“The crypto collapse? When it becomes a problem for some, it means that it is an opportunity for others ”. Andrea Ferrero is the managing director of Young Platform. 24 years old, from Turin, in 2018 he created together with five desk mates of the Itis di Fossano what has now become the most used Italian cryptocurrency trading platform in Italy: one million users, according to company data. Yesterday, as cryptocurrencies sank into one of the most thunderous collapses in their history, they announced a € 16 million investment from Azimut and other investors. “An asset manager like them looks to the long term”, comments Ferrero, certain that the long term is on their side.
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Ferrero, this is not the best time for crypto.
“We are used to it. We built the company in the bearish crypto market in 2018, right after the crash earlier this year. We are still not in a bearish market, but there is something different ”.
Thing?
“More than anything else, it is the beginning of the second phase of the bull market (bullish, ed), which will arrive in the coming months”.
How can you be sure?
“From September we will understand better. Our indicators tell us that by the end of the year things will get better and in any case bitcoin will remain among the best assets to invest in in 2022 “.
What do you do in bad times for the sector, like this one?
“Let’s change our approach and use this time to build something”.
The new resources from the latest investment round will help. How will you use them?
“The capital increase will help us build our market in France and Spain, then we will scale them, when we can”.
In the short term instead?
“We will focus on the product and the team. We cannot allow ourselves to be stopped by the negative moments of cryptocurrencies. We reduce tactics, we focus on strategy ”.
How did this capital increase with Azimut come about?
“During a roadshow with international investors. Azimut has shown a formal and binding interest. We were interested in their international propensity. The fact that he was an asset manager for us made Azimut a favorite interlocutor, and so we decided to get married. Banca Sella and United Venture, already our investors, also took part in the round ”.
Are these crypto crashes a problem for a company like yours? How do you live them?
“We know that when there is a problem for someone, opportunities open up for someone else. The entire crypto industry has 11 years of history. We know that it is very complex to arrive at a degenerative situation for the entire industry ”.
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What do you mean?
“The fact that there are large investment funds and many retail investors should already warn institutions and try to protect them. We need rules for the sector, and the European Union has already shown itself at the forefront of this ”.
Is there a point where the value of crypto becomes too low to be sustainable for you?
“There is no precise price. There is a regulatory issue. If traditional finance today does not have systemic critical factors, I don’t think the crypto market can have any. If then the global economy collapses … “
What happens?
“Well, then the crypto world would be the least of the problems”
What is the difference between Young and other crypto exchange platforms?
“The Go to market. Our market aggression strategy is based on the financial education of our clients, who are often very young. With Young Platform Step we educate customers on the cryptocurrency market through gamification mechanisms and incentive logic. We are very focused on customers who are new to the topic of cryptocurrencies “.
How does this training take place?
“You read texts, like on bitcoin, then there are questions. If you answer well, you have tokens, which can be converted into cash or crypto to be exchanged on the platform “.
Works?
“I would say yes. 70% of those who participate do not just monetize, but go to invest in bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies “.
Is it enough to read texts and obtain tokens to become investors less susceptible to the negative moments of the market?
“No. We have realized that intellectual tools are often not enough. That in moments of market panic, many sell, adopt irrational behaviors and poorly considered decisions. We also need technical tools for investors. In fact, we will soon implement a function of Robot advisor on Young, so that part of the invested capital is managed more rationally in these moments. We are already in the process of obtaining the licenses to do so ”.
Was the stablecoin Earth-Moon traded on Young?
“And”.
How did you react to last month’s collapse?
“We proposed to reimburse customers who were losing their money. We have very strong due diligence procedures. But in that case we made a mistake. Even if we are not responsible for terms and conditions, we still held ourselves responsible “.
What mistake are you imputing?
“The mistake of trusting a project that still capitalized 100 billion in capitalization. In retrospect, it was impossible to predict. But, well, he certainly taught us a lot and to trust these projects less ”.