Talks, stories and debates on the Cake Stage, hands-on building on the Bitshala Stage, then Gala Night and the Mela after dark. Sessions land here as they're confirmed.
Kamal GaurZenca
Ever wondered what the person next to you really thinks about money? Answer ten questions anonymously on your phone and watch the honest results land on screen, live with Kamal. Not financial advice, not a Bitcoin pitch.
Santosh VadiveluStudent of Bitcoin
A welcome from the organisers, a quick run through the house rules, and the official kickoff to Bitmela.
Saqeer ShahBitcoin Policy India
Can you own it? Is it taxed? No spin, no speculation. A straight answer from a practising lawyer on where Bitcoin actually stands under Indian law.
Prasanna SankarVorflux
A hundred years ago, electricity, cars and mass production changed everything, and the 1920s roared. Prasanna thinks AI is setting up the same kind of decade. Come find out who gains, who gets left behind, and how to be on the right side of it.
Seth for Privacy · Santosh Vadivelu moderator
Cake Wallet is going all in on AI. Seth, a privacy advocate who started out skeptical, is coming around, but not all the way. Hear what it really costs to run a business on AI, what a privacy-minded team watches out for, and where Seth still draws the line.
Seth for PrivacyCOO · Cake WalletSantosh VadiveluModeratorFounder · Student of BitcoinMODManoj Arora · Ravi Handa · Digvijay moderator
Early retirement is everywhere right now, everyone chasing it. Does Bitcoin actually get you there faster, or is it just another shiny distraction?
Manoj AroraAuthor & CoachWebsite for Manoj AroraX for Manoj AroraLinkedIn for Manoj Arora
Ravi HandaFounder · Handa UncleWebsite for Ravi HandaX for Ravi HandaLinkedIn for Ravi Handa
DigvijayModeratorCreator · The Bitcoin DialecticMODShweta ChaudharyInnovHer
Capital should speed up a strong business, not rescue a weak one. Shweta helps founders in Jaipur build the foundations that matter before any money arrives: a clear purpose, sound economics, reliable systems and honest governance. Hear what investors really look for, and what to fix before you ask for a cheque.
Jesse PielkeHashrateUp
Mining Bitcoin sounds like a lottery ticket. Jesse runs a mining business, and he shows how to work out your odds before you spend a rupee.
Gaurav Kheterpal · Nakul Kumar · Digvijay moderator
Bargaining, trust, frugality, jugaad. Value in India isn't just a number, it's a whole way of thinking. As AI assistants start shopping for us, can they actually learn that, or are they going to get it wrong?
Gaurav KheterpalFounder & CEO · VanshivWebsite for Gaurav KheterpalX for Gaurav KheterpalLinkedIn for Gaurav Kheterpal
Nakul KumarCo-founder & CMO · CashifyWebsite for Nakul KumarX for Nakul KumarLinkedIn for Nakul Kumar
DigvijayModeratorCreator · The Bitcoin DialecticMODJodom Konuko · Jason · Kgothatso Ngako (KG) · Santosh Vadivelu moderator
Three builders, three answers to the same question: how do you make Bitcoin usable? Jodom Konuko builds peer-to-peer infrastructure for the world. Jason built Tando, which puts Bitcoin to work at merchants across Africa. Kgothatso Ngako made Machankura, which works with no internet at all. Hear what they have learned, and what India can borrow.
Jodom KonukoCo-founder · MinmoWebsite for Jodom KonukoX for Jodom KonukoLinkedIn for Jodom Konuko
JasonCo-founder · Tando
Kgothatso Ngako (KG)Founder · MachankuraWebsite for Kgothatso Ngako (KG)X for Kgothatso Ngako (KG)LinkedIn for Kgothatso Ngako (KG)
Santosh VadiveluModeratorFounder · Student of BitcoinMODSpeaker to be announced
A relaxed 30-minute conversation with Anuja and a special guest, to be announced closer to the day.
Vik SharmaCake Wallet
Vik is a lifelong entrepreneur. He has worked in the steel industry, founded Cake Wallet, a self-custody wallet, and been an angel investor in many companies. Now he's betting his company on AI. What does it take to win across a whole career? Hear what he has learned, and what you can use in your own work.
SaurabhBitshala
You've heard about Bitcoin everywhere, but you have no idea what it actually is. Bitcoin 101 is where that changes: what it is, and what it means, explained from zero.
MaruNonceLab · Bitcoin Center Seoul
Learn to keep your own Bitcoin safe. Hands-on with Coconut Wallet, you'll learn how to set up and use a self-custody wallet and why it matters for your security.
Seth for PrivacyCake Wallet
Want more privacy online but not sure where to start? Seth walks you through the first steps in an order that makes sense: a more private browser, a password manager, private email and search, a safer messaging app, and keeping your Bitcoin wallet private. You'll leave with a short list you can start on today.
Ken CarpenterFoundation
Build an app for a Bitcoin hardware wallet. Foundation's Passport Prime is an open platform: apps are written in Rust and run on a device built to keep your keys offline. Learn the SDK, then build on it.
Saiyasodharan RBitcoin
Startups get romanticised as innovation, ambition and success. Sai has been there, except for the success part. After starting a company and living through its ups and downs, he learned the most from what didn't work. A candid look at the assumptions he got wrong, the hard decisions and the lessons that stay with you.
Cake Wallet's launch party. An evening in true Rajasthan style, with an open bar. Capped at 100 seats.
Gala Pass and up →Sujal Jethwani · Kashif Raza · Digvijay moderator
1.4 billion people, one country, wildly different relationships with Bitcoin. What do Indians actually think when they hear the word?
Sujal JethwaniFounder & Host · The Sujal ShowWebsite for Sujal JethwaniX for Sujal JethwaniInstagram for Sujal JethwaniLinkedIn for Sujal Jethwani
Kashif RazaFounder · BitinningX for Kashif RazaLinkedIn for Kashif RazaYouTube for Kashif Raza
DigvijayModeratorCreator · The Bitcoin DialecticMODSunil Kumar Ralia · Piccolo · Bala moderator
A discussion on mining and business opportunities in the Global South: the economics, the policy, and the path forward.
Sunil Kumar RaliaCo-founder · OurPoolWebsite for Sunil Kumar RaliaLinkedIn for Sunil Kumar RaliaOther for Sunil Kumar Ralia
PiccoloCurator · BOB Space Bangkok
BalaModeratorCo-founder · BitashaMODHarish BV · Dr. Nishith Desai · Suril Desai · moderator to be announced
In 2020, India's Supreme Court ruled that RBI's 2018 circular banning banks from serving crypto exchanges was unconstitutional. Hear directly from the lawyers who argued the case that made it legal for Indian banks to work with crypto again.
Harish BVCo-founder & COO · Unocoin
Dr. Nishith DesaiFounder · Nishith Desai Associates
Suril DesaiLawyer · Nishith Desai AssociatesWebsite for Suril DesaiX for Suril DesaiLinkedIn for Suril Desai
MODFreddie NewBHODL
A collapsing currency forced his family out of Zimbabwe. They couldn't take their money with them, so they drove it out instead, in a Rolls Royce.
Sajith CalderaBitnomi
Sri Lanka's scars run deeper than its 2022 economic crisis. Decades of civil war left people with very different stories of the same country. Today, some are building Bitcoin access together. Hear how they found a shared mission, and what their work could mean for the next generation.
Sooly KobayashiNeoWealth
Lebanon was once called the Switzerland of the Middle East: a safe place to keep your money. Then it slowly fell apart. Sooly lived through it. Hear what happened, and what it teaches anyone who trusts a bank with their savings.
Paco De La IndiaRun with Bitcoin
Paco spent 800 days travelling through over 40 countries, living entirely on Bitcoin. Hear what really happens when you try to spend it everywhere, and what he learned about money along the way.
Sabina Waithira · Mineey · Shambhavi Soni moderator
Three speakers, three continents, three completely different relationships with money. What looks like common sense in Asia might look reckless in Africa, and neither would fly in Europe. Come hear how different it looks from where they sit.
Sabina WaithiraCo-founder · TandoWebsite for Sabina WaithiraX for Sabina WaithiraLinkedIn for Sabina Waithira
MineeyCMO · NonceLab
Shambhavi SoniModeratorFounder · BitcoinHerMODKgothatso Ngako (KG)Machankura
Bitcoin has been declared dead more times than anyone has bothered to count, across seventeen years, and it is still here. Kgothatso Ngako goes through why the obituaries keep getting written, and why they keep being wrong.
Riven
In the chase for wealth, health is the line item everyone forgets. How do you keep from paying for one with the other?
Krishna YogiValuete
Money as we know it didn't just appear. It was created by real events in history. Krishna takes the stage for an interactive session on what those events were, and how they shaped the money in your pocket today.
PaperpsychBitshala Bitspace
A quick introduction to the day: what to expect, how to get the most out of it, and the key takeaways.
Abhay RaizadaFormstr
Balancing community ideals with business practicalities is hard for any entrepreneur. A candid talk on the decisions that shape a small project as it grows from a GitHub repository into a revenue-making firm, and on the tools worth focusing on beyond Bitcoin and Nostr.
VeronikaHODL Designs
A walk-through of design programs and how they help aspiring designers get involved in open source.
PiccoloBOB Space Bangkok
Energy costs are rising, pushed up by giant AI data centres and an unstable world. Is Bitcoin mining still relevant and viable as the world's energy shifts?
Amol · Piccolo · Yo · Mineey · Paperpsych moderator
A discussion on building a Bitcoin community from the grassroots: the methods, what works, what doesn't, and the different strategies programs and regions have used.
AmolOperations · BitshalaPiccoloCurator · BOB Space Bangkok
YoCOO · The Sovereign EngineeringMineeyCMO · NonceLabPaperpsychModeratorCurator · Bitshala BitspaceMODAndy Wong · Alok · Rama Gan · Qlrd · Digvijay moderator
A discussion on self-custody: the risks and rewards, how it works, and the best solutions available today.
Andy WongHost · selfcustody.academy
AlokFounder · CryoBrick
Rama GanProject Lead · PenlockDigvijayModeratorCreator · The Bitcoin DialecticMODAlok · Bala · Sameer · TheMhv · Saurabh moderator
A discussion on building a business on Bitcoin: the challenges and market conditions, what would work, how to handle compliance and policy, how to raise funds, and which ideas are good and which aren't.
AlokFounder · CryoBrickBalaCo-founder · Bitasha
SameerFounder · Epoch Shield
TheMhvContributor · Cashu Dev KitSaurabhModeratorPrograms Lead · BitshalaMODSaurabh · Qlrd · Adi Shankara · Mineey · Digvijay moderator
A discussion on Bitcoin education initiatives across various regions: what's common, what's not, the challenges, and the path forward.
SaurabhPrograms Lead · Bitshala
Adi ShankaraFounder & Lead · Summer of BitcoinMineeyCMO · NonceLabDigvijayModeratorCreator · The Bitcoin DialecticMODAlok · Abhay Raizada · Anmol Sharma · Stark
Four builders show their products live. Cryobrick turns an old phone into an offline place to keep your Bitcoin. Formstr.app is a set of apps built on Nostr that keep your work yours. Shroud, launching here, is a wallet built around silent payments: one address you can share anywhere, with payments no one can link on chain. OpenSwap is private, decentralised swap infrastructure on Bitcoin.
AlokFounder · CryoBrickAbhay RaizadaCo-founder · Formstr
Anmol SharmaHead of Engineering · Bitshala
StarkProtocol Engineer · OpenswapSpeaker to be announced
The hackathon winners present their projects, three presentations of seven minutes each, followed by Q&A.
Prasanna SankarVorflux
A hundred years ago, electricity, cars and mass production changed everything, and the 1920s roared. Prasanna thinks AI is setting up the same kind of decade. He helped build Rippling, a $16 billion software company, as co-founder and CTO, before founding Vorflux. This is a small, closed-door conversation about what that means for you and how to get ready. Gala Pass only, capped at 18.
Jesse PielkeHashrateUp
A closed-door forum on investing in Bitcoin mining, led by Jesse Pielke, who runs a mining business. A small group in the room together for an honest conversation. Gala Pass only, capped at 18.
The outdoor grounds take over: food, games, market stalls and performances.
Closing out the festival into the night.
Two days of stories and debates about what comes next for money, and two nights you won't want to miss.
