By Lyndsey Newport —

Former U of L student Enrique Rodriquez founded Crypto Consulting Group, which deals with currencies like the recently famous Bitcoin and smaller web coins.

The startup was founded nine months ago, and the group now has six employees on staff. Three are former U of L students dropped out so they could devote more time to the group.

Consultant Bryar Herald said group consulting classes are nearing maximum capacity, with 20-30 clients attending the investment meetings every weekend.

Herald said the cryptocurrency market is different from trading stocks. The value of web coins can be more volatile, and they don’t represent a share of the company like publicly traded stocks do.

Crypto Consulting Group advises clients against day trading, which is when investors try to complete transactions at critical points in the daily fluctuation of the coin or stock’s value. Herald said even day traders with years of stock market experience have not had much success doing the same with cryptocurrencies.

The group does not tell clients what to buy or when to make transactions. Instead, they focus on raising awareness about cryptocurrency and giving educated investment recommendations.

“The thing we promote is the education in not only the technology but investing in general,” Rodriquez said. “We have helped people figure out their investment horizons and much more.”

With a client base ranging in age from 16-81, Rodriquez said investors have found major success from the company.

“We have recommended picks to people that have had profitable results of over 5,000 percent,” Rodriquez said.

Rodriquez was a communication major but didn’t know what type of career he was looking for.

“I spent three years at U of L trying to figure out what I wanted to do for the rest of my life, and to no surprise, when I couldn’t decide on something I ultimately decided to go create my own career,” Rodriquez said.

Rodriquez and his partner, Jacob Melin, now have a team of four consultants working with them.

The team offers workshops to interested parties to introduce them to cryptocurrencies and the idea of investing. This includes surface-level tips and information to know before getting involved with cryptocurrency.

For more advanced investors, the consulting group has created an in-depth workshop. Through this package, Crypto Consulting Group gives clients different investing strategies and evaluation methods.

The volatility of cryptocurrencies has led critics to question if these markets are sustainable.

Rodriquez said the biggest challenge the group is facing is how mainstream media covers alternative currencies.

“They are constantly spreading inaccurate news and scaring people away from the space when they should be promoting education,” Rodriquez said.

Rodriquez has a vision for the future of an expanded company that includes various locations and a bigger team.

“Our group is currently working on a CCG consultant certification that will allow us to recruit the most experienced and knowledgeable individuals to enlighten the crypto-curious all over the world,” Rodriquez said.

Sporting his U of L roots, Rodriquez plans on expanding his efforts onto campus to find new talent and to spread education about cryptocurrencies.

Rodriquez said he hopes to change the modern landscape of the current crypto economy and make wealth more accessible to everyday people.

Graphic by Mitchell Howes / The Louisville Cardinal