FAS - Founders Stories. Part 2
Blockchain ecosystem is one of the most revolutionary industries and I was lucky enough to discover it early. I find great joy in helping various startups and see them succeed. It is very unfortunate when a promising project is failing due to reasons which could have been addressed. Consulting business is a very interesting and challenging venture, we get to know, learn and help lots of different projects and ideas. From the journey we have come so far, I believe that FAS brings real value to people we work with, and their feedback and success is something that motivates me to work and improve my skills and knowledge every day.
My involvement in Blockchain began in 2012 with my first exposure to Bitcoin and Cryptocurrencies. Back then, this was a very new and fairly unknown space for an average person. I was drawn to it by the ideas of privacy, decentralization, and control over your own finances. Cryptocurrency space resonated with me on a personal level since by that time I had a deep-rooted desire to protect my digital identity and privacy. For a long time, I even stopped using social media. I guess that belief is something that brought me to learn more about the space as learning about it slowly developed from an interest to something more.
Even during these early years, it was clear to me that this revolution would be the future of finance and revolutionize several other industries. But in the uncertainty of those early years, no one from my closest circle shared my fascination with this new technology. I mastered the space by myself, investing in the knowledge and skills which I knew I could utilize in the growing industry.
Over the years, I learned about countless use cases, protocols, projects, and trends in the blockchain space. I understood the various system architectures and use cases, asI mined, day traded, and analyzed hundreds of blockchain whitepapers. The more knowledge I built about the inner workings of the growing industry, the more passionate I became about building a career as a thought leader within the space.
I was in Shenzhen, China for the infamous 2017 ICO boom when I saw adoption reach critical mass and thousands of people enter the ecosystem each day. With the influx of projects coming to the market, I noticed many of them were largely unprepared, as the market soon realized too. Even if a project had great tech, many were unaware of how to develop a sustainable business model, market their product or navigate the ever changing regulatory framework. Great tech was no longer enough as the space became highly competitive and demanded a more dedicated approach than before.
During my stay in Shenzhen, I was fortunate enough to meet Elena Obukhova, who shared my vision for decentralization and had a rich background in Finance and Fintech. She told me about her passion for helping startups in the Fintech and Blockchain space and about the problems they must overcome. At that point, I knew that we could collectively address these problems with our combined knowledge. That is how Fintech Advisory Services came to life and eventually grew to what it is now. I believe that consulting is all about sharing and learning from each other, solving difficult problems, and helping startups to succeed.
I am confident that this is just the start of the great things to come for FAS. We are constantly looking for ways to enable entrepreneurs as they implement their blockchain vision. We have ambitious plans for the future and innovative ways to bring those plans to reality. For those who are looking for advice for your startup’s departure, I would say the success is a combination of extensive planning, unyielding dedication, and clear vision. Having a great partner who shares those ideals will keep you on track for achieving great things.
Reach out to me on LinkedIn if you would like to have a cup of coffee and a conversation on how to begin your startup and accelerate your growth.