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by Seven Peaks on Mar 8, 2024 9:34:05 AM
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Eddy Travia is the CEO and Co-Founder of Coinsilium, a web3 finance and emergent technology investment firm with over a decade of financing and advising web3 ventures. His diverse background, combined with his keen understanding of the financial landscape, has been instrumental in shaping Coinsilium's trajectory. With a commitment to exploring untapped markets, fostering financial inclusion, and identifying visionary entrepreneurs, Eddy leads Coinsilium with resilience, vision, and a dedication to empowering the next generation of financial possibilities.
In the ever-evolving world of financial engineering, Coinsilium stands as a beacon at the forefront of web3 finance, serving not only as an investor and venture builder but also as a strategic advisor to startups exploring the vast realms of decentralized and AI-powered technologies. After managing a family office in China for two decades, I discovered the potential of blockchain and Bitcoin over a decade ago – a moment that signified my transition into crypto and decentralized finance as a co-founder and experienced entrepreneur.
Web3 Worlds Collide
The story begins in 2013, a year marked by the Cyprus bail-in and Coinbase's successful fundraising. Captivated by the possibilities of Bitcoin, in collaboration with partners and industry pioneers, we initiated the Bitcoin Singapore 2013 Conference, attended by luminaries like Roger Ver and the co-founder of BTCC. This pivotal moment led to further exploration, including a visit to Sunnyvale in Silicon Valley for the Plug n’ Play accelerator demo day where I met crypto entrepreneurs like the founder of Ripio, attending conferences such as “Inside Bitcoins 2013”, setting the stage for what would formally become Coinsilium.
Founded in May 2014, Coinsilium embarked on a mission to legitimize Bitcoin and act as a proxy for investors seeking to ride the cryptocurrency wave. The early days were dedicated to educating brokers, lawyers, and fund managers, culminating in the successful listing of Coinsilium shares on ISDX, later becoming AQUIS (AQUIS:COIN). The objective was clear - not only to invest, but also to provide credibility to nascent companies in the crypto space.
Investing in Nascent Technology
Coinsilium is an investor, advisor and venture builder at the forefront of Web3 and AI convergence. We invest in and accelerate Web3 and AI-powered technology start-ups whilst supporting their development and commercialisation. We also provide strategic advisory services to start-ups looking to issue tokens through token generation events. Coinsilium’s wholly owned subsidiary Coinsilium (Gibraltar) Limited is the Company’s operational hub in Gibraltar.
From the outset, Coinsilium supported companies innovating in the sectors of financial inclusion, cross-border payments, crypto trading and blockchain infrastructure, mainly offering solutions to facilitate the exchange of value via blockchain.
As the crypto landscape evolved, so did Coinsilium's focus. Transitioning into the realms of DeFi, NFTs, and the Metaverse, the company made strategic investments in tokens, backed NFT projects like Blvck Paris, crypto trading ventures like Yellow, Web3 gaming hub GGs.io, digital finance pioneers like Greengage and AI-powered project financing due diligence solution Silta.
Current Web3 Finance Projects
Currently, Coinsilium is involved in the development of exciting projects such as Web3 social network ecosystem Byzant, developed by blockchain tech portfolio company Indorse, and which includes a social media dApp (Byzant), a decentralized advertising platform (Adbazaar), an NFT marketplace (Alcazar) and a wallet SDK, the Bastion Wallet.
Bastion is a modular, lightweight, open-source account abstraction software development kit (SDK) that allows you to integrate decentralized wallet functionality into your applications easily. It is a fully ERC4337-compatible TypeScript SDK, which ensures type safety. It abstracts away blockchain complexity, enabling seamless integration of multi-chain wallets.
With Bastion, users can securely store assets from different blockchains in a unified interface. The SDK handles all blockchain interactions in the background, providing a simplified developer experience.
Adbazaar is being developed with partners AADS, the first web3 advertising network in the market and Linkko, a platform where users are rewarded to watch targeted ads. Thanks to Linkko, Adbazaar will leverage on-chain analytics to offer ultra-precise targeting to advertisers.
Entrepreneurship at the Core
Born in the 1970s, I can naturally draw parallels between the internet boom of the '90s and the emergence of the crypto space in the last ten years, recognizing a similar spirit in the crypto community.
Personal computers started to become popular in the 80s and I was drawn to the internet in the mid-90s; I flew to Chicago in the summer of 1997 to attend Internet World ‘97, a conference where Eric Schmidt delivered a keynote as CEO of Novell before he was chosen to spearhead Google in 2001.
I used to purchase internet domain names by fax – and shortly after that, I created my first internet startup in France.
Inspired by the entrepreneurial ethos embodied by figures like Steve Jobs and later Jack Ma, the emphasis is placed on identifying visionary entrepreneurs over limiting ourselves with conventional financial metrics.
“I don’t think that a startup can be defined by processes or numbers - they are driven by people. We mainly look for talented entrepreneurs in the space, more than optimistic financial estimates.”
Undoubtedly, the journey has been fraught with challenges, including market disinterest triggered by events like Mt.Gox in 2014 and FTX in 2022. Yet, Coinsilium's resilience shines through, emphasizing the importance of staying focused, motivated, and adaptable in the face of market fluctuations.
The Future of Web3 Finance
Looking ahead, Coinsilium acknowledges the changing landscape, with web3 and crypto reaching a faster pace, larger numbers, and increased capital velocity. The company underscores the need for transparency, responsible risk management, and education to protect investors in this burgeoning parallel financial system.
“Web3 fills the role of a parallel, decentralized financial system. Blockchain startups were initially funded via equity, then during the ICO boom, investors were not sure where the value was, in equity or tokens, or both? It was a new financing model, and it was quite confusing for traditional investors.”
The pace of deals is quicker now, the numbers are bigger, there are more funds focused on Web3. The liquidity and exits, the investment landscape are much different now. Users want to easily transfer funds and trade quickly but they need to be aware of the risks or they will learn the hard way. Web3 gives much more responsibility to the users who need to personally safeguard their assets.
At Coinsilium we recognize the evolving role of traditional banks and financial service providers in the crypto space, with retail investors seeking continuous engagement.
Exciting opportunities are ahead of us with the expected growth of tokenized financial assets and the company remains committed to blockchain's transformative power, supporting the founding teams of its portfolio companies, advising innovative projects and contributing to ventures building a secure and rewarding experience for all participants in the web3 ecosystem.
Coinclusion
Coinsilium's journey reflects a profound dedication to shaping the future of technological convergence and investment opportunities. As the landscape of web3 finance continues to evolve, Coinsilium remains a steadfast pioneer, navigating the seas of innovation with resilience, vision, and a commitment to empowering the next generation of financial possibilities.
Eddy Travia
CEO and Co-Founder of Coinsilium
Eddy Travia is the visionary CEO of Coinsilium, leading the company's trailblazing journey in financial engineering and technological convergence. Hailing from France but living in Asia since 2004, Eddy brings a wealth of knowledge and over 20 years of expertise to his role, holding a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration and a graduate certificate in Financial Engineering from Stanford University Center for Professional Development.