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integrity over

We need to hold ourselves to a higher standard.
That means transparency and putting
customers above financial gains.

Ray Youssef About revenue
50%
of his business profits are given back

The Foundation Constructs A School in The Global South

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We need to hold ourselves to a higher standard. That means transparency and putting customers above financial gains.

Ray Youssef About

About Ray Youssef

The Entrepreneur & Change Maker

Ray Youssef is a unique entrepreneur. He truly believes that we make the world better when we put the interests of all above those of the few. That means CEOs should focus on empowering people instead of driving profits. Ray calls his philosophy “integrity over revenue.”

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We all need to hold ourselves
to a higher standard Ray Youssef®

Clean water

Part of Ray’s business model includes “giving back” to the community. Although building schools is a priority, Ray knows that basic infrastructure is just as important. He thinks access to clean water is a human right, so many of his infrastructure projects like schools include water filtration systems that are often the only clean water supply available to the surrounding community.

Economic empowerment for the unbanked

Ray has long argued that cryptocurrencies make it much easier for people in emerging economies to make financial transactions. They do not have access to traditional financial infrastructure, so they have difficulty making simple transactions like payments and remittances – tasks that people in other parts of the world take for granted. Crypto is a game-changer.

Bullish Education

One of Ray’s business philosophies is Bullish Education. It means empowering people with skills and knowledge to provide a solid foundation for future success. Through the construction of schools and business education centers, Ray is helping to teach the next generation of entrepreneurs how to take hold of their futures while helping to build thriving communities without the need to leave home.

Access to Technology

It is not good enough to simply make financial products and tech innovations accessible to people in emerging economies – they must be affordable, and it’s even better if they are free! In 2023, Ray co-founded CivKit, an open source, revolutionary market system built on the Nostr protocol that allows anyone, anywhere to build their own marketplace.

Life story

As a boy, helped his family run their newsstand at Columbus Circle, NYC

1980-90s
Circa 2000

Graduated from Baruch College, NYC, with a history degree

Taught himself to code, became interested in tech

Circa 2000
2001

First start-up: Matrix M, a very successful ringtones business based in NYC

Started Fun Hi, a social network business based on tokens – ahead of its time

2004
Circa 2005-6

Left business to re-charge and pursue self-development. Physical fitness, exploring new cultures. Lived on the West Coast, trained – boxing, had some amateur MMA bouts. Traveled all over Asia – incl. Thailand, Myanmar/Vietnam/Japan – climbed Mt Fuji.

Hurricane Katrina – on the ground in the aftermath of the hurricane. Learned how to “give-back” by helping to rebuild The New Orleans Cathedral Academy – the first school opened after Hurricane Katrina. Learned the fundamentals of philanthropy from Sister Mary-Rose and the nuns of the New Orleans Academy.

2007
2011

Went to Egypt to “help-out” during the Arab Spring. Was fighting with the rebels in Tahrir Square, Cairo, and was wounded. Interrogated by the military and eventually released. Learned that “putting your body on the line to protest” does not work.

Occupy Wall Street, Zuccotti Park, NYC. Spoke as a first-hand witness at rallies to explain the Arab Spring. Realized that the money system causes most of the world’s problems. Decided to do something about it.

2011/12
2012

The money system “rabbit-hole.” Researched the money system. First deep-dive into Bitcoin, something he had earlier dismissed as “Internet funny money.” Read Satoshi Nakamoto’s white paper.

2013

First Bitcoin meet-up at Webster Hall, NYC. Met Bitcoin pioneers, entrepreneurs, developers. Began to frequent the Bitcoin Center in NYC regularly. Made contacts.

2013-14

First crypto start-ups. None could gain traction.

Homeless. Very little savings from previous businesses. Convinced he could make crypto work to help solve problems, but could not find the right path.

2014
2015

Discovered a way to make money trading gift cards for crypto. Converted one of his old servers to a new business – co-founded Paxful, one of the biggest crypto peer-to-peer exchanges in the world.

Spearheaded crypto adoption in the Global South, particularly in Africa and especially in Nigeria.

Circa 2016-17
2015

Founded and became Executive Director of Built with Bitcoin (BwB). Funded by Paxful and based upon the lesson learned from the nuns in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina. The goal was to “give back in the right way,” by providing education, clean water, and power infrastructure for people in the Global South so they have the same opportunities as people in other parts of the world. The first school was built in Rwanda in 2017. To date, more than a dozen schools have been built, in addition to infrastructure projects such as clean water, solar power, and community halls. (Funding was cut when Ray left Paxful.)

2022

Paxful reaches 10m users of its platform (after 7 years of operation).

Paxful is included in the Time Top 100 Influential Companies list.

2023

Ray resigns from Paxful and gives up all of his shares due to a conflict with his co-founder over the direction of the company, and his inability to continue his mission to provide financial solutions to the people of the Global South as a company based in the U.S.

2023

Founds and becomes CEO of NoOnes, a crypto peer-to-peer app based in the Global South. Follows a business plan that better serves the people of the Global South by providing financial products and opportunities tailored to their needs. Included in the business plan is a model that gives back 50% of company profits to “citizens” of NoOnes.

NoOnes reaches 2m users of its platform (after 2 years of operation).

2025

The therayfund.com is created to continue the work begun by Built with Bitcoin in 2017, including a goal to build 100 schools in the Global South.

2025

As a boy, helped his family run their newsstand at Columbus Circle, NYC

Graduated from Baruch College, NYC, with a history degree

Taught himself to code, became interested in tech

First start-up: Matrix M, a very successful ringtones business based in NYC

Started Fun Hi, a social network business based on tokens – ahead of its time

Left business to re-charge and pursue self-development. Physical fitness, exploring new cultures. Lived on the West Coast, trained – boxing, had some amateur MMA bouts. Traveled all over Asia – incl. Thailand, Myanmar/Vietnam/Japan – climbed Mt Fuji.

Hurricane Katrina – on the ground in the aftermath of the hurricane. Learned how to “give-back” by helping to rebuild The New Orleans Cathedral Academy – the first school opened after Hurricane Katrina. Learned the fundamentals of philanthropy from Sister Mary-Rose and the nuns of the New Orleans Academy.

Went to Egypt to “help-out” during the Arab Spring. Was fighting with the rebels in Tahrir Square, Cairo, and was wounded. Interrogated by the military and eventually released. Learned that “putting your body on the line to protest” does not work.

Occupy Wall Street, Zuccotti Park, NYC. Spoke as a first-hand witness at rallies to explain the Arab Spring. Realized that the money system causes most of the world’s problems. Decided to do something about it.

The money system “rabbit-hole.” Researched the money system. First deep-dive into Bitcoin, something he had earlier dismissed as “Internet funny money.” Read Satoshi Nakamoto’s white paper.

First Bitcoin meet-up at Webster Hall, NYC. Met Bitcoin pioneers, entrepreneurs, developers. Began to frequent the Bitcoin Center in NYC regularly. Made contacts.

First crypto start-ups. None could gain traction.

Homeless. Very little savings from previous businesses. Convinced he could make crypto work to help solve problems, but could not find the right path.

Discovered a way to make money trading gift cards for crypto. Converted one of his old servers to a new business – co-founded Paxful, one of the biggest crypto peer-to-peer exchanges in the world.

Spearheaded crypto adoption in the Global South, particularly in Africa and especially in Nigeria.

Founded and became Executive Director of Built with Bitcoin (BwB). Funded by Paxful and based upon the lesson learned from the nuns in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina. The goal was to “give back in the right way,” by providing education, clean water, and power infrastructure for people in the Global South so they have the same opportunities as people in other parts of the world. The first school was built in Rwanda in 2017. To date, more than a dozen schools have been built, in addition to infrastructure projects such as clean water, solar power, and community halls. (Funding was cut when Ray left Paxful.)

Paxful reaches 10m users of its platform (after 7 years of operation).

Paxful is included in the Time Top 100 Influential Companies list.

Ray resigns from Paxful and gives up all of his shares due to a conflict with his co-founder over the direction of the company, and his inability to continue his mission to provide financial solutions to the people of the Global South as a company based in the U.S.

Founds and becomes CEO of NoOnes, a crypto peer-to-peer app based in the Global South. Follows a business plan that better serves the people of the Global South by providing financial products and opportunities tailored to their needs. Included in the business plan is a model that gives back 50% of company profits to “citizens” of NoOnes.

NoOnes reaches 2m users of its platform (after 2 years of operation).

The therayfund.com is created to continue the work begun by Built with Bitcoin in 2017, including a goal to build 100 schools in the Global South.

Publications

  • P2P crypto platform woos Nigerian Binance users 

    15th March 2024

    Peer-to-peer cryptocurrency platform, NoOnes, has become the go-to choice for Nigerian crypto enthusiasts following the exit of Binance from the country amid a regulatory ban on its activities.

    Read more

  • The Future Of Cryptocurrency In Africa

    15th March 2024

    CIO Africa, interviewed Ray Youssef, the visionary CEO behind NoOnes, a financial communication super app to dive deep into cryptocurrency critical issues.

    Read more

  • NoOnes CEO Ray Youssef Backs IMF on Crypto Regulation in Nigeria

    15th March 2024

    Techeconomy had reported about The IMF’s recommendation that global cryptocurrency trading platforms should be registered or licensed in Nigeria and subject to regulatory requirements. 

    Read more
  • More articles
Publications

Media

Ray Youssef is considered a cryptocurrency expert, and he is regularly contacted for comment by major international news organizations. He has appeared on hundreds of television shows, podcasts, cryptocurrency, blockchain and finance events, and his written commentary regularly appears in major crypto and business news sites online and in print. He is a polished media performer known for his powerful, and, at times, controversial speeches that advocate for equality in the Global South.

Media
What we do

School In The Global South

The fund is a non-profit organization that uses cryptocurrency to collaborate with local communities and partners on the ground to provide access to clean water, quality education, and nutritious food for a healthy and prosperous environment. It accomplishes this by constructing schools, water wells, and sustainable farms.

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