Abhinand Kaseti, an eminent leader with well-defined goals, is set out to make a difference in the arena of Bitcoin trading. Abhinand studied Computer Science Engineering at R V College of Engineering and proceeded to work with i4 Communications Pvt Ltd. in a fast, upscale environment, assuring client delight on setting up data centers and IT infrastructure for most of the MNCs in the Asia Pacific region. In 2011, he worked as a preferred vendor to Google as an AV architect, who is passionate about the infra solutions.
Prior to the incorporation of Unocoin, Abhinand and the three co-founders of the company took part in a tech conference to understand more about Bitcoin, mining and so on. Then by 2013, they launched a Bitcoin trading platform named as Unocoin, for Indians to buy, sell, use and accept Bitcoin. Fast forwarding, today Unocoin serves 15 lakh customers and offers six crypto assets to be traded on its platform. The company has won multiple FinTech awards and has been funded $2.5million to date.
Regardless of the competition, Abhinand believes in sticking to and believing in his own plans even if he could see bad days coming with it. However, when it comes to completion, he always follows a quote which he has etched in his heart, ‘Don’t find customers for your products, find products for your customers’.
The Inception Story of Unocoin
Abhinand has been keen to learn and explore new technologies that come to his notice. Bitcoin was one such, which sowed the seeds of curiosity in him and he was upfront in learning more about it. He started attending meet-ups regarding Bitcoin and it only kept on exuberating him and making him more determined to do something with Bitcoin.
In July 2013, a few members met at the India Bitcoin meet-up group which was known as “Bangalore Bitcoin Progressive Thinkers” aiming to take Bitcoin to the masses. Since then, CoinMonk Ventures facilitated and hosted India’s first Global Bitcoin Conference in December 2013, where Unocoin was launched on a trial basis. Trade was open for users with a set buying and selling limits. On February 1, 2014, Unocoin went off trial mode into full operations.
“While I was in a constant learning process, I and my other mates decided to start with a trading platform exclusively for Indians and the reason behind this was to make the masses aware of the advanced technology, which is possibly the future of a cashless economy,” asserts Abhinand.
Dedication and Innovation
At the core of Unocoin lies its innovation and a dedicated team with a passion towards building world-class products centred on the Bitcoin ecosystem. It has built the world’s simplest Bitcoin PoS for offline merchants and in a first of its kind introduced SIP (Systematic Investment Planning) for Bitcoin. The merchant gateway service provided by Unocoin lets online businesses accept Bitcoin as a mode of payment and OTC (Over the Counter) Trade allows users to trade in bulk.
Unocoin is committed to and has single-handedly driven the Bitcoin awareness program in India. With a series of meet-ups, seminars, guest talks, college activities and other collaborations, the awareness of Bitcoin in India has skyrocketed in the recent times. The efforts put in by the team at Unocoin translate towards building a cashless Indian economy.
Journey till Date
“It has been amazing ride for me so far with continuous challenges on and off”, says Abhinand. He adds that his journey as an entrepreneur so far has made him realize one thing— ‘if you don’t build your dream, someone else will hire you to help them build theirs’. The popular quote truly holds value in every entrepreneur’s journey towards success, prompting them to do more.
Abhinand reveals that in his journey, Mr. Grant Cardone, an Entrepreneur, Speaker, Sales Expert and Motivator, has greatly influenced him. Grant’s talks on positivity and great attitude act as a booster in down times. Another great personality Abhinand likes to mention is his mentor, Mr. Richard Branson. Abhinand enjoys reading a lot and his favourite book is ‘The Four-Hour Work Week’ by Tim Ferriss.
Challenges and Risk Leading him towards Success
“Our industry denies to follow tradition, it only respects innovation”, says Abhinand. Getting into the Bitcoin industry was indeed a risk followed by my firm belief. He says that his biggest failure so far is only when he is unable to take the best out of the employees.
Abhinand attributes his success to Bitcoin and the technology. He justifies the statement by explaining, “without Bitcoin, I wouldn’t be where I am now”. He adds that he has learnt one thing from difficult times, which is, people have to fight through some bad days in order to earn the best days of life.
Advising and Inspiring the Budding Entrepreneurs
Budding entrepreneurs seek advice from successful personalities so that they could overcome the stumbling blocks in their ways. The only piece of advice that Abhinand likes to share is, ‘learn the rules of the game and then play better than anyone else’. Setting a trend is harder than following the trends. He urges others also to set trends in the industry, in their own ways, so that the industry would flourish with novel ideas and innovations. “For me, the mere idea of ‘thinking’ is what I always encourage in my organisation. I let them practice their idea if I see there is a slightest ray of achieving anything”, quotes Abhinand.
Footsteps Towards the Future
Constant training and a will to win shape a perfect leader. Abhinand is determined to learn new things, come up with new ideas and putting them into practice in the upcoming days. He plans himself to get better trained for the role that he is playing right now and build lasting client relationships meanwhile clawing his way to the top.
Source :-The 30 Inspiring Entreprenuers to watch in 2018
Source :-The 30 Inspiring Entreprenuers to watch in 2018
Abhinand Kaseti: Determined to Thrive through Innovation
