<p><strong>We talk about disruption all the time — but few founders have lived it like Daniel Vogel.</strong></p><p>In 2014, when crypto was still synonymous with Silk Road headlines and skepticism, Daniel left a comfortable Silicon Valley job to move back to Mexico and build Bitso — a crypto exchange in a country where millions remained outside the formal banking system.</p><p>Ten years later, Bitso is one of Latin America’s largest digital-asset platforms — a cross-border payments engine moving billions in remittances and one of the region’s first crypto unicorns. But its story is far more nuanced than the headlines.</p><p><br /></p><p>Behind every <em>“first crypto unicorn”</em> lies a founder who spent a decade fighting regulators, skeptics, market crashes, and cultural resistance to risk — and still managed to build trust in one of the world’s most misunderstood industries.</p><p><br /></p><p>What stood out about Daniel wasn’t the scale of Bitso’s success — it was the depth of his conviction and the discipline behind his obsession. He talks about curiosity as a lifelong engine, leadership as reinvention, and composure as a skill refined the night the Central Bank nearly shut the company down on Christmas Eve.</p><p><strong>This conversation is a masterclass in resilience, clarity, and long-term thinking.</strong></p><li><ul><li><strong>The pilot’s mindset of leadership</strong> — what flying small planes taught Daniel about control, composure, and crisis management.</li></ul><ul><li><strong>The risk paradox</strong> — how growing up in a culture defined by risk-aversion shaped his contrarian approach to building in volatile markets.</li></ul></li><li><ul><li><strong>The product decision that killed the competition</strong> — how Bitso’s choice to own its tech stack became the unseen edge that turned early disadvantage into dominance.</li></ul><ul><li><strong>The end game of crypto</strong>—why AI agents will eat the crypto market before humans do, and what Daniel means when he says machines will transact with each other "in ways we don't even understand."</li></ul><ul><li><strong>The paradox of rivalry</strong> — how competition became Bitso’s great source of discipline and growth.</li></ul></li><p><br /></p><p><strong>Join The J Curve Community:</strong></p><p><a href="https://blog.thejcurve.com/" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠</a>: Weekly deep dives into LATAM's hottest deals, emerging trends, and market intelligence</p><p><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/olgamaslikhova/" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠</a>: Daily market insights and exclusive founder updates</p><p><a href="https://www.instagram.com/olgamaslikhova/" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠</a>: Behind-the-scenes podcast moments and quick industry takes</p><p><a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/4vU5be4R3VfcY1BVxw8Q4q?si=669707605e9b447f" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Hit subscribe⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠</a> and share this episode with fellow entrepreneurs and investors</p><p><br /></p>