Charlene Chen's guest appearances

Charlene Chen

African Tech Roundup

The Think WTF Podcast

40 Minute Mentor

Sonya Kuhnel

Mark Zuckerberg

Jason Njoku

Ray Youssef

Elizabeth Rossiello

Andrew Keys

Charles Murray

Paul Kent

Andy Davis

Brian Behlendorf

Jeff Lynn

Sophie Scott

Tricia Martinez

Helen Tupper

Judith Okonkwo

OwlTail

Today’s guest and our first mentor is Charlene Chen, COO at BitPesa. BitPesa is an online payment platform that leverages Blockchain technology to significantly lower the cost and increase the speed of business payments to, from and within sub-Saharan Africa. I sat next to Charlene at an Innovate Finance dinner a couple of years ago and we instantly hit it off, sharing very similar views on the importance of people, culture and mentorship. She had a fantastic energy and I found her passion for BitPesa infectious. Charlene’s story is a really interesting and inspiring one that shows what you can achieve if you chose to follow the path less well travelled. Having started her career in Consulting she decided to take some time out to complete an MBA which led to her moving to Ghana for 3 months to work with the Tech Start up, Busy Internet. This trip opened her eyes to the opportunities that existed in Africa and after completing her MBA she went back to work with companies across Kenya and Tanzania for the best part of the last decade before moving to London to launch BitPesa. We cover some really interesting topics in today’s conversation and I hope you’re going to get a lot from what Charlene has to say. Whether you’re thinking about launching your own start up, considering an MBA or thinking of going to work in a different country or continent, there’s something in here for everyone. If you want to find out more about BitPesa you can check out their website - https://www.bitpesa.co If you want to find out more about Charlene you can check out her LinkedIn profile - https://www.linkedin.com/in/charlenechen

Today’s guest and our first mentor is Charlene Chen, COO at BitPesa. BitPesa is an online payment platform that leverages Blockchain technology to significantly lower the cost and increase the speed of business payments to, from and within sub-Saharan Africa. I sat next to Charlene at an Innovate Finance dinner a couple of years ago and we instantly hit it off, sharing very similar views on the importance of people, culture and mentorship. She had a fantastic energy and I found her passion for BitPesa infectious. Charlene’s story is a really interesting and inspiring one that shows what you can achieve if you chose to follow the path less well travelled. Having started her career in Consulting she decided to take some time out to complete an MBA which led to her moving to Ghana for 3 months to work with the Tech Start up, Busy Internet. This trip opened her eyes to the opportunities that existed in Africa and after completing her MBA she went back to work with companies across Kenya and Tanzania for the best part of the last decade before moving to London to launch BitPesa. We cover some really interesting topics in today’s conversation and I hope you’re going to get a lot from what Charlene has to say. Whether you’re thinking about launching your own start up, considering an MBA or thinking of going to work in a different country or continent, there’s something in here for everyone. If you want to find out more about BitPesa you can check out their website - <a href="https://www.bitpesa.co" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.bitpesa.co</a> If you want to find out more about Charlene you can check out her LinkedIn profile - <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/charlenechen" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.linkedin.com/in/charlenechen</a>

Following The Less Travelled Path with Charlene Chen

Regulation is often seen as a restriction to innovation. And in some cases, it certainly is, but in other cases, not so much. Perhaps what defines the difference is your attitude towards building innovation within the context of regulations. Charlene Chen, BitPesa’s COO, talks us through the challenge between innovation and regulation, and how you balance the conflicting energies and the management of different stakeholders.

Regulation is often seen as a restriction to innovation. And in some cases, it certainly is, but in other cases, not so much. Perhaps what defines the difference is your attitude towards building innovation within the context of regulations. Charlene Chen, BitPesa’s COO, talks us through the challenge between innovation and regulation, and how you balance the conflicting energies and the management of different stakeholders.

The Balance Between Innovation and Regulation - with BitPesa's Charlene Chen 

Charlene Chen reckons Bitpesa

Charlene Chen is the Chief Operating Officer of BitPesa-- an online payment platform founded in Kenya that leverages Blockchain settlement to lower the cost and increase the speed of business payments to, from and within sub-Saharan Africa. In this chat with Andile Masuku, Charlene explains how BitPesa helps clients, that range from African businesses and multinational companies paying suppliers as far as China and Dubai to international remittance companies, use their API services for white-label payments to dozens of bank networks and mobile money operators across Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Senegal, and the DRC.She also unpacks why BitPesa hasn't gotten caught up in speculation regarding Bitcoin and sheds light on the company's prospects following the successful close of their $5.7 million Series A in January 2017.

Charlene Chen is the Chief Operating Officer of BitPesa-- an online payment platform founded in Kenya that leverages Blockchain settlement to lower the cost and increase the speed of business payments to, from and within sub-Saharan Africa. In this chat with Andile Masuku, Charlene explains how BitPesa helps clients, that range from African businesses and multinational companies paying suppliers as far as China and Dubai to international remittance companies, use their API services for white-label payments to dozens of bank networks and mobile money operators across Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Senegal, and the DRC. She also unpacks why BitPesa hasn't gotten caught up in speculation regarding Bitcoin and sheds light on the company's prospects following the successful close of their $5.7 million Series A in January 2017.

Charlene Chen reckons Bitpesa is well-positioned to surf the blockchain wave