# Nick Anastasiades

> Nick Anastasiades is the co-founder and CEO of Benji, a New York-based startup building a universal API for loyalty partnerships - what the industry calls the 'Plaid for loyalty.' Benji lets airlines, hotels, retailers and consumer brands link their rewards systems so members can earn and redeem points across companies, collapsing integrations that once took a year into a matter of days. In May 2026 the company raised a $6.25M seed round and counts JetBlue, CookUnity, 1-800-Flowers and Chip City among a network representing more than 50 million members. Benji is the third company Nick has built with co-founders Jon Elron and Arik Gaisler, following 2ndKitchen, the B2B virtual-kitchen platform acquired by REEF Technology in 2021. Raised in Beirut and trained at UC Berkeley and Northwestern, he is a Forbes Next 1000 entrepreneur and a Chicago Innovation Award winner.

- **Role:** Co-Founder & CEO at Benji
- **Organizations:** Benji, 2ndKitchen, REEF Technology, RedPie, LLOBE Design, Deloitte Consulting
- **From:** Beirut, Lebanon
- **Nationality:** Lebanese-American
- **Education:** BA, Business Administration & Psychology, University of California, Berkeley, Dual MBA and MS in Design Innovation, Northwestern University (Kellogg School of Management)
- **Known for:** Forbes Next 1000 entrepreneur, Chicago Innovation Award winner (2020) for 2ndKitchen, Built and exited 2ndKitchen (acquired by REEF Technology, 2021)

## Career timeline

- **2012** — Relocates from Beirut, Lebanon to the United States
- **early career** — Analyst at Deloitte Consulting, advising Fortune 500 tech companies on strategy and growth
- **early career** — Founder and Creative Director of LLOBE Design, a digital agency with clients including Adidas and Electronic Arts
- **2015** — Co-founds RedPie, a rapid pizza-delivery network in San Francisco, with Jon Elron and Arik Gaisler
- **2017** — Co-founds and leads 2ndKitchen as CEO, a B2B virtual-kitchen platform for bars, hotels and buildings
- **2020** — Wins Chicago Innovation Award; named a Forbes Next 1000 entrepreneur
- **2021** — 2ndKitchen acquired by REEF Technology; Nick becomes VP of Growth
- **2024** — Co-founds Benji, a universal API for loyalty partnerships
- **2026** — Benji announces $6.25M seed round led by Preface Ventures and Atinc

## Achievements

- Forbes Next 1000 entrepreneur
- Chicago Innovation Award winner (2020) for 2ndKitchen
- Built and exited 2ndKitchen (acquired by REEF Technology, 2021)
- Raised $6.25M seed for Benji (2026)
- Built a loyalty network spanning JetBlue, CookUnity, 1-800-Flowers and Chip City - 50M+ combined members

## Latest updates

- **2026-05** — Benji announced a $6.25M seed round led by Preface Ventures and Atinc, with Great North Ventures, M25 and Hyde Park Venture Partners, to expand its loyalty partnership infrastructure.

## Links

- Website: https://withbenji.com
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/nickanastasiades

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/nick-anastasiades
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-06-21