Jack Gavigan

Fintechnologist focused on virtual currencies & blockchain technology. Regulatory Affairs at Electric Coin Company, and currently occupies the role of COO at the Zcash company. Experienced financial technologist, with a background in tech startups, product management and cyber security, and over a decade's experience working with top-tier financial institutions. I began my career in the Internet industry after dropping out of university in the mid-’90s. I was involved in several unsuccessful startups and worked as a unix and network engineer for an ISP, a telco and a digital asset management solutions provider before becoming CTO of ZedZed, a startup targeted at independent travellers. When the dot-com bubble burst in 2000, we had to shut ZedZed down, and I went to work in the financial sector, building electronic trading systems for Deutsche Bank. Later, I went back to school part-time to get an MBA and ended up working on the trading floor at Morgan Stanley, running a $2.5bn emerging markets equity swaps portfolio. Following the Credit Crunch, I became a freelance consultant, specialising in financial technology and helping companies like Lloyds Banking Group, Standard Bank and Royal Bank of Canada innovate at the intersection of people, business and technology. At the beginning of 2012, between engagements with investment banks in the City, I also had another unsuccessful attempt at getting a tech startup off the ground. I’m deeply interested in entrepreneurship, innovation and tech startups. I made my first angel investment in early 2011, in a startup called the Retronaut. I advise and mentor startup founders and entrepreneurs, typically focusing on business model and product-market fit. In late 2012, I founded LDN2SFO, an annual trip from London to Silicon Valley for entrepreneurs and early-stage startup founders.