What happens when the bank you trust suddenly closes its doors?
For many in the Philippines, the closure of Banco Filipino in 2011 was one of those moments. I wasn’t old enough then to fully grasp what was happening, but I remember the stories: people lining up, filing for claims, hoping to get their hard-earned money back. Some did, many didn’t. It was a stark reminder that even when we think our money is safe, the system doesn’t always protect us.
At the same time, the world was still reeling from the 2008 financial crisis. Lehman Brothers collapsed, banks around the globe were shaken, and confidence in traditional finance was at an all-time low. In that very moment, quietly, something new was born — Bitcoin.
A 14-Year-Old’s Idea
I was 14 when Bitcoin’s whitepaper first appeared in 2009. At that age, I had no clue what cryptocurrency was. But I did have a dream. I imagined a kind of digital money that didn’t depend on a single bank, a system that could never disappear overnight and take people’s savings with it.
Of course, I didn’t have the tools, the knowledge, or the experience yet. But the seed of the idea stayed with me.
By 2012, when Bitcoin was slowly starting to enter conversations, I was already thinking through my own vision. By the time I finished senior high school in 2018, and then graduated with my degree in Business Administration in 2022, the idea hadn’t left me. If anything, the rise of crypto only made me more determined to build a system based not just on digital money, but on trust, accountability, and resilience.
Lessons from the Old System
Looking back, the failures of banks taught me three things:
- Trust can vanish overnight. A good-looking institution today might be gone tomorrow.
- Accountability is blurry. Even when agencies like PDIC step in, people often don’t recover what they lost.
- People deserve transparency. It should be clear how money moves, where it’s stored, and what risks exist.
These are lessons that still matter in 2025. And they’re the foundation of why I believe a new kind of system must exist — one that doesn’t just digitize money, but rebuilds trust itself.
The Rise of Crypto — and My Different Path
Bitcoin proved one thing: people are ready for an alternative. Since then, countless projects have appeared, each claiming to be “the next Bitcoin” or “the solution.” Many are innovative. Many are also short-lived, hype-driven, or far from the ideals they claim.
My vision is different. It isn’t just about creating a token or currency. It’s about designing a trust system — where honesty, accountability, and transparency aren’t optional, but built into the core of the network. Where users know that their money, their data, and their participation truly matter.
Why Share This Now?
Because the story of finance isn’t just about charts and markets. It’s about people. Families who lost their savings in a collapsed bank. Early adopters who believed in Bitcoin before the world cared. And teenagers — like me back in 2009 — who looked at a broken system and thought: there must be a better way.
That belief has never left me. And now, as I continue working on my own path, I want to share it openly. Not as a claim to being “first,” but as a reminder: the future of money starts with trust. And trust starts with us.