The U.S.: ‘The Place Where Any Business Owner Wants to End Up’
I recently sat down with Eric Dye for EPN, a podcast host who specializes in one-on-one interviews with entrepreneurs and founders. You can listen to the full interview here, but I wanted to share some portions because I found his questions thought-provoking and I believe my answers explain what we are hoping to accomplish at Avestix.
Your background includes leadership positions with several multinationals. What inspired you to become an entrepreneur?
I've been an entrepreneur since the age of seven and I sold my first business at 23.
That led me to Johannesburg, South Africa, where I entered my first corporate position. I strongly believe that gaining corporate experience is invaluable as a teaching session for skills in systems, financials and structure. However, for true entrepreneurship, there's always a pullback to building companies and that's where our passion and creativity thrive. That's the main driver for me to be an entrepreneur.
What are the differences between being an entrepreneur in South Africa and Australia compared to launching a business in the U.S.?
I think each country offers a unique entrepreneurial landscape with its opportunities and challenges.
In South Africa, I found that resilience and adaptability were essential given the evolving economic and political environment. However, there's a very strong sense of community in South Africa that supports businesses that have a social impact, which aligns well with my focus on philanthropy and initiative in education and basic needs.
The U.S., in contrast, presented incredible scale and speed of innovation. The competition is very fierce, but the market is open to new ideas and access to diverse funding sources has been unparalleled.
In summary, I would say this continent has taught me valuable lessons about the importance of being resilient. The U.S. is ultimately the place where any business owner wants to end up if they want to take their platform or their business globally.
“The U.S. is ultimately the place where any business owner wants to end up if they want to take their platform or their business globally.”
What inspired you to move the firm to the U.S.?
We first thought about it about seven years ago, but then you get comfortable in your environment, but what happened in terms of Covid and played a significant role in our move.
Australia had strict lockdowns and restrictions with limited business opportunities and operations for almost two years. And it made international networking extremely challenging. In contrast, the U.S. market offered more flexibility and adaptability in navigating the crisis.
A move to the U.S. during that time allowed for greater connectivity in our operations and provided access to a more resilient network, which positioned Avestix for growth in a more challenging global environment.
Can you talk about Avestix and the firm's mission?
Avestix effectively launched in the U.S. in 2021. It's a multi-asset class investment firm with a mission to bridge the private market gap with the public markets by offering a fully diverse private and public market portfolio to our clients.
Our focus is very much on alternative investments and that includes commercial real estate, infrastructure, venture capital, private credit, and a special focus on deep tech and human-led businesses.
Our goal is to innovate the investment landscape by providing clients with access to sustainable, high-growth, exclusive opportunities that align with their long-term aspirations. We are firm believers in supporting human-led initiatives that can lead to a positive transformation in the industry by fostering growth in emerging sectors and advancing investments that drive meaningful social impact. Our mission is to create lasting value for our investors while contributing to the broader economy and the communities we engage in.
What exactly are alternative investments & how do they differ from traditional investments?
Everyone knows that traditional investments are stocks, public securities, bonds, cash and treasuries. Alternatives are everything else that falls outside of that realm of traditional investments. They include the right range of assets like real estate, private equity, private credit, hedge funds, venture capital, commodity, and tangible assets like arts and wines and infrastructure projects. You can almost put it into one big basket of private investment opportunities that's outside of the public markets. And that's what I call it: alternative investments.
Can you talk about how the Fortuna Fund helps female founders?
Avestix Fortuna is focused on women entrepreneurs. We focus on women's empowerment, enriching lives, and supporting women in achieving financial independence. We aim to provide women with the resources, knowledge and support needed to take control of their financial futures, whether that's through entrepreneurial ventures, investment literacy or professional development.
We strongly believe that if somebody becomes financially independent, you do not just help that individual, or women specifically, but you also could have a more inclusive, equitable economy where women can lead, innovate and make an impact on their immediate families and their communities.
My commitment to empowering women and children is deeply personalized and stems from my roots in Africa, where I first witnessed women facing the greatest barriers in accessing these necessities. That's why it's quite an important mission.
Explain how the Avestix Venture Capital Fund leverages cutting-edge technologies.
As we're moving into the fourth industrial revolution, and — due to my background in finance, economics, finance, economics, engineering, logistics, and commodities — I always had a very strong alignment with artificial intelligence, blockchain, financial technologies, robotics and quantum.
Those are the very sectors that I believe will not just completely disrupt the way that we do business, but will change the landscape for every single sector and every single business going forward during the next 10 years.
Our Venture Capital Fund specifically focuses on the infrastructure for artificial intelligence, blockchain, fintech companies, robotics, and quantum computers. We are looking for infrastructure and venture capital projects that are extraordinary and can make an impact on the way that we do business, which can change financial models and how the working space is out there.
Your bio mentions your commitment to building sustainable cities. Can you talk about that?
So building sustainable cities and communities is one of my core commitments, but it's also been driven by my experience in the real estate and commercial real estate industry.
It's driven by a vision for urban spaces that are resilient, inclusive, environmental and responsible. Sustainable cities require innovation across multiple sectors and that's where our investments come in. For example, we focus on clean energy solutions to power entire economies and communities with minimal environmental impact and the same with smart infrastructure.
We will want to use automation such as IoT, robotics and cybersecurity as well as sustainable energy and water supplies in urban environments. Therefore, I think affordable quality housing is a very strong essence of that community, especially in the U.S. where affordable housing is a big problem. And then use technology to enhance that. I think it's really important.
“Building sustainable cities and communities is one of my core commitments, but it's also been driven by my experience in the real estate and commercial real estate industry.”
What else is on the roadmap for you personally & Avestix?
Looking ahead, a major focus for Avestix is expanding access to diversified portfolios that will provide a blend between private and public markets and that will make it more available for retail investors through tokenization. This approach will open up investment opportunities that were traditionally only limited to institutions or high-network individuals, but it will help make them more inclusive.
This will allow investors to own fractional shares of their portfolio, enhancing liquidity, which is a major problem now, and it will provide accessibility by using blockchain transparency and security. So that is very much in line with our mission to democratize alternative investments and bring innovation asset classes to a broader audience. That's mainly our mission over the next 30 to 50 years where we want to end up.
Next Steps
Are you interested in expanding your investment strategy to include alternative investments and the latest opportunities in cutting-edge tech? Contact Avestix today to find out how we can help.
