Brian Novell is the Head of Business Development at Lagrange Labs, a research and development company focused on zero-knowledge (ZK) cryptography. Novell leverages his background as a former attorney for both the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the law firm Davis Polk & Wardwell to guide the commercial strategy and regulatory applications of Lagrange's technology. ^{[1] [2]}​

Education

Brian Novell attended the University of Maryland from 2009 to 2013, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Government and Politics. During his undergraduate studies, he received multiple academic honors, including induction into the Phi Beta Kappa and Omicron Delta Kappa honor societies. He was also a participant in the College Park Scholars' Public Leadership Program and was selected as a Rawlings Undergraduate Leadership Fellow. ^[1]​

After his undergraduate work, he pursued a legal education at Georgetown University Law Center from 2015 to 2018, graduating with a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree. While at Georgetown, Novell was distinguished as a Global Law Scholar and served as an Executive Editor for The Tax Lawyer journal. He also held a position as a Law Fellow at the university's Center on National Security and the Law from August 2017 to May 2018. ^[1]​

Career

Novell's career began in the education sector before he transitioned into law and, subsequently, the digital asset industry. From June 2013 to June 2015, he was a corps member with Teach For America in Baltimore, Maryland. Following this, he enrolled in law school and began his legal career in public service. ^[1]​

Upon graduating from Georgetown Law, Novell was accepted into the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's Honors Program. He served as a Trading and Markets Honors Attorney within the SEC's Division of Trading and Markets in Washington D.C. from September 2018 to November 2020. In this role, he was involved in the regulatory oversight of the financial markets. ^[1]​

In November 2020, Novell moved to the private legal sector, joining Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP in New York as a Corporate Associate. As a member of the firm's financial institutions group, he worked on matters related to corporate and financial law until his departure in July 2022. ^[1]​

Novell transitioned to the Web3 industry in July 2022 when he joined Galaxy, a digital asset financial services firm. As Vice President of Strategic Opportunities, he was part of the venture investing and partnerships teams, a role he held until May 2024. ^{[1] [2]}​

In May 2024, Novell was appointed Head of Business Development at Lagrange Labs. In this capacity, he leads the company's business development, go-to-market strategy, and partnership efforts for its generalizable ZK coprocessor. His role focuses on the commercialization of the technology, with a specific emphasis on developing solutions that use ZK proofs for regulatory compliance in financial systems. ^{[1] [3]}​

Writings and Views

Novell is a public commentator on the potential for advanced cryptographic methods to solve challenges in financial regulation. He has authored articles discussing how ZK technology can bridge the gap between decentralized finance and traditional compliance frameworks. ^[4]​

In a May 2024 blog post titled "Modernizing Compliance: Lagrange and the SEC," Novell outlined his vision for using ZK proofs to create new forms of regulatory verification. He argued that technology like Lagrange's ZK coprocessor could allow registered investment advisors and other financial entities to generate on-chain attestations of asset holdings or solvency. This method would provide regulators with verifiable proof without forcing firms to disclose sensitive proprietary information or abandon on-chain asset management and self-custody principles. ^[4]​

In the article, he connected his past regulatory work with his current focus in technology, stating:

"As a former SEC attorney, I spent a lot of my time thinking about how to build a safer and more transparent financial system. Today at Lagrange Labs, I still think about these same issues, just from a different perspective." ^[1]

He further elaborated on the technical solution, proposing a new standard for trust-minimized compliance:

"By leveraging Lagrange's ZK coprocessor, we can generate on-chain attestations of asset holdings in a trust-minimized way. This provides regulators with the verifiable proof they need, while allowing assets to remain on-chain and self-custodied, bridging the gap between modern digital asset infrastructure and traditional compliance frameworks." ^[5]

Public Appearances

Novell is an active participant in industry conferences, where he speaks about ZK technology and its market applications. As of January 2026, he is scheduled to be a featured speaker at the Consensus Hong Kong conference in February 2026, where he will be representing Lagrange Labs. ^[2]​

Legal Admissions

Brian Novell is admitted to practice law in two U.S. jurisdictions. He became a member of the New York State Bar in November 2018 and the District of Columbia Bar in December 2019. ^[1]