Irina Heaver: 'My job is to keep you out of prison'

Before she was a leading crypto lawyer, Irina Heaver was working in a freezing oil company office. When the IT team offered a bizarre solution – a humming server tower placed beside her desk – she didn’t ask too many questions. It turned out the machine wasn’t just warming the room. It was mining Bitcoin. Probably not the most conventional introduction to Bitcoin but it led her to a world she now helps regulate, defend, and explain.

At the time, she dismissed crypto as a geeky fad but all that changed a few years later in 2013 when she read the Bitcoin whitepaper. Heaver realized it wasn’t about tech hype – it was about something much deeper: control, ownership, and the right to hold money outside of collapsing or corrupt systems.

“I was born in a country that basically stole my family's assets, every cent they had, every penny they had overnight,” she told The Crypto Radio.

“Bitcoin made sense to me,” she said. “Nobody can come and take it away from you.”

That belief would soon turn into action. In 2016, she made the bold decision to leave her corporate legal career behind and focus full-time on helping crypto entrepreneurs navigate the legal unknowns of the emerging industry.

“I believe money should be separated from the state,” she said – a principle that now underpins all of her work.

Keeping founders compliant – and out of prison

Heaver’s approach to crypto law is direct. “My job is to literally keep you out of prison,” she said. “While you are on a retainer with us, I guarantee you will not go to prison.”

That bold guarantee is backed by a 100% success rate. From new founders to large exchanges, Heaver has helped clients across the sector stay compliant – not just on paper, but in practice.

A large part of her job involves cutting through the misinformation that floods the space. She’s particularly critical of corporate service providers who prey on inexperienced founders.

She described one client who paid $100,000 for what was described as a “crypto license.” Though it turned out that the license didn’t legally exist. “He couldn’t open a bank account, he couldn’t renew his visa – the whole business was stuck,” she said.

Navigating regulation with real-world access

After nearly two decades living and working in the UAE, Heaver has built up an large network – and she’s not afraid to use it.

“I go directly to the CEO of a free zone,” she said. “I have been in the UAE for 18 years. There isn't a CEO that I don't have a mobile number of.”

This level of access allows her to resolve issues faster than most – but it also reflects her broader understanding of how crypto interacts with the real world. Regulation, she argues, is not just coming – it’s already here.

“We're definitely heading for more regulation,” she said. “If you're handling other people's money, then your centralized project needs to get regulated.”

She draws a distinction, though, between centralized crypto services and personal Bitcoin ownership. It’s the latter – the ability for individuals to hold money outside government reach – that she cares about most.

Why Bitcoin needs explaining

“I want people to understand what is Bitcoin. I don't want people to buy Bitcoin,” she said.

For Heaver, knowledge must come before investment. Too many people, she believes, jump in without truly grasping what they’re participating in. She urges people to take time, ask questions, and start small.

“I want each individual to build their own personal Bitcoin reserve,” she said. “But before they do that, they need to understand why Bitcoin, and why not traditional currency.”

Her broader message is one of action – not just ideology. “Talk is cheap. Back it with whatever finances you have,” she said.

Despite the recent influx of institutional interest, Heaver remains focused on the individual. “Less than 1% of the world's population hold Bitcoin right now,” she said. “It’s still early.”

A grounded but unconventional outlook

She’s serious when it comes to the law – but that doesn’t mean she’s rigid. Heaver maintains a philosophical and even playful perspective on the industry and life itself.

“I believe we live in a simulation,” she said with a laugh. “We’re here to do our best, help people, and enjoy the game.”

It’s an outlook that captures the contradictions of the crypto world – part legal minefield, part philosophical experiment. And Heaver seems perfectly at home in both.

Listen to the whole interview on The Crypto Radio's live player or in My Crypto Journey podcast.