If Lance Can Build a Global Business from Rwanda, What’s Stopping You?
- projectownership20
- Jul 6
- 2 min read
What if the next global tech founder didn’t come from Silicon Valley—but from North Carolina A&T?
What if he didn’t launch from Wall Street—but from Rwanda?
Meet Lance Davis, founder of Sereel, a blockchain startup helping financial institutions in Africa tokenize assets like fiat currency and securities. Lance didn’t follow the traditional path. Instead, he moved across the world to build something big—without waiting for permission.
Oh—and he’s only 26 years old.
The Real Story
Lance’s journey didn’t start with funding. It started with candy.
As a kid, his father—an entrepreneur himself—had him selling sweets to learn sales and confidence early. “Entrepreneurship is how wealth is created,” his dad would say. That seed was planted deep.
Later, in high school, Lance started learning about stocks and ownership on YouTube. By the time he got to NC A&T, he was trading on Robinhood and listening to podcasts like Earn Your Leisure and Wall Street Trapper. But even then, he kept to himself: “I didn’t really talk about it. I was kind of an introvert unless we were doing business.”
While most of his peers weren’t thinking about building companies, Lance had two friends—fellow students he studied abroad with in South Korea—who also talked about investing, crypto, and building wealth. Though they eventually pursued different paths, those conversations helped shape his mindset.
“A solid group of friends can do the impossible.”
Facing the Fear
Every entrepreneur has to wrestle with fear—and for Lance, it was no different.
“I bought Chinese stocks thinking I’d double my money. Instead, I lost. That was hard,” he said. “Most people are naturally risk-averse—but I committed: for now, I’ll be the most risk-friendly person I know.”
That mindset helped when things got tough. In fact, the Bitcoin he began buying back in 2017—just small pieces at a time—became the emergency fund that saved his startup. “I cashed it out to keep us alive. If I didn’t have those assets, the startup would’ve failed.”
His Advice to Future Owners
“You don’t need to be rich to start. Even with $10, you can own something. A fraction of a stock, a little crypto—once you do, you build confidence. You realize wealth isn’t reserved for other people. You can do it too.”
From Greensboro to Kigali, from a Robinhood account to real institutional clients, Lance is building the future of ownership—and he’s doing it at just 26 years old.
At Project Ownership, we exist to spotlight stories like Lance’s—not just LeBron’s. Because when ownership feels relatable, more people say:
“If he did it, maybe I can too.”
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✅ Learn more about Lance’s company: sereel.com
✅ Ready to take your first step toward ownership? Visit projectownership.org
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