Business

How William Erbey’s ideas become reality

Published

5 years ago

September 22, 2020

How the entrepreneur, philanthropist and inventor Bill Erbey applies his philosophy to machines and medicine.

It’s rare to meet a serial entrepreneur who founded six multibillion-dollar publicly-listed companies, who applies mathematical and statistical concepts to his business projects. When questioned about their success, others choose happenstance over conspiracy; for William Erbey, it’s the application of math and statistics each time.

“For the last 50 years I have applied those concepts to my businesses wherever possible-my goal is to devise products that provide greater value to the customer, that can be produced at a lower cost, so I can compete on price if need be,” said Bill. In his case those projects almost always involved a technological solution grounded in math and statistics.

Bill has invented a patent-pending control system for generators and electric motors. In simple terms, it reduces the heat generated by half, and increases the engine’s efficiency by about 8%. The Kira motor technology will radically enhance the modern electric motor by increasing its driving range, which will significantly increase electric vehicles mass adoption.

A recent investment close to Bill’s heart is in the futuristic area of medical devices, and more specifically, in the medical technology associated with kidney failure.

“Of course, there’s obviously math and analytics involved here, but not the same type. What are the three biggest medical spends? – Kidney, cancer and cardiac. Do you realise that medical treatment involving kidneys in the United States will represent a $1.4 trillion spend by 2030, so it’s a massive issue”, he said in a recent RealVision interview.

What interested Bill specifically was John Erbey’s idea, changing the whole way of thinking about how one deals with kidney problems.

In essence most of today’s solutions are all about pushing fluid through the kidney, or “renal preload”. “Today, we try and put more fluid through the system, and we use drugs as well”.

For Bill it was the way the fledgling company is looking at the whole issue from outside the box. “The reason I invested in the company, besides him being my nephew” he smiled “was the fact that his solution was so elegant. “Why didn’t anybody think of looking at the problem in that way before? Why do you push fluid through the kidney-why wouldn’t you pull fluid through it instead? It is a very elegant and simple solution to a major problem”.

According to the Strataca Systems’ official website, the company believes ‘expensive medical problems require effective solutions’. Few problems are as large or as expensive as acute decompensated heart failure, which leads over 1 million hospital admissions in the USA each year. The primary reason for hospitalisation is congestion-fluid overload-which leads to shortness of breath’. Since the kidneys are responsible for fluid management, as renal function is compromised, the morbidity, mortality and costs for these patients rise. The company is developing patented technology to improve urine output and decrease congestion.

The problem that is being addressed is hugely significant in numbers alone; between eight and 10% of the world’s population suffers from cardiorenal syndrome-that is, kidney failure. In real terms that’s 12 Americans dying each day.

What separates Bill from many investors, is that he really is interested in the minute detail of how the product or service works. He’s a man who really cares about making people’s lives better – it’s his key to success. He wanted to know exactly how the medical device worked and what was the thought behind it. And he’s therefore able to explain the details.

“By pushing liquid through the kidney, you put more pressure on it-the kidney itself is in a semirigid sack, so it actually starts deteriorating the kidney function. So it was interesting when my nephew explained to me exactly how they deal with the problem today. It was like my understanding of the Internet”. Today, the cure for this ‘congestion’, rather like the cure for the increased Internet congestion, is again trying to push more stuff through the system. The kidney pushes back and basically nothing happens. John spent four months thinking about why nobody had ever thought about the problem in his way. So what he does is use negative pressure to pull the urine out of the kidney. It’s already through the animal testing stage and is now going through human testing”.

And like his other projects combining investment with innovation, machinery, conservation, Internet streaming, Bill believes that this will ultimately help people to not have to go on dialysis.

“It’s a horrible thing and certainly significantly truncates one’s life expectancy. As I said it’s a $1.4 trillion market which is amazing. And that figure represents the US alone. Globally it’s probably closer to $3 trillion. So it’s a massive market, and he has a very strong patented protection around the idea”.

It’s no wonder that they call Bill Erbey a Renaissance man; looking at his myriad of inventions and investments, he certainly seems to exemplify the expression “the man with the Midas touch”. Watch this space.

Business

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

Published

4 days 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.