Pacman Steps Out of Anonymity: Blur Marketplace Co-Founder Goes Public with Real Identity

In February 2023, Tieshun Roquerre, better known in the crypto community as Pacman, made waves when he publicly disclosed his true identity on Twitter. The Blur co-founder had long maintained a pseudo-anonymous presence in the Web3 space, but after witnessing the rapid scaling of his NFT marketplace platform, he decided the time had come to connect his real-world identity with his digital presence. The announcement came alongside a striking visual comparison—a photo of Roquerre positioned next to the Web3 avatar he’d used for public appearances and interviews.

The Strategic Moment: When Privacy Gives Way to Growth

Pacman explained his decision through a Twitter thread, noting that while he had “enjoyed the privacy” of operating under a pseudonym, the Blur ecosystem had “grown exponentially” since the marketplace’s launch. This growth and the expanding community made transparency feel not just appropriate but necessary. Rather than viewing the disclosure as a retreat from Web3 principles, he positioned it as an evolution—a recognition that his community deserved to know the person building and steering the platform forward.

In his thread, Roquerre provided a concise overview of his professional trajectory, underscoring the depth of experience behind Blur’s creation. He highlighted his unconventional path: dropping out of high school at seventeen to join Y Combinator, pursuing mathematics and computer science at MIT, securing a Thiel Fellowship to leave the university, and founding Namebase—a company he subsequently sold to Namecheap. This background narrative wasn’t merely biographical; it served as a confidence signal to the Blur community about the capability and credibility of its leadership.

Verification: From Twitter Claims to Documented Proof

The identity disclosure wasn’t left to unverified claims. CoinDesk corroborated Roquerre’s statements by cross-referencing his Crunchbase profile, LinkedIn account, and social media presence with the details he’d shared publicly. His Instagram, GitHub, and other platforms aligned with his disclosed background, creating a multi-layered verification process that moved beyond simple assertion into documented evidence. This multi-source validation became important in an ecosystem where pseudonymity had been the norm, and trust was often built on code and community reputation rather than formal credentials.

The moment marked a symbolic inflection point for Blur—the rising NFT marketplace had matured enough that its leadership felt comfortable stepping into full transparency. For Pacman, shedding anonymity was a calculated decision: maintaining the trust of a rapidly expanding user base required moving the relationship between builder and community from Web3’s shadows into the light.