Entrepreneur of the Year 2025: Inside the Vancouver company powering crypto services for financial institutions

In this digital (and economically fraught) age, we’re all destined to ask the big questions, like what the heck is cryptocurrency, and how can I make it work for me? What sets Phil Sham apart is that he was one of the first to wonder—and to take action. Before crypto became popular in the late 2010s, the Vancouverite traded equities at CIBC and launched one of Canada’s first algorithmic trading systems. “I’ve always been at the intersection of technology and trading,” Sham notes. As buzz built around digital currency in 2018, Sham was already thinking a few functional steps ahead. “The traditional infrastructure that we see in banks didn’t exist in crypto,” he explains, “so I thought, there’s a place to get involved.”

Sham quit his job and founded Aquanow, an institutional digital asset platform that helps banks and other financial systems set up the infrastructure they need to manage cryptocurrency. The actual work depends on the market and the use case—for example, a bank wanting to offer customers the ability to trade crypto via their banking app. Aquanow provides the required technology and processes, enabling the institution (and its clients) to buy and sell crypto within a familiar platform.

Sham explains that, in North America, most people use crypto as an investment, but in other parts of the world (Africa, Latin America and parts of Asia), there’s a broader use of crypto as a transactional medium, intended to meet everyday financial needs where traditional services fall short. So while Aquanow operates in 55 countries, each project is unique: “Crypto is global, but a lot of the solutions that we create are quite localized.”

Over the past seven years, Vancouver-based Aquanow has grown to employ 125 people and support over 300 clients worldwide. Hiring talent from diverse backgrounds empowers the business to offer more regional and language-specific expertise. Accolades like making the Deloitte Technology Fast 50 list for Canada are rolling in, and Sham notes how fulfilling his work is: “It’s more than just paying a bill—we’re enabling the new generation of financial services.”

Describe your dream employee in three words.

Curious. Accountable. Adaptable. 

What’s the best leadership advice you’ve ever received?

Don’t lead by having all the answers—lead by creating the conditions for others to do their best work.

After work, we can find you…

Walking my dog somewhere along the Vancouver seawall.