{"id":307725,"date":"2021-07-25T13:14:00","date_gmt":"2021-07-25T10:14:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/bringing-the-crypto-payments-ecosystem-around-the-world-ray-youssef\/"},"modified":"2021-07-25T13:14:00","modified_gmt":"2021-07-25T10:14:00","slug":"bringing-the-crypto-payments-ecosystem-around-the-world-ray-youssef","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/bringing-the-crypto-payments-ecosystem-around-the-world-ray-youssef\/","title":{"rendered":"# Bringing the crypto payments ecosystem around the world: Ray Youssef"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_84 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a220c7abdaa5\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a220c7abdaa5\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/bringing-the-crypto-payments-ecosystem-around-the-world-ray-youssef\/#All_roads_lead_to_Bitcoin\" >All roads lead to Bitcoin<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/bringing-the-crypto-payments-ecosystem-around-the-world-ray-youssef\/#Paxful\" >Paxful<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/bringing-the-crypto-payments-ecosystem-around-the-world-ray-youssef\/#Built_with_Bitcoin\" >Built with Bitcoin<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/bringing-the-crypto-payments-ecosystem-around-the-world-ray-youssef\/#El_Bitcoin\" >El Bitcoin<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<p>&#8220;<strong># Bringing the crypto payments ecosystem around the world: Ray Youssef <\/strong>&#8221;<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/images.cointelegraph.com\/images\/840_aHR0cHM6Ly9zMy5jb2ludGVsZWdyYXBoLmNvbS91cGxvYWRzLzIwMjEtMDcvZGViNTkxZWMtNTFiMi00MTE4LWI2ZmQtYzE1YTY3Yjk3NjdkLmpwZw==.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"post-content\" data-v-128018ef>Though he has had 11 business failures, today Ray Youssef is building Bitcoin-funded schools across Africa as executive director of the Built With Bitcoin Foundation and is helping millions of people buy and sell cryptocurrency as CEO of Paxful. However, Youssef also admits to looting hardware stores on behalf of a convent school after Hurricane Katrina and says he was nearly shot as a suspected CIA agent during the Egyptian Revolution.<\/p>\n<p>He has just returned from El Salvador, where he spent time at\u00a0Bitcoin Beach \u2014 where he says even children are using Bitcoin (BTC). Crypto payments services are important there because\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/nayibbukele\/status\/1401341311853252613\">70%<\/a> of people in El Salvador have no bank account. For Youssef, peer-to-peer financial networks spell hope for the developing world.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"All_roads_lead_to_Bitcoin\"><\/span>All roads lead to Bitcoin<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>When Youssef first heard about Bitcoin in 2011, he quickly \u201cdismissed it as nerd money.\u201d He had more pressing things on his mind, as that year he left the relative comfort of New York to support the revolution in his native Egypt. There, he went to the core of the protests at Tahrir Square in downtown Cairo and \u201cnearly died on the first night of really crazy fighting\u201d during which he was arrested by the military as a suspected CIA agent. \u201cI could write a book on that one night alone,\u201d he concluded with a laugh that exuded mystery. <\/p>\n<p>He\u2019s not the first crypto leader to throw themself into a revolution \u2014 like Griff Green, who once protected polling booths in Catalonia, or Amir Taaki, who went to fight with the Kurdish YPG. After he returned home to the United States, however, he began integrating his experiences of the revolution and questioning many things about society. <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">The energy in Nigeria  will transform the world. The youth have already begun building a pan African financial settlement layer using <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/bitcoin?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#bitcoin<\/a> and nothing can stop peer to peer. Africa is now leading the new world of finance and crypto adoption. Let us all show them love  <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/kTSFDdYwUl\">https:\/\/t.co\/kTSFDdYwUl<\/a> <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/uufSnLKUZz\">pic.twitter.com\/uufSnLKUZz<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Ray \u201cAdewale Uwaifo\u201d Youssef (@raypaxful) <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/raypaxful\/status\/1403510855812235265?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">June 12, 2021<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>One of the rabbit holes he descended was that of money. \u201cI started asking questions about money: Where is it? Where does it come from?\u201d he said. Soon, he \u201cbegan to see history through a very different lens.\u201d That\u2019s when he returned to Bitcoin, where he felt he could find answers. <\/p>\n<p>It seems that crypto attracts revolutionaries, perhaps backing the idea of a technological or financial revolution brought on by blockchain. As he arrived at Bitcoin Center NYC for his first meetup in 2013, he wondered about the other Bitcoiners: \u201cWhat are they like? Are they on the same journey that I am on?\u201d <\/p>\n<p>Describing the event, he sounded not unlike a pilgrim recounting a tale of a faraway shrine where they\u2019d hoped to find other seekers of truth. The first person he met, Artur Schaback \u2014 his soon-to-be business partner \u2014 was the only other tall guy in the meeting, \u201cSo we got along, and we really bonded over the belief that Bitcoin could help the little guy.\u201d Soon, they started working on a Bitcoin retail solution, but it was no easy ride. <\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cWe ran out of money \u2014 we had to choose between our startup or a place to live.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>The two adventurers \u201cended up homeless, surfing couches.\u201d Youssef felt he had hit rock bottom, and he needed to ask for help \u2014 he was terrified of his mother finding out about his situation. He fasted for a month, and he prayed. \u201cI had to be truly humbled and really begged God for help \u2014 I was broken, defeated, and I got a very special night \u2014 it was the Night of Power of Ramadan,\u201d he recalled solemnly. Whatever he experienced then, for Youssef, it represented a turning point. <\/p>\n<p> Youssef initially moved to the U.S. with his family from Egypt when he was 2, and by 8, he was already working odd jobs. He studied history at Baruch College in New York starting in 1996, but his real passion lay with computers. He got his first PC at 19 and \u201ctaught myself to code right away and started doing startups.\u201d He worked as a senior software engineer at early smartphone company YadaYada first for two years before embarking on his entrepreneurial path. The first of these was related to coupons being distributed over text messages, but the idea failed to gain traction. <\/p>\n<p>The young entrepreneur soon went on to have his first taste of success, however, as he pivoted to <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">download<\/a>able ringtones. His new company, called MatrixM, \u201cwent from like $0 to $1 million revenue in less than six months.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cThe biggest problem was primarily that the users who wanted ringtones were unbanked people \u2014 teenagers.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Though he got off to a strong start, the next decade did not provide a comfortable ride. Youssef best describes this turbulent part of his life on LinkedIn, where he writes his title as \u201cEntrepreneur\u201d at \u201c11 failed startups and many lessons learned.\u201d The fact that he did not give up during that time speaks volumes. Though his initial success could be attributed to mere luck, it surely helped him to believe in himself despite years of failure. Whether he was a competent entrepreneur after his first success or not, he surely had put in the hard yards to become one after the 11th failure. <\/p>\n<p>In his work at MatrixM, Youssef discovered that peer-to-peer infrastructure, then still in its infancy, was the key to getting access to ringtones and a broad audience \u2014 users could upload ringtones as well as download them. Today, Youssef explained, peer-to-peer platforms like Uber and Airbnb have \u201cbecome part of our daily lives.\u201d The same will soon happen with peer-to-peer finance. \u201cHumanity has been waiting for this one for a long time,\u201d he said.  While developed countries can benefit, Youssef said that the need in emerging economies, like throughout much of Africa, is much greater. <\/p>\n<p>He described the issues people face around transacting money as \u201cmind-bending \u2014 even if they have a bank account and get a bank card, they can only spend $100 a month maximum with your Visa card.\u201d This means that sending money in and out of Africa can quickly become a nightmare, as merchants cannot easily buy goods from China, for example. \u201cThey have to go through like three or four hops, turn their money into USD on the black market, and find a way to get that into a bank account that can actually wire the money because their personal accounts cannot,\u201d he explained in an exasperated tone. <\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Paxful\"><\/span>Paxful<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Some time later in 2015, he was told of a method to profit by selling gift cards for BTC. Youssef was suspicious but decided to try it out of desperation. \u201cI thought it was a scam, but it worked, so we scaled it up,\u201d he recalled as if still surprised. With their system working, Youssef and Schaback decided to build a platform for trading cryptocurrency for gift cards, seeing it as \u201cthe best way to onboard the unbanked\u201d into the world of cryptocurrency. After 72 hours of coding, Paxful was live. <\/p>\n<p>Youssef recalls a time when he took a customer service call from a \u201cdesperate lady\u201d needing to purchase $2.50 worth of BTC in order to pay for an online classified ad. Down to her last $13 and without a bank account, she had no idea how to buy Bitcoin, as no services were geared toward people like her. With her children crying in the background, Youssef guided her to go to a nearby drugstore and buy a $10 Walmart gift card. <\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201c\u2018Okay, I\u2019ll walk you through the whole process of turning a Walmart gift card into Bitcoin, and then actually sending the Bitcoin to that address.\u2019 It was two hours \u2014 it was rough.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>The experience was formative, as it illustrated the real struggles of those without access to the traditional banking system who try to use modern internet-based services. \u201cThat\u2019s why Paxful is on top \u2014 we are willing to do what others are not, we\u2019re willing to go where others are not willing to go, like Nigeria,\u201d Youssef explained, referring to the fact that small transactions carry little profit. He said that he feels a deep connection to Africa because of his roots. \u201cThis whole time, my dream was to help Africa,\u201d he asserted. <\/p>\n<p>Today, Paxful allows users to buy and sell cryptocurrency via hundreds of methods. It is profitable and boasts over 6 million users, supported by \u201calmost 500 people in nine offices around the world.\u201d Soon, he believes, the platform will go mainstream, especially in Nigeria \u2014 which is the company\u2019s biggest market and Youssef\u2019s part-time home. \u201cThey\u2019re the ones who are going to pull the rest of Africa forward. Nigeria is the Lion of Africa,\u201d Youssef said with pride, as if he were a Nigerian himself. Soon, Youssef believes, it will be the Silicon Valley of Africa.  <\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Built_with_Bitcoin\"><\/span>Built with Bitcoin<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>The Built with Bitcoin Foundation, where Youssef serves as executive director, aims to build 100 schools around the world in support of local communities \u2014 an idea inspired by his experience after Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana in August 2005. Youssef saw the devastation on the <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">news<\/a> and decided that \u201cI\u2019m going down there myself.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>On the ground, he found various charities to be of little help. \u201cFinally, I managed to find these five Dominican nuns in the French Quarter. They had a school, and they wanted me to help rebuild and reopen the school.\u201d Youssef went around the city to scavenge building materials and supplies, sometimes putting himself in great danger. At one point, he befriended a trucker, and \u201cMe and him actually ended up looting a Lowes [hardware store] to get supplies to the school.\u201d <\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cDuring this time I had a lot of adventures \u2014 one where I was nearly killed by the police, who saw me wandering through the city thinking I\u2019m  a looter.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>The opening of the school, Youssef believes, was key to helping the city reopen after the disaster, as the police and fire department \u201cwouldn\u2019t have come back if they couldn\u2019t have put their children back to school.\u201d Schools, he realized, are a pillar of community development and civilization. \u201cThat\u2019s where I got the idea for Built with Bitcoin \u2014 a hundred schools in the next five years, and we\u2019ve already built three of them,\u201d he said. So far, the organization has completed three schools. In addition to schools, there is a focus on sustainable farming and the provision of wells in order to guarantee communities access to clean water. <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Help us on our mission to build 100 schools across the globe by donating.<\/p>\n<p>Last week we opened our newest school in Kenya, where local children now have easier access to an education, paving the way for a brighter future.<\/p>\n<p>Link to donate in bio. <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/qMbZPgZl1z\">pic.twitter.com\/qMbZPgZl1z<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Built With Bitcoin Foundation (@builtwithbtc) <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/builtwithbtc\/status\/1409903083820404740?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">June 29, 2021<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>According to the website, 92% of funds go directly into projects. One of the recent school projects in Rwanda was done in collaboration with a charity called Zam Zam Water.  While the building of schools and wells certainly nourishes communities to grow, the idea that the proliferation of cryptocurrencies can help form more robust local and internationally connected economies is a much newer one. \u201cI consider myself a Bitcoin optimist,\u201d Youssef said. <\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"El_Bitcoin\"><\/span>El Bitcoin<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p> When El Salvador\u2019s president, Nayib Bukele, recently announced that Bitcoin was an official currency for the nation, the international press was skeptical. Youssef was among the CEOs who flew to the country in the weeks following the announcement, no doubt in hopes of opening up a new major market for Paxful.<\/p>\n<p>In his view, the new Bitcoin Law, which is seeing all citizens receive an airdrop of $30 in BTC, benefits the common people. Still, he noted that \u201cThe old aristocracy of El Salvador came out\u201d to disparage him as a colonizer after he \u201ctook a photo-op at the airport with a bunch of police guards who are not working for me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Youssef is confident that this is just the beginning, as grassroots use of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies will \u201cspread to Costa Rica, Guatemala, Panama, Honduras as well, and eventually Mexico and all Central America \u2014 we\u2019re seeing that very clearly.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more News articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/general\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">General category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/news\/bringing-the-crypto-payments-ecosystem-around-the-world-ray-youssef\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;# Bringing the crypto payments ecosystem around the world: Ray Youssef &#8221; Though he has had 11 business failures, today Ray Youssef is building Bitcoin-funded schools across Africa as executive director of the Built With Bitcoin Foundation and is helping millions of people buy and sell cryptocurrency as CEO of Paxful. However, Youssef also admits&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":307726,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/images.cointelegraph.com\/images\/1200_aHR0cHM6Ly9zMy5jb2ludGVsZWdyYXBoLmNvbS91cGxvYWRzLzIwMjEtMDcvZGViNTkxZWMtNTFiMi00MTE4LWI2ZmQtYzE1YTY3Yjk3NjdkLmpwZw==.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[74862,74863,74860,74870,112799,76854,4965],"class_list":["post-307725","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general","tag-bitcoin","tag-cryptocurrencies","tag-cryptocurrency-exchange","tag-p2p","tag-p2p-services","tag-paxful","tag-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/307725","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=307725"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/307725\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/307726"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=307725"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=307725"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=307725"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}