Starting and operating a company is hard. While it all starts with an idea, capital is necessary to push an idea forward and eventually turn it into a business. Unfortunately for startups, getting people to invest in an idea is difficult. Some who are lucky get investors, but others sadly give up on their dream. However, Moch Akbar Azzihad M, more commonly known as Abay, is changing that and showing young entrepreneurs that it’s achievable. His story inspires all startups to successfully run their businesses even without investors chipping in. No one should have to give up on their dreams.
Abay is a young entrepreneur and the founder of Converco, a digital banking platform designed with blockchain technology. He is also the founder and CEO of several other startups, including Bygazz Racing.
Born and raised in Indonesia, Abay had a deep passion for technology from an early age. Looking back, he notes that, instead of playing around with toys or watching TV like other kids, he spent most of his time on the internet watching tech videos.
At 17 years old, fresh out of high school, Abay started his first company, Bygazz Racing, selling spare parts for racing bikes and cars. He later progressed to selling T-shirts, caps, and hoodies. Using the revenue generated from his business, he started expanding his brand and founded other companies.
However, in 2017 his business suffered a major setback and had him counting his losses. Some clients had ordered from his website, but when the goods arrived, they returned them to Abay, claiming they were not the goods they had ordered. However, the goods returned were not what his company had sent, and Abay lost around $500,000 as the clients got their money back and the goods, too.
According to Abay, this was the main inspiration behind starting Converco. He wanted a digital banking platform that is safe, reliable and accessible to everyone globally. Currently, Converco is in Indonesia, the Philippines and Singapore, and there are plans to expand to more of Asia and beyond.
When starting Converco, Abay found getting capital to finance his idea to be a major challenge. Many investors to whom he pitched the idea were reluctant as he was relatively new to the field. Although Abay notes he wanted to give up, he made a brave decision and chose to fight for his project and make it a reality. He started small with the little money he had saved and gotten from his other companies. Now, at only 24 years old, he has grown his company to one of the largest digital banking platforms with blockchain technology.
His advice to startups and young people is to challenge their own limits and push on even when it might feel like there is no hope.
“Very few people will believe in your idea; some will tell you that it won’t work,” Abay says. “Even so, don’t listen to them. Believe in your work and remain consistent.”
The news and editorial staffs of the Virginian-Pilot had no role in this post’s preparation.