POW with Ethan Rose

Ethan Rose is the founder and CEO of Pouch.ph, a bitcoin-only & lightning network service provider for the Philippines.

 What were you doing before Web3?

I’ve founded Pouch.ph, the first bitcoin-only & lightning network service provider for the Philippines. I used to work as a Software Engineering in Seattle for big tech companies like Uber, but the problem of expensive remittances to the Philippines was something that I felt called to solve.

 How did you get into Web3?

I got specifically into Bitcoin around the time that governments shut down economies in the name of “public health” and then replaced all that economic output with money printing. I realized that governments (1) have far too much control over peoples’ lives and (2) the value of money, as it is today, is completely imaginary and I don’t have much faith in the people who control its issuance.

 What was your first crypto or NFT project?

Pouch.ph was the first and only project in the space that I’ve worked on, and I intend to build it to last my lifetime. Pouch is a service that allows Philippine Peso value to be transmitted over bitcoin’s lightning network for more efficient cross-border settlements.

 How would you explain what you do to someone outside of Web3?

Pouch makes it faster & cheaper for overseas Filipinos to send money to the Philippines.

 Which creator or thought leader do you enjoy learning from?

Ray Dalio.

 What is the biggest highlight of your career so far?

Going on ABS-CBN to talk about Bitcoin Island (Boracay) was cool! But I have to say, nothing can beat getting to interact with all of the incredible Bitcoiners who came to the Bitcoin Island Retreat – even people from all over the world attended!

 What tech or crypto trend are you watching this year?

Larger institutional adoption of Bitcoin and the lightning network. Retail on the other hand is dropping out of memecoins.

 What advice would you give someone starting out in Web3?

Don’t be greedy – there are so many distractions & delusional projects out there, and people get sucked in by the “ponzinomics”, the idea that they could get rich quick. The only project with real value that will last is Bitcoin. I will be stacking sats for life and leaving Bitcoin to my kids.

 If you could do a TED talk on any topic, what would it be?

I like to speak in interviews or chats, but I actually get stage fright when I am speaking in public in the format of delivering a speech. I could probably get through copying the speech that Michael Saylor did at the BTC Prague 2023 conference.

 What is the one thing you would bring if you were stuck on a deserted Island?

A musical instrument, perhaps a guitar. Hopefully, I could use the time to become proficient at it and at the same time, distract myself since it’s bound to be a lonely time on the deserted island.

POW stands for “Proof of Work.” It is a new feature article series in The Mega Maxi to highlight the savviest builders in the Web3 space.