Business

The 5 Biggest Mistakes That First-Time Entrepreneurs Make

Published

4 years ago

December 22, 2021

Becoming an entrepreneur is the dream of many, and that’s understandable, seeing as it comes with a lot of amazing benefits. However, when they finally achieve this dream, a large percentage of people often end up with failed businesses.

Based on information from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, over 20% of startup businesses fail within the two years of establishment and about 50% by the fifth year. Overall, it was concluded that 75% of new businesses don’t make it to the 15th year. This is mostly a result of some rather common mistakes that could be easily avoided.

Sebastian Scheplitz, Founder and CEO of an agency network of five agencies and two e-commerce businesses, has had his fair share of problems between being in a coma, being bullied, and being unemployed. Before founding his first company, he got a degree in international marketing, PR, and business. And now, his content marketing agency for the iGaming industry, Translation Royale, has grown to become one of the top three agencies in Europe for this expertise. Shortly after, he created four more agencies, The Content Spa, Hotcopy Asia, Mastercut Video, and oak & bao, and has started two e-commerce brands.

Sebastian provides insight on some of the 5 most common mistakes first-time entrepreneurs make:

Not Having a Clear Plan and Business Strategy

The current business world is developing rapidly and therefore becoming more complicated and competitive. This is why it is more important now than before to always have a clear plan and sound business strategy. Entrepreneurs have to stand out in the market, so copying the business strategy of another business and hoping it works out may end up being disastrous for the business.

Improvising when it comes to business strategy is also not encouraged as it can often lead to a waste of capital and resources. Sebastian suggests that you have clear goals to succeed: “Don’t say you want to make more in sales; say ‘I want to sell x number more. This means x phone calls per day/x amount of ad spend more.’ Don’t say, ‘My own business would be nice’ say ‘On Saturday, I’m planning to research business ideas for four hours; and on Sunday I’m going to research competitors for each. This weekend I’m going to write a short non-detailed business plan, and print it, laminate it – so I can work with it going forward.’”

Having a Bad Support System

One of the best traits of a successful entrepreneur is accepting that you can’t handle everything alone. So you need to create a support system of people who can contribute to your goal and give you the moral support you need on your goal. According to Sebastian, nothing ruins your life and, therefore, your business more than toxic people.

The business world can be a risky place. There are factors you cannot control, like the fluctuations in the global market and environmental factors. But there are also factors you can control, and one of them is your support system. This is why you should not take it for granted.

Waiting Too Long To Launch

A lot of first-time entrepreneurs end up wasting a lot of time overthinking the same things. They always want to launch the perfect product and end up delaying the launch. But the longer the delay in launching, the more they will start to obsess over inconsequential details. Sebastian advises that you should not fall for the trap of over-researching and over-strategizing.

Waiting too long to launch can lead to a significant waste of time, capital, and resources to create a product that does not align with the consumer’s needs. The best thing to do is to launch an MVP, a minimum viable product, test for market fit, determine areas that can be improved and modify the product as time goes on. Think of it this way, iPhone 12 is a long way from iPhone 1.

Not Having a Target Audience

One of the most common mistakes first-time entrepreneurs often make is not researching the market properly to determine their target audience. It is very inefficient to build a product for every possible audience. Although everyone is a potential customer, without a target audience, even the greatest marketing campaigns can become useless once the message is misdirected.

So, in order to create a successful marketing campaign, it is important to narrow down your target audience. While researching your target audience, you need to understand all their pain points. You can even create different campaigns to target different groups for the same products. However, Sebastian recommends that you start with one of them first and focus your efforts on this group instead of trying to appeal to everyone.

Not Having a Good Work-Life Balance

New business owners are often tempted to always put their business first and neglect other aspects of their life. However, this can be very harmful to both your business and your personal life. It is important that you dedicate adequate time for both your personal and business life because any negative effects on your personal life will affect your business and vice versa.

Sebastian, who also spent time on Japanese Studies at university, explains that according to Ikigai, a Japanese concept referring to something that gives a person a sense of purpose in their lives, there are four pillars to find happiness. They are work life, relationships, wealth, and health. He further explained that if you leave one out, your life will lose its stability. You can always choose to emphasize one or two of them for a short period. But ultimately, your life, and therefore, the business will only run smoothly if all of them are stable.

Concluding Thoughts

Launching a business is the simple part; even if it doesn’t always feel like it, keeping the business alive can be even more challenging. Statistics have shown that the odds might not be in favor of new businesses.

Despite this, one should not despair because the reason why most new businesses fail can be traced back to a few common mistakes; Not having a clear plan and business strategy, Having a bad support system, Waiting too long to launch, Not having a target audience and Not having a good work-life balance.

So as long as you work hard and avoid these common mistakes, your chance of creating a successful business is very high.

Business

Inside the $4.3B Quarter: What’s Fueling Black Banx’s Record Revenues

Published

14 hours ago

January 16, 2026

Matthew Wiles

Every quarter brings fresh headlines in fintech, but few make the kind of impact achieved by Black Banx in Q2 2025. The Toronto-based global digital banking group, founded by Michael Gastauer, reported an extraordinary USD 4.3 billion in revenue and a record USD 1.6 billion in pre-tax profit, while improving its cost-to-income ratio to 63%.

These results not only highlight the company’s operational efficiency but also mark a pivotal moment in its journey from challenger to global leader. The big question is: what’s fueling such impressive financial performance?

Customer Growth as the Core Driver

One of the clearest engines of revenue growth is Black Banx’s expanding customer base. By Q2 2025, the platform had reached 84 million clients worldwide, up from 69 million at the end of 2024. This 15 million net gain in six months demonstrates both the attractiveness of its services and the scalability of its model.

Unlike traditional banks, which rely heavily on branch expansion, Black Banx leverages digital-first onboarding that allows customers to open accounts within minutes using just a smartphone. This approach is especially effective in regions underserved by legacy institutions, where access to affordable financial tools is in high demand.

More customers don’t just mean higher transaction volumes—they generate a compounding effect where network size, brand trust, and service adoption reinforce one another.

Real-Time Payments and Cross-Border Solutions

A major contributor to Q2 revenues is the platform’s real-time payments infrastructure. Black Banx enables instant cross-border transfers across its 28 supported fiat currencies and multiple cryptocurrencies, helping both individuals and businesses bypass the traditional bottlenecks of international banking.

For freelancers, SMEs, and multinational clients, this means faster liquidity, reduced foreign exchange costs, and simplified global operations. The demand for real-time financial services is growing rapidly—Juniper Research projects global real-time payments turnover to hit USD 58 trillion by 2028—and Black Banx is strategically positioned to capture a significant share of this market.

Crypto Integration as a Revenue Stream

Another key revenue driver is crypto integration. While many traditional institutions remain hesitant, Black Banx embraced digital assets early and has built infrastructure to support Bitcoin, Ethereum, and the Lightning Network. In Q2 2025, 20% of all transactions on the platform were crypto-based, reflecting strong customer appetite for hybrid banking services that bridge fiat and digital assets.

Revenue comes not only from transaction fees but also from value-added services like crypto-to-fiat conversion, staking yields (4–12% APY), and blockchain-enabled payments. For customers in markets with unstable currencies, these services act as a financial lifeline, further expanding the platform’s relevance.

AI-Powered Efficiency and Risk Management

Record revenues would be less impressive if costs ballooned at the same rate. But Black Banx has proven adept at balancing growth with efficiency. Its cost-to-income ratio improved to 63% in Q2, down from 69% a year earlier, thanks to heavy reliance on AI-powered automation.

AI now drives fraud detection, compliance, and customer onboarding—areas where traditional banks often struggle with cost inefficiencies. By automating these processes, Black Banx can process millions of transactions securely while maintaining profitability at scale. This level of efficiency is rare in fintech, where high growth often comes at the expense of margins.

Regional Expansion and Untapped Markets

Geography also plays a role in fueling revenues. Much of the Q2 growth came from Africa, South Asia, and Latin America—regions where demand for mobile-first banking continues to soar. In 2024 alone, Black Banx reported a 32% increase in SME clients from the Middle East and Africa, signaling the strength of its positioning in underserved markets.

By extending services to populations previously excluded from formal banking—migrant workers, rural communities, and small businesses—Black Banx taps into vast pools of latent demand. The strategy proves that financial inclusion and profitability are not mutually exclusive but mutually reinforcing.

Diversified Revenue Streams

Another factor behind Q2’s record revenues is Black Banx’s diversified business model. Income is not tied to a single service but spread across multiple streams, including:

Transaction fees from cross-border transfers and payments.
Crypto trading and exchange services.
Premium account features for high-net-worth clients.
Corporate services for SMEs and international businesses.

This diversification insulates the company against volatility in any single segment, creating stable revenue growth even in shifting market conditions.

Michael Gastauer’s Strategic Blueprint

Behind these results is Michael Gastauer’s long-term strategy: scale aggressively but with efficiency, innovation, and inclusion at the core. His vision has always been to create a borderless financial ecosystem, and Q2 2025’s performance is evidence that this vision is not only achievable but sustainable.

By balancing mass-market accessibility with premium features, and by blending fiat with digital assets, Gastauer has positioned Black Banx as a category-defining player in global finance.

The Road Ahead: Toward 100 Million Clients

Looking forward, the company’s goal of reaching 100 million customers by the end of 2025 will likely be the next catalyst for revenue growth. More customers mean more transactions, more data insights, and more opportunities to refine and expand its service offering.

If current momentum holds, the USD 4.3 billion quarterly revenue milestone could be just the beginning of an even larger growth story. The challenge will be ensuring systems scale securely while maintaining trust in an environment where privacy and compliance are paramount.

A Record That Signals More to Come

Black Banx’s Q2 2025 performance—USD 4.3 billion in revenue, USD 1.6 billion in pre-tax profit, 84 million clients worldwide, and a lean 63% cost-to-income ratio—is more than a financial milestone. It is a signal of how the future of banking is being rewritten by platforms that are borderless, crypto-inclusive, and data-driven.

What fueled this record-breaking quarter is not one innovation but a combination of strategies—scalable onboarding, real-time payments, crypto integration, AI efficiency, and expansion into underserved regions. Together, they form a model that doesn’t just challenge traditional banking but actively builds the foundation for global dominance.

For Black Banx, the road ahead is clear: the $4.3 billion quarter is not an endpoint but a launchpad for even greater scale and profitability.