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Future Forward: Cole Diamond of Coinsquare Fame on Innovation and Investment

Victoria Wilson — Fri, 25 Oct 2024 11:08:28 +0000

Cole Diamond is a serial entrepreneur and early-stage business investor based in Toronto. He is best known in the business world for being the co-founder and CEO of Coinsquare, Canada’s top cryptocurrency exchange, and co-founding Tetra Trust, the country’s first qualified digital asset custodian. Under his leadership, Coinsquare raised over $100M and became Canada’s first crypto-focused broker-dealer and marketplace, achieving registration with the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) and the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC). In recognition of his work in the field, in 2019, Cole was named Canada’s top Tech Entrepreneur by the Digital Finance Institute, a think tank that deals in matters of tech, financial innovation, and regulation.

In addition to his ventures in the crypto space, Cole Diamond has expanded into several other industries. He is the controlling shareholder of Ghost Kitchens International, a company revolutionizing the food delivery market through its innovative online order fulfillment model. Within the hospitality sector, Cole co-founded Vela, a top-rated fine-dining restaurant in downtown Toronto, and serves as the largest shareholder. He is also an investor and board member at Stella, an upscale Italian restaurant in West Hollywood, Los Angeles.

As an investor, Cole is passionate about supporting startups and innovative new ventures. He has backed companies like Big Digital, KEEP, and RoketEV. His investment portfolio extends to real estate, where he has strategically assembled a diverse range of properties in promising markets.

Cole’s career is defined by his ability to take on big challenges and big risks, disrupting industries ranging from cryptocurrency to food service and retail. His latest project, Trade In, is a tech company set to launch in 2025.

We were fortunate enough to catch up with Cole Diamond and ask him a few questions about his career journey, his philosophy on entrepreneurship, and his plans for any exciting new projects.

Q: As an entrepreneur many times over, what lessons have you learned from co-founding successful ventures like Coinsquare and Tetra Trust that you can share with our readership?

Cole Diamond: A lot of the conventional wisdom surrounding entrepreneurship is actually quite true. You have to be tenacious and adaptable. You also need to have a vision for what you want to accomplish and an inherent need to succeed against all odds. An optimistic outlook also helps things along, without question. And it goes without saying that you need to have a product or service that the public wants to buy. I realize that these are generalities, but they happen to be true and critical.

Q: You co-founded Coinsquare in 2016, which means you were a pretty early adopter in cryptocurrency terms. What inspired you to enter into that relatively unknown and unestablished industry at that point?

Cole Diamond: Put simply, I saw the potential for cryptocurrency to change the world. In the lead-up to launching Coinsquare, I also saw that Canada was lagging a bit behind in the crypto sphere, and consequently, there was space for me to fill a critical gap in the market. After realizing all this, I acted fast, and within a shorter amount of time than anticipated, the company was rocketing its way to success. It was very good timing.

Q: You’re also an investor known for supporting several startups, which is a notoriously risky thing to do. Do you have any special criteria you use when deciding where to invest your capital?

Cole Diamond: Most of my criteria for investment is based around two things: one, the idea. The idea has to be sound, well-thought-out, and above all else, innovative. I don’t have a great deal of interest in backing a rehashed version of an old idea. The second criterion I use is my impression of the entrepreneur in question. Most of my decision comes down to instinct. Is this person a go-getter? Do they truly believe in themselves and their abilities? Do they inspire confidence? Can they sell their idea well? All of these are factors I consider.

Q: What advice would you give to novice or would-be entrepreneurs interested in entering the rapidly changing tech industry?

Cole Diamond: The best piece of advice I can relay is that you absolutely, positively must stay up to date on all the latest developments—there’s just no way around it. Without mincing words, the tech space is a cutthroat environment, meaning that if you don’t continuously refine and optimize your processes, procedures, and equipment, you will inevitably fall behind your competitors. It’s not an industry that rewards complacency; quite the opposite. You have to be nimble, open-minded, and always thinking about your next move. And you need to be fast to adjust your product or service once you get to market and your customers start giving you feedback.

Q: Looking ahead, what can you share about your upcoming tech project, Trade In, and what makes it unique in the market?

Cole Diamond: At this point in Trade In’s development, there’s not too much I can share with the press. Suffice it to say, the company operates in the tech space and even now we’re looking into doing some things that will make a big splash within the auto industry. I will say this: stay tuned for the grand debut in 2025. It’s going to be big.

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Interview With Richard Burry, E-Commerce Investor and Entrepreneur

John — Sat, 20 Apr 2024 01:49:18 +0000

Smartvu Ltd. CEO Richard Burry has been at the vanguard of e-commerce innovation and opportunity for more than three decades.

With broad experience in technology, management and business startups, the Portugal-based digital pioneer focuses on Internet businesses in sectors ranging from marketing and online search services to World Wide Web domain names, cryptocurrency, webcams and gaming.

Before starting Smartvu Ltd. in 2000, he led Web Krew S.A., an Internet development company specializing in SEO, online directories, web hosting, emails and website design and development.

Before venturing out on his own, he gained extensive experience as Director of PC Interactive Services for Shaw Communications. There, his responsibilities included the development and operation of a residential Internet service delivered to customers over high-speed cable modems. He managed sales, marketing, finance, technology, content development, installation, maintenance and customer support.

His avocations are as wide-ranging as his choice of investments. He enjoys poker, board games, sailing, travel, art, music, drones and American football. Recently Richard Burry took some time to discuss Internet entrepreneurship, in a conversation partially reprinted below.

Q: How have Internet investment opportunities changed over the past two decades?

Richard Burry: In 30-plus years the technology has really accelerated much more than anyone imagined, and moved into new and unexpected realms of invention. I picture myself back in 1995, logging onto the Web with a dial-up connection, downloading documents in slow motion. At the time, I knew Internet technology presented many exciting opportunities, but did I anticipate the iPhone, social media, YouTube or any of the various phenomena associated with the new platforms, from cat videos to Psy, from the Tide Pod challenge to whole new high-paying careers that were born, such as “Influencer”? I think this evolution surprised everybody.

There’s been one constant during this remarkable period of development, which is: The best place to position yourself for opportunities is on the ground floor. If you have the foresight or luck to see the genius in the young Steve Jobs or Bill Gates, or understand the importance of the computer chip industry, or notice the emergence of AI and cryptocurrency at the very early stages, there’s no end to what you can achieve.

Q: When exploring investment opportunities, what particular characteristics do you look for in a company?

Richard Burry: When I pursue promising investments, I look beyond the company to the people behind it. I look at the founder and the leadership team. Ideally, I get to know them personally; or at the very least I educate myself on their backgrounds and try to understand what drives them. Ambition and purpose in pursuit of a dream is much more important to me than technical facility. You can learn the skills, but you need that inward compulsion to create and achieve if you’re going to be a success in business. I also look at market sectors that are undiscovered, or even ignored, by big institutional investors. It’s even better when I find a company in a unique sector that is applying new innovations and ideas to the way things have traditionally been done in that industry or sector. I love to find pioneers who color outside the lines. They make great investment partners; and they’re wonderful, interesting people to be around as well.

Q: What impact do you foresee AI having over the next few years, for Internet businesses specifically as well as financial and labor markets?

Richard Burry: With AI, I really see no limit at all. No limit to the opportunities, and no limit to the potential. That’s the part of AI that also breeds apprehension, if we’re talking about its unlimited ability to improve itself over time. As with any seismic change in the global economy, there will be tremendous displacements and disruptions. Of course, disruption is another word for investment opportunity. It’s an aspect of the creative destruction that is the engine of progress. There’s a lot that should be done in the coming years to limit the “destruction” part of the term and maximize the creativity. Workers will be displaced, and the integrity of financial markets could be at risk if AI becomes adept at manipulating trends and emotions to generate profit. As a society, we’re going to need to be smart and vigilant with this exponentially advancing technology, but we have no choice but to integrate it into our companies, industries and economies.

Q: You’ve talked extensively about the promise of cryptocurrency. Do you see any limit to the opportunities in this sector?

Richard Burry: The success of cryptocurrency has been deeply satisfying in two ways: First, as an early booster of crypto, I endured years of teasing about my belief in this new exchange mechanism. There was a time that crypto buffs were stereotyped as either tin-foil-hat nuts or slackers who were looking for a shortcut to wealth. Many of these early doubters underestimated the suspicion many consumers have of fiat currencies issued by governments. For many people, crypto became a synonym for freedom. It offered privacy, and didn’t have a mountain of government debt undermining its value. It’s true that cryptocurrency is built on the ultimate intangible foundation — numbers — but it turns out that equations trump government promissory notes when it comes to trust. And the second reason that cryptocurrency’s success has been so gratifying to me is also the most basic: It has generated some pretty substantial returns over the years.

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Benefits of Crypto Within the Gaming Sector

John — Thu, 29 Apr 2021 17:58:25 +0000

Much of the world’s business these days is conducted online, with many startups within the tech sector going on to huge success.

From the likes of Airbnb to dating app Fourplay, online startups can be profitable, popular, and eventually become part of pop culture. Google, Facebook, and eBay were all, at one time or another, mere startups with big ideas. They have gone on to become big brands by leveraging technological developments with consumer needs.

A strong startup will be aware of trends within their sector, and the wider world of tech, and the one to be aware of right now is cryptocurrency. Crypto is not new, not by a long shot, but 2021 has seen it explode in popularity. Bitcoin received a huge boost when Elon Musk’s Tesla invested $1.5bn in the crypto, whilst NFTs are increasing in popularity since a JPG file sold for $69m. Crypto is making headlines, and it is changing industries.

If you are an entrepreneur within the online gaming sector, then crypto is an industry you should pay close attention to. The use of online currency within online gaming is on the rise and it is having huge benefits for both end-users, and the companies behind many online gaming sites. If that is your industry then pay close attention to these key areas in which bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are benefitting your peers right now.

Costs

The biggest obvious benefit to both sides of the industry is a reduction in costs. Cryptocurrency transactions might be fast and safe, but they also omit the requirement for a middleman, usually a bank, but also the likes of payment services such as PayPal. Those outlets all take a small portion of your transaction, making moving funds around costly in many instances. Cryptocurrency doesn’t have the same burden, meaning lower expenses for providers and customers. If you are a tech startup, it is worth considering this as a key driver behind the payment methods you choose to accept.

Security

A cryptocurrency transaction is only acknowledged peer-to-peer, and therefore it is the most secure form of online payment available. The blockchain transaction is clear in terms of ownership, making the potential for fraudulent activity minimal, if at all. Bitcoin, and other cryptocurrencies, are now seen as a mainstream investment, which means that it could lead to a relaxation in some of the laws around cryptocurrency in online poker, and thus online gaming in the wider world. If you are a startup in the online gaming sector, then this is a safe and attractive option to explore.

Offers

Online gaming does not only extend to poker, slots, and the like, but also the growing video game industry. It is an industry that is worth around $66bn in the US, with players taking part in online games around the world. The popular shooter Fortnite has 350m players worldwide alone, demonstrating the depth and scope of the entire market, here and in the wider world. Many online games involve in-game purchases and offer rewards to users for watching adverts or completing tasks. By using crypto as the method of payment, developers ensure a quick, smooth and safe transaction, as well as retaining a degree of anonymity for the end-user.

Conclusion

The cryptocurrency was once believed to be little more than a passing fad, a craze set to die out as quickly as it was born. Instead, it is being backed by big brands, celebrities, and platforms, which will only increase its popularity in years to come. Any budding entrepreneur in the online gaming sector needs to be aware of the benefits of it, and how that might integrate with their own offering.

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