works for me and a benefit of working at a place with a flexible remote-first policy.
In the morning, I’ll often meet with product managers across different teams, hashing out the intricate data requirements for upcoming product launches and tracking the results of optimization efforts. The goal here is to ensure that we’re fully aligned and ready to support the team’s efforts. We’ll brainstorm success metrics we’d like to track closely, and work with counterparts in Engineering to ensure our data schema, models and dashboards are ready to meet these needs.
Once noon rolls around, I usually go to the gym for a workout. Maintaining a healthy work-life balance is important to me, so I’ll schedule time in the afternoon to grab lunch with friends. If the weather is nice, I like to change things up and move from my home office to a spot by the pool. This is also a conducive time for deep work, such as building new data models or performing complex analysis, such as tracing transactions through multiple hops. I also like to use this time for learning and development — I’m currently training on dbt as part of an analyst upskilling program, which is a great opportunity to delve further upstream into the data-transformation layer of our stack.
In the evening, I’ll connect with my manager for our weekly 1:1, to discuss how I’m tracking toward my career goals and talk through any blockers I’m facing. With tools like Lattice, these meetings are focused and productive. I also use this overlap in working hours to connect with some of our engineers to dig deeper into our production data schemas or tune in to the company All-Hands, where our executive team hosts regular AMAs.
What excites you most about Paxos’ future in Singapore?
In November 2023, Paxos received ‘In Principle Approval’ from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) for a new entity to issue a new USD-backed stablecoin in Singapore. Stablecoins have proven to be an ideal asset class for tokenization, and the transparent nature of blockchains enables us to perform interesting analyses on their use cases and adoption patterns. As our Singapore-issued stablecoin goes live, I’m excited to gauge the impact of Singapore’s new regulatory framework on the global stablecoin ecosystem.
When working remotely, how do you stay connected with your teammates?
Despite the physical distance from my US teammates, we’re a close-knit group with a shared passion for data and analytics, and we have several opportunities to get together in person each year. Our offsites – everywhere from New York to Los Angeles to Orlando and beyond – typically consist of a well-curated agenda, blending strategic planning, knowledge sharing and team-building activities. I always come away revitalized after each trip.
The local Singapore team also gathers for dinner and drinks every quarter – a tradition we all look forward to. It’s a great chance to unwind and bond with my teammates in other functional areas, such as Operations and Compliance, with whom I collaborate closely.
Any advice for aspiring Paxonians?
Don’t be intimidated by the complexity of blockchain technology. At Paxos, while expertise is valued, what’s even more important is your willingness to learn and grasp the underlying principles that drive our mission forward. A basic understanding of blockchain will help you see the bigger picture of our efforts to modernize financial infrastructure, making the global economy more inclusive and accessible. Being curious, eager to learn and staying informed about the latest industry developments will help you understand how our actions align with our mission and contribute meaningfully in a fast-paced, mission-driven environment.
Visit paxos.com/careers to learn more about our open roles.