Suiting Up: Luis Buenaventura Reflects on Year One as GCrypto Head at GCash
Luis Buenaventura, Assistant Vice President at GCash, joined BitPinas Editor-in-Chief Michael Mislos for an online interview to discuss his experience leading GCrypto, the crypto division of the Philippines’ largest e-wallet, and his transition from the startup world to corporate life.
- The interview took place during the 57th episode of the BitPinas Webcast, titled “How Celo is Bringing Web3 Solutions to the Philippines,” featuring Celo Foundation President Rene Reinsberg, Buenaventura, and PDAX’s Head of Platform Solutions, Vincent Tio.
Spotlight: Buenaventura is arguably the country’s foremost thought leader in cryptocurrency:
- He co-founded Bloom Solutions, one of the first licensed crypto exchanges in the Philippines and led Yield Guild Games’ operations in the country in 2021 before joining GCash last year.
- Buenaventura and BitPinas regularly collaborate, whether through events, webcasts, articles, or shows.
- In a Facebook post, he shared that he is working on his third book about crypto and it is set to be published in October 2024.
The following excerpt from the webcast, edited for clarity, highlights Buenaventura’s reflections on his role at GCrypto, the corporate life, as well as updates on his crypto portfolio.
Michael Mislos, Editor-in-Chief, BiPinas: It’s been almost a year since you joined GCash as the Head of GCrypto, and I have a specific question about something on my screen (see picture near the end of the article). But before we get to that, can you share how your experience has been leading the crypto division at what is arguably the largest fintech company in the Philippines? And, does everyone at GCash already own Bitcoin?
Luis Buenaventura, Head, GCrypto: Wow, okay, big questions. Does everyone in GCash already have Bitcoin? I just realized I think I’m wearing exactly the same shirt in that photo as I’m wearing right now. I kind of wish I had changed my shirt before this stream.
So, what have I been doing in GCash? Most people who know me a little better know that I came from a very startup-oriented background. I’m kind of an odd man out when it comes to the more structured culture of GCash.
There are nearly two thousand GCash employees, and it’s a very large organization. It’s certainly been a real learning experience. The biggest joke I always hear from my friends is that this is the first time they’ve seen me, Monday through Friday, showing up to work in pants instead of shorts. I’m all formal now. But that’s part of the role when you’re in an organization with the kind of reach and customer base that GCash has. It’s worth it.
It’s just different, and I’m learning new things every day. There’s so much corporate jargon that I’ve never used before. The language of startups is very different. But I really like the people I’m working with. I get to work with folks like Vince from PDAX and others like Nichel [Gaba, CEO of Crypto Exchange PDAX] [and] Patrick [Lao, Director of NFT Marketplace Mintoo], so I get to collaborate with people I was already close to even before, and now we’re actually working together. I’m very happy about it, so I can’t complain.
Mislos: All right, and then finally, this particular picture (posted above in this article). Is there an update here on the pie chart, which I think represents how much you have in your portfolio?
Buenaventura: This photo is actually from an event we did. One of my small achievements since joining GCash is being able to do these big community meetups in the GCash office. This photo was taken on the seventh floor of the GCash office, where we invited a bunch of people from the local crypto community to talk.
In this case, we were teaching portfolio management, and I was explaining how I have a very simple portfolio strategy. Most of it is the coins you’d expect—Bitcoin, Ethereum, and some stablecoins—and then I have a bunch of Layer 1s and other coins that I’m betting on for this cycle.
I made a mistake here. I say Layer 1 because I was thinking of coins like Solana, BNB, and Celo. But I forgot that Celo isn’t a Layer 1 anymore—it used to be, but now it’s a layer two on Ethereum. So it’s one of those coins in that Layer 1 slice of my pie chart. I’m not a high-risk investor, so most of my bets are pretty safe. Celo is one of those coins I’ve been watching for a long time, even from way back in 2019. We were already trying to do something with Celo in my previous startup, Bloom. I’m a big believer in what they’re doing.
You can listen to the clip above or watch and listen to the full webcast in the video below or on Facebook:
Keep watching the BitPinas webcast and read this website for interviews with the people who move the crypto industry in the Philippines forward.
This article is published on BitPinas: Suiting Up: Luis Buenaventura Reflects on Year One as GCrypto Head at GCash
What else is happening in Crypto Philippines and beyond?
