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#AfterOfficeHours with Christian Duffus
July 7, 2022 @ 5:00 pm - 8:00 pm
#AfterOfficeHours with Christian Duffus
Cryptocurrency, once only understood among a relatively fringe community, is becoming a household name quickly.
Analysts estimate that the global cryptocurrency market will more than triple by 2030, hitting a valuation of nearly $5 billion.
With such numbers, whether they want to buy into it or not, investors, businesses, and brands can’t ignore the rising tide of crypto for long.
However, with its quick rise comes a lot of paradoxes surrounding it. Investors believe in regulation, yet are worried about many of the impacts that regulation will bring about. While businesses and brands also have their fair share of worry.
Digging into these nuances is key to understanding overall consumer sentiment and predicting consumer behavior around a very uncertain future of cryptocurrency.
Cryptocurrencies may present opportunities but also challenges remain. Now this has seen jurisdictions around the globe also step up efforts to ensure that their legal frameworks meet these challenges.
Their sentiments being that maybe through having legal frameworks in place, the cryptocurrency potential and impact can be realized.
With all these in mind there has been an ongoing debate on whether cryptocurrency is a boon or a bane. In line with this, this time we do things a little bit differently in our After Office Hours session.
Join Christian Duffus, Founder at Fonbnk on July 7th for an #AfterOfficeHours session as he leads us in a discussion on the future of crypto, fundraising and path to exits.
Chris has 3X FinTech exits under his belt and is a leading finTech & telecom & Web3 advisor, CXO, entrepreneur & investor.
His insights are not only relevant to the blockchain businesses but to entrepreneurs at various stages of their businesses.
Also Read: Dear Younger self // Key Lessons Gathered from a Serial Entrepreneur (AOH Recap)
During the session Chris who is an experienced financial technology entrepreneur and will also share insights from working with innovative organizations in finance, technology, and policy having worked on and with a number of venture-backed start-ups in the FinTech and Wireless industries; cumulatively raising nearly $50+ million from top-tier VC firms and successfully exiting three fintech startups:
- Vite.Money acquired by RoundlyX
- Leaf – acquired by SoFi
- Exited payment providers Govolution.
You don’t want to miss out on this session. RSVP your attendance here.
When: 7th July Time: 5 pm Where: Nairobi Garage // Kilimani, 7th Floor Pinetree Plaza, off Kamburu Drive
About the Speaker
Christian Duffus is the Founder and CEO at Fonbnk, a mission-led crypto web3 company that enables unbanked and underbanked users in mobile-first markets to onramp to digital money using prepaid airtime. Fonbnk recently closed a $3.5 million seed round and is live in 5 markets in Africa including Kenya.
Christian has a track record of co-founding and exiting 3 financial technology businesses each with a social mission at its core such as LEAF College Savings, an education focused, social gifting platform that makes it easy for third-parties to contribute to a child’s college savings. LEAF was acquired by SoFi in August 2019.
He was selected as one of Washington DC’s Tech Titans 2022, by Washington’s Magazine’s most important and innovative people in the tech world today.
Chriss Duffus began his career with Goldman Sachs in Mergers & Acquisitions.
Chris is a graduate of Florida A&M University and the University of Virginia’s Darden Graduate School of Business Administration where he currently serves as a member of the Alumni Board of Trustees.
He is also a board member of the National Educators Association Foundation and serves on the investment and development committees.
Fonbnk was started as a bet between the founder, Chris Duffus, an experienced Fintech entrepreneur, and his brother-in-law who recently returned from a vacation to Kenya.
The wager involved an unused Safaricom SIM and how Chris might sell the value locked in the unused SIM card back to an airtime reseller in Kenya from his home in Washington, DC USA.
With some ingenuity, he devised a hack taking out digital ads. He was able to find a few interested parties who he invited to join a Whatsapp group and was able to sell the airtime credits using the Safaricom SIM card and mPesa account. From here Fonbnk was born.
Find Chris on linkedin and follow Fonbnk on linkedin and twitter.
RSVP your attendance here
When: 7th July Time: 5 pm Where: Nairobi Garage // Kilimani, 7th Floor Pinetree Plaza, off Kamburu Drive
