Gene A. Grant II
Houston, United States
Chief Executive Officer at LevelField Financial | Vertically integrating traditional banking with FinTech-level customer experience. Supporting participants in the digital asset class with banking, lending, custody, and trading.
Summary
Currently CEO of the second financial services firm I co-founded, some of my other roles have included Managing Director at the global bank BBVA, CEO of a financial services software vendor, investment banking management consultant, and a floor trader on a New York futures exchange. Now a citizen, I moved to the USA in 1990 with little more than an ambition to succeed, borrowed money, and the offer of a fellowship to study at NYU. Born in Canada, and raised by a single father, we struggled to survive day to day. I had to work hard every step of the way to overcome those humble beginnings, and never take having enough food to eat for granted. Worked three jobs to pay for my undergraduate degree (started my first job at 12 years old by economic necessity) and today I retain that work ethic forged by the need to make things happen. As an entrepreneur, I started my first business at the age of 14, awarded a patent at 21, and when 29 took my first Fintech startup public at an early stage on the AIM division of the London Stock Exchange. Other personal investment projects included co-founding a management consultancy and an award-winning luxury goods retail store. Within my professional career, I have lived in six cities, spanning three continents, and have led sizable globally disbursed teams. My financial industry licenses and registrations included FINRA Series 24, 4, 7, and 66, Commodity Pool Operator, Floor Broker, and NFA member. I worked at firms including Deutsche Bank, Barclays Capital, Merrill Lynch, Citigroup, UBS, Standard Chartered Bank, ANZ bank, PIMCO, and BBVA. Articles published in Forbes.com, MarketWatch, Fortune, American Banker, Global Banking & Finance Review, and Crowdfund Insider. Experienced conference speaker. Forbes.com Contributor
Chief Executive Officer
LevelField Financial
1 Nov 2017 - Present
8yrs 9mos
Houston, Texas Area
LevelField is in the process of acquiring a chartered bank. The vision for the post-acquisition bank is based upon the belief that banking must become 24x7 to match customer demands and expectations, and the best way to incrementally reach that goal is to start by meeting the needs of people who already want such services: customers who participate in the digital asset class. Our strategy is to build a traditional financial services business by working with the underserved customer base of people interested in digital assets. Consistent with current banking regulations, the bank will not hold digital assets or have direct exposure to the asset class. Our customers may own digital assets, and we expect the bank to provide custody services for the digital assets belonging to our customers, but the bank will not own any digital assets. In short, LevelField is not a cryptocurrency company. We identified the opportunity to profitably move toward our long-term strategic vision of changing the banking industry by serving the growing needs of the segment of the population (12% of Americans) who have interest in the digital asset class, and expect access to round-the-clock financial services, without direct exposure to digital assets ourselves. Our conservative – yet innovative – leadership team are established financial services professionals. “Safe. Simple. Secure” represent the guiding principles as we continue to grow our “best in class” customer service experience. For those seeking the highest quality customer experience for traditional banking products, the purchase or sale of bitcoin, the industry leading digital asset custody solution, or financing products (including loans collateralized by bitcoin), join our waitlist on https://lp.levelfield.us
Garden Leave
Deciding upon my next challenge
1 Dec 2016 - 30 Nov 2017
11mos
Houston, Texas Area
Toured the USA and Canada with my wife on a Harley Davidson Softail Classic. Now I ride a Road Glide Limited.
Managing Director, Deputy to Head CIB USA and Global Head of Business Evolution Group
BBVA Compass
1 Jan 2014 - 31 Oct 2016
2yrs 9mos
Houston, Texas
Relocated to Houston as deputy to Co-Head Corporate and Investment Banking USA to focus upon the globally prioritized USA businesses and promotion of growth within the three major legal entities: BBVA Compass Bank, BBVA Securities (I hold Series 7, 24, 4, & 66), and BBVA SA NY Branch. Responsible for oversight of all Global Market and support functions (including interactions with Wealth Management) except sales and trading. Translated business ambitions (including BBVA’s goal to be the leading digital bank) and cost management mandates into concrete deliverables Areas of emphasis include establishment of new business lines Energy Product Hedging (Commodity derivatives), Structured Products medium term note (MTN) program, Fixed Income Repo, and cash equities; and continuous improvement within Fixed Income and Repo, Regulation, and coordination & communication both within CIB USA and within the greater group.
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