014: Neil Gordon: Disrupting Côte d’Ivoire’s Cocoa Sector with Blockchain

Young African Entrepreneur

Neil Gordon is the founder and CEO of Global Agricultural Exchange (GAEX). You can connect with him @gaexcocoa on Twitter. GAEX is a Blockchain-enabled platform that provides liquidity to cocoa farmers in West Africa. Neil is a former bank having worked at JPMorgan, Deutsche Bank, and KPMG. Neil is probably one of the most ambitious people I’ve met in a while. His goal to disrupt the Ivorian cocoa sector is a breathe of fresh air. It’s uplifting to meet someone who isn’t scared of dreaming big and masters the mechanics of how it’d work. Cynics — and the cocoa sector has a few — might say it’s pie in the sky. But, this is the wrong attitude. I survived a year and a half trading cocoa and I know that the sector does not lend itself to innovation. But, as margins for commodity traders get whittled down, traders need to boost efficiencies, which Blockchain can provide. However, Cote d’Ivoire’s cocoa sector is known for its problematic supply chain. Whether right or wrong, it is synonymous with child labor and rampant deforestation, which has made chocolate companies more vigilant about their supply chains. All of this to say that a Blockchain-enabled solution that could solve the trust issue that plagues cocoa trading is much needed. Neil also had great actionable advice for dealing with VC investors, especially for startup founders of color. Make sure to check out the show notes for all his tips. If you’re interested in finance, trading, or curious about Blockchain, which Neil helps to demystify, this is the episode for you. Without further ado, here’s my conversation with Neil Gordon.