Filipe Castro | Member since 2017
Following the representation of CEIBS in the MBA World Summit 2017 and MBA graduation in April, I’ve continued to peruse my passion in the field technology by joining the advisory board at early stage tech ventures. I was specifically interested on the Fintech area, but also looking forward to combining the realms of technology and finance, creating new business products leveraging on the power of the blockchain. This has all come to fruition in the most recent venture that I’ve co-founded – UTRUST Payments. http://utrust.io
It all started by mere coincidence, after an introduction during a blockchain conference. There I met one of my initial partners and co-founders, and through the night shared our perspectives on the current state of payment technologies using crypto-currencies and smart contracts and why someone should build a better product. The next day, we started building our pitch, a team and established a goal of an ICO (Initial Coin Offering) instead of pursuing venture capital funding. After that, it’s been a roller-coaster ride. We have assembled a diverse team of engineers, designers, PhD’s, blockchain experts, advisors and key-influencers to work with us on this new and exciting project. And so, UTRUST started.
UTRUST is a ground-breaking payment platform that empowers buyers to pay with their favorite cryptocurrencies while providing the best consumer protection in the market. What’s unique about our product? In a nutshell, buyer protection – a unique protection mechanism in crypto payments that allowing users to pay with confidence. We minimize the risk of fraud, by acting as mediator, providing guaranteed buyer protection and payment coverage and are issuing our own UTRUST token during the ICO, which can be used in the platform, and leverage platform development itself while provide a ROI for initial backers.
Despite my increased focus on UTRUST, I continue to take great pleasure in advisory of new ventures related to cutting edge areas such as ICOs, blockchain and AI. I believe it’s our duty as MBA community to push the boundaries and shape a better future, and I look forward to once again meet my colleagues in Cape Town.
