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Leila Ismailova began her professional career at the age of 15 as a broadcasting star in Belarus, the Russian-neighboring Eastern European country that plays home to 9.3 million citizens. She continued in the role for 10 years, she says, before reaching what she felt was a “professional ceiling” and beginning a journey that led to Web3.

“I remember ​my audacity as a child, just sneaking into the buildings with ​newspapers and magazines — it was called the House of Press,” Ismailova recalls in an interview with Cointelegraph. “I would handwrite my stories and sneak into the building — because I didn’t have a pass — by making up stories that I was someone’s granddaughter, or by just going in when someone else entered. And I would find the doors that said ‘editor’ or ‘editor-in-chief,’ and I would just walk in and give them my articles. People smiled, and I’m sure they felt I was naive, but I felt they also had some respect for me doing this work.”

Her renegade news career led to television in a matter of years. She joined the country’s First National ​Channel at the age of 15, where she started on a show that covered news and culture for younger viewers.

“My first ​audition went horribly,” Ismailova says. “I turned purple. I was thinking really fast, but they still wanted me to come for the second round.”

Also read: How brands are using digital fashion in real life

Ismailova moved to the United States in 2016, setting off what she calls a “season of migration” for her family, including her brother, Bahram, and sister, Esmira. Bahram is a serial tech entrepreneur whose inventions include Peech App and Yope, among many others, while Esmira is an author whose published works include On the Shores of Bosphorus. (You won’t find it in English yet, so don’t spend too much time scouring Amazon.)

Leila Ismailova with co-host Denis Kuryan in 2014.
Leila Ismailova hosting the International Music Festival Slavic Bazaar in Vitebsk, Belarus, 2014. Source: Screenshot

Ismailova’s and her siblings’ success came despite hardship. Their father died when they were children (Bahram was just 1), fighting for Azerbaijan in the country’s war with Armenia over the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

“It happened very abruptly,” Ismailova says. “Of course, no one planned for it, so we went very fast from being a well-off family living in the capital of Baku to being a very scared family. We were pretty much on our own in a country that was going through the war with Armenia and, on top of that, separating from the Soviet Union. It was a very harsh time for everybody.”



Ismailova says that experience inspired her to launch a charity during her broadcast career that offered mentoring for orphans, an activity she would like to resume in the future.

“It seemed like these girls, even though the government provided very simple basics for them to start life, didn’t have parental guidance,” Ismailova recalls. “It seemed like a lot of orphan girls were insecure because no one told them they were beautiful. Our goal was to create that guidance and to give them a confidence boost. […] For me, it was very important to do, and I was so lucky that I had a chance and a bit of influence. Right now, I miss it very much.”

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Today, she’s a Web3 veteran after spending three years at Artisant, a digital fashion brand she co-founded — inspired, in part, by her career in journalism. “As a child, I didn’t have access to a lot of beautiful dresses,” Ismailova says. “But I always appreciated the elegant and beautiful part of fashion, and when I watched TV, I always saw TV hosts and red carpets. It always looked stunning.”

Ismailova left Artisant in July to launch a new chapter of her career as a consultant for digital-savvy fashion brands. “I’m sort of coming back to reality,” Ismailova explains. “Artisant was a digital fashion brand, but there was no physical product.”

1. You moved from Belarus, where you were a TV journalist, to the United States. What’s the story behind that?

I’m the only one from my family who moved, at first. I opened the “season of migration” for my family, as right after I moved, my sister moved, and then my brother. He didn’t just move — he ran away in August 2020, right after the Belarusian presidential election, when they started hunting people down. He had to run. His two co-founders were arrested.

Leila Ismailova with co-host Denis Kuryan in 2014.
Leila Ismailova with co-host Denis Kuryan in 2014. Source: Screenshot

My personal story is that I was a pretty successful TV host back home, I started when I was 15. I wanted to be a TV host because I wanted to wear beautiful dresses. I was very happy. It was my dream job! I started working early, and I think I was very hungry for success. I got all the national awards I dreamed of at a very young age, hosted all the shows I wanted to, and reached the professional ceiling back home.

2. What got you into crypto?

Well, my first stop in the United States was California — this was before I moved to Miami. I got into graduate school for a master’s program at USC Annenberg. (To be honest, I’m still struggling to connect to American society.) I’ve always been a nerd, and school seemed like a safe environment to connect to people. I started learning about entrepreneurship during the first wave of crypto in 2017, and then I invested in my first crypto… and “lost” it. I bought Litecoin at $250. But I started working in crypto only in 2020. 

3. What brought you to Miami?

I felt very limited in Los Angeles with the COVID-19 restrictions, and very isolated. I couldn’t even walk my dog because they closed the parks. So, I got into digital fashion. It got me very curious about how something that didn’t exist could make someone feel so good. That was when I met my Artisant co-founder, Regina [Turbina], in 2020. We were talking, and I started helping with little things. In 2021, I joined Artisant full-time.

Related: Blockchain games aren’t really decentralized… but that’s about to change

Things were flowing, so I quit my job and took a leap of faith — which brought me to Miami. And since I joined crypto, never have I met so many bright, prominent people with open minds. Everyone has been very welcoming, even though I knew far less in the beginning than I know now. People were willing to spend hours on the phone with me, sharing knowledge. I think the welcoming environment encouraged me to stay.

4. How do you see digital fashion evolving over the next five years?

Looking at the last bull run, I think it was awesome, but it’s over. We have this romantic notion that we’re all moving to the metaverse, and our avatars will all need clothes someday. I want to see technology become a tool that makes people more well-rounded, sustainable — wholesome.

Related: An eclectic display at the 2nd Metaverse Fashion Week

We have this vicious circle in the Western world of buying goods we don’t need. Brands manipulate us into buying things. Consequently, we need to produce more goods, and we have this vicious circle of overproduction and overconsumption. We have a situation where fashion, the most beautiful business in the world, is responsible for 10% of carbon emissions.



We have a huge problem at hand, and I see digital fashion and technology as a possible solution. We’re moving from the notion of building digital clothes for the metaverse to looking at how digital fashion can be useful right now. Look at Dior and their B33 sneaker collection with NFC chips built into the sole. It’s an amazing technology that allows you to link them to digital assets. So, this is a very good way for brands to solve the problem of counterfeit products.

5. You recently left Artisant. Where are you going next?

I’m starting consulting jobs, and I want to start writing more. For now, I want to focus on companies that deal in digital fashion. Companies that provide digital fashion services as an agency. I have a brand that wants me to consult their team, and they do an amazing clothing line that has augmented reality storytelling built into it. I’m sort of coming back to reality. Artisant was a digital fashion brand — but there was no physical product.

Seeing Artisant grow — not just in numbers but in real people who defined Artisant as their community — meant the whole world to me. But I came to a point where I gave everything I could to the project. Technology has a huge mission in reforming the world of fashion, and I want to contribute. While I am still pondering my next big professional adventure, I know it will be fun and will serve humanity.

6. What’s your life like outside of crypto?

I love having a balanced life. I have a dog. (That’s a hobby, right?) I play chess. For me, chess is a very important game that helps me a lot in business and in analyzing situations. I also like sports. For me, it’s very important to keep moving. Yoga has been part of my life for quite some time. Since I live in Miami, I do things like paddleboarding and kite surfing. And I take dance classes. That was one of my first dreams, actually — to become a dancer.

Rudy Takala

Rudy Takala

Rudy Takala is the opinion editor at Cointelegraph. He formerly worked as an editor or reporter in newsrooms that include Fox News, The Hill and the Washington Examiner. He holds a master’s degree in political communication from American University in Washington, DC.

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Canada joins UK in announcing it will recognise Palestinian state – under certain conditions

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Canada says it will recognise a Palestinian state if certain conditions are met

Canada is planning to recognise a Palestinian state at the United Nations in September, the country’s prime minister has said.

Mark Carney’s announcement comes a day after the UK said it will recognise Palestine as a state unless Israel meets several conditions.

France became the first G7 country to announce the move last week – while Ireland, Spain and Norway all officially recognised a Palestinian state last year.

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‘The war changed me’

Mr Carney told reporters in Ontario that Canada would do the same on certain conditions – including that the Palestinian Authority commits to fundamentally reforming its governance, and holds general elections in 2026 in which Hamas can play no part.

The Canadian prime minister said he had spoken with Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority, earlier in the day.

Following the announcement, the Israeli foreign ministry said in a statement: “The change in the position of the Canadian government at this time is a reward for Hamas and harms the efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza and a framework for the release of the hostages.”

A White House official anonymously told Reuters that US President Donald Trump also believes he would be “rewarding Hamas” if he recognises a Palestinian state and therefore doesn’t plan to do so.

“President Trump’s focus is on getting people fed,” the official added.

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What do Israelis think of UK’s plan to recognise Palestine?

Canada had long stated it would only recognise a Palestinian state at the conclusion of peace talks with Israel.

However, Mr Carney said the reality on the ground – including the starvation of citizens in Gaza – means “the prospect of a Palestinian state is literally receding before our eyes”.

He added: “We are working ourselves, with others, to preserve the possibility of a two-state solution, to not allow the facts on the ground, deaths on the ground, the settlements on the ground, the expropriations on the ground, to get to such an extent that this is not possible.”

The Canadian prime minister also said he “condemns the fact Israel has allowed a catastrophe to unfold in Gaza”.

Read more:
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Palestinians carry aid supplies that entered Gaza through Israel, in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip.
Pic Reuters
Image:
Palestinians carry aid supplies that entered Gaza through Israel, in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip. Pic: Reuters

Sir Keir Starmer announced the UK could recognise a Palestinian state after he had a meeting with Mr Trump the previous day.

Sir Keir said the conditions Israel would have to meet to avoid such a move included taking substantive steps to end the “appalling situation in Gaza”, and agreeing to a ceasefire.

Some 38 members of the House of Lords, including some of the UK’s most eminent lawyers, have since written to the attorney general to say that recognising a Palestinian state could be a breach of international law, The Times has reported.

They have said the territory may not meet the criteria for statehood under the Montevideo Convention, a treaty signed in 1933.

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Aid dropped into Gaza amid international pressure

Meanwhile, a Downing Street spokesperson confirmed Sir Keir had spoken to Mr Carney over the phone on Tuesday.

The spokesperson said: “They discussed the grave situation in the Middle East and last night’s action by the United States to tackle the severe threat posed by Iran’s nuclear programme.

“Both reiterated their support for a diplomatic solution and agreed that Iran must come back to the negotiating table with the United States as soon as possible.

“They looked forward to continuing their discussions at NATO this week.”

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Gaza’s humanitarian crisis

A global hunger monitor has warned that a worst-case scenario of famine is unfolding in Gaza.

The Hamas-run health ministry reported seven more hunger-related deaths on Wednesday, including a two-year-old girl with an existing health condition.

Meanwhile, at least 48 Palestinians were killed and dozens were wounded while waiting for food at the Zikim Crossing, the main entry point for humanitarian aid to northern Gaza, according to the Shifa Hospital that received the casualties.

It was not immediately clear who opened fire and there was no immediate comment from the Israeli military, which controls the crossing.

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Footage shows young girl in Gaza mourning family

Israeli strikes and gunfire had earlier killed at least 46 Palestinians overnight and into Wednesday, most of them among crowds seeking food, health officials said.

The Israeli military did not immediately comment on any of the strikes. It says it only targets militants and blames civilian deaths on Hamas, because the group’s militants operate in densely populated areas.

US special envoy Steve Witkoff will travel to Israel on Thursday to discuss the next steps to address the situation in Gaza, an American official said.

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Trump White House releases long-promised crypto report

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Trump White House releases long-promised crypto report

Trump White House releases long-promised crypto report

The report rehashed many of the policy objectives touted by the Trump administration for regulating crypto in the United States.

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Cboe, NYSE Arca move to streamline crypto ETF listings with SEC rule change request

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Cboe, NYSE Arca move to streamline crypto ETF listings with SEC rule change request

Cboe, NYSE Arca move to streamline crypto ETF listings with SEC rule change request

Proposed filings aim to eliminate the need for individual ETF approvals and come a day after the SEC greenlit in-kind transactions for crypto funds.

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