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From Philosophy to Fintech: Building UmrahCash for Pilgrims to Saudi Arabia feat. William Phelps
In the 51st episode of Colors of Web3 and Entrepreneurship, we sit down with William Phelps, the founder and CEO of UmrahCash. William, originally from London with a background in philosophy and traditional finance, found his passion in emerging markets and the potential of blockchain technology.
After working with an Africa-focused Web3 fund, William saw a significant gap in the market for financial services catering to pilgrims traveling to Saudi Arabia. He founded UmrahCash to address the challenges pilgrims face in accessing local currency, particularly those from emerging markets with currency restrictions.
Join us as William explains how UmrahCash leverages stablecoins to simplify access to Saudi Riyals for pilgrims, working within the existing financial and cultural landscape to provide a seamless and secure experience.
⌛ Timestamps:
00:00:00 Episode trailer
00:01:24 Show introduction and brief self-intro from William Phelps
00:01:57 William discusses his transition from traditional finance to Web3
00:05:20 How Saudi Arabia is supporting Web3 His favorite experiences in previous companies
00:06:53 What made William study philosophy and his PTSD from the writing day
00:09:33 His experience working at a financial broker
00:12:15 How William discovered blockchain
00:14:23 William talks about his experience working at Adiverse
00:20:14 William's take on Cardano’s role in emerging markets and the academic nature of Cardano
00:22:39 William shares his personal interests and language skills
00:28:51 An in-depth look at UmrahCash and its mission
00:32:18 Understanding the demand for pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia
00:32:55 Challenges related to currency for pilgrims traveling to Saudi Arabia
00:34:52 The solution that UmrahCash has built
00:36:29 How UmrahCash works under the hood
00:38:01 Traction of UmrahCash
00:41:28 Overview of the pilgrimage process and logistics
00:44:17 How technology supports pilgrimage operations
00:45:34 How the fund movement works in UmrahCash
00:48:16 Addressing capital flight and regulatory compliance
00:50:08 William's thought on designing a user-friendly experience for customers
00:54:07 The team behind UmrahCash and company structure
00:56:52 Challenges facing UmrahCash
01:01:30 Working permits in Saudi Arabia
01:03:52 Islamic finance and cryptocurrency
01:05:40 Where to follow William
01:06:16 Episode outro and next episode preview
Follow William and his company:
William's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wjphelps/
William's Twitter: https://x.com/wphelps_
UmrahCash website: https://www.umrahcash.com/
My social media:
Twitter/X: https://www.twitter.com/LamWeb3
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lamweb3/
Website: https://lamtrinh.xyz
My old article about the 2-3 prevailing narratives of 2024-2025: https://substack.com/home/post/p-143541984
If you enjoy this episode, please subscribe to stay updated on our upcoming episodes with industry experts and innovators in the Web3 and Entrepreneurship spaces. Thank you for listening!
View all episodes
By Lam TrinhIn the 51st episode of Colors of Web3 and Entrepreneurship, we sit down with William Phelps, the founder and CEO of UmrahCash. William, originally from London with a background in philosophy and traditional finance, found his passion in emerging markets and the potential of blockchain technology.
After working with an Africa-focused Web3 fund, William saw a significant gap in the market for financial services catering to pilgrims traveling to Saudi Arabia. He founded UmrahCash to address the challenges pilgrims face in accessing local currency, particularly those from emerging markets with currency restrictions.
Join us as William explains how UmrahCash leverages stablecoins to simplify access to Saudi Riyals for pilgrims, working within the existing financial and cultural landscape to provide a seamless and secure experience.
⌛ Timestamps:
00:00:00 Episode trailer
00:01:24 Show introduction and brief self-intro from William Phelps
00:01:57 William discusses his transition from traditional finance to Web3
00:05:20 How Saudi Arabia is supporting Web3 His favorite experiences in previous companies
00:06:53 What made William study philosophy and his PTSD from the writing day
00:09:33 His experience working at a financial broker
00:12:15 How William discovered blockchain
00:14:23 William talks about his experience working at Adiverse
00:20:14 William's take on Cardano’s role in emerging markets and the academic nature of Cardano
00:22:39 William shares his personal interests and language skills
00:28:51 An in-depth look at UmrahCash and its mission
00:32:18 Understanding the demand for pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia
00:32:55 Challenges related to currency for pilgrims traveling to Saudi Arabia
00:34:52 The solution that UmrahCash has built
00:36:29 How UmrahCash works under the hood
00:38:01 Traction of UmrahCash
00:41:28 Overview of the pilgrimage process and logistics
00:44:17 How technology supports pilgrimage operations
00:45:34 How the fund movement works in UmrahCash
00:48:16 Addressing capital flight and regulatory compliance
00:50:08 William's thought on designing a user-friendly experience for customers
00:54:07 The team behind UmrahCash and company structure
00:56:52 Challenges facing UmrahCash
01:01:30 Working permits in Saudi Arabia
01:03:52 Islamic finance and cryptocurrency
01:05:40 Where to follow William
01:06:16 Episode outro and next episode preview
Follow William and his company:
William's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wjphelps/
William's Twitter: https://x.com/wphelps_
UmrahCash website: https://www.umrahcash.com/
My social media:
Twitter/X: https://www.twitter.com/LamWeb3
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lamweb3/
Website: https://lamtrinh.xyz
My old article about the 2-3 prevailing narratives of 2024-2025: https://substack.com/home/post/p-143541984
If you enjoy this episode, please subscribe to stay updated on our upcoming episodes with industry experts and innovators in the Web3 and Entrepreneurship spaces. Thank you for listening!