Ten Questions with Tenity — Hussain Elius: From super app founder to global fintech visionary

At Tenity, we believe innovation starts with conversation. Breakthroughs happen when people exchange ideas, challenge assumptions, and see the world differently. These conversations spark stories, stories shape bold ideas, and bold ideas are brought to life by founders with the vision and grit to solve real-world problems.

With Ten Questions with Tenity, we’re opening the door to those stories. We’re sitting down with the founders in our ecosystem to go beyond the pitch decks: to uncover the motivations, mindsets, and defining moments that shape the people building the future of finance and technology.

To kick off the series, we spoke with Hussain Elius.

He’s a true trailblazer in tech and fintech. He’s the Co-Founder and CTO of River, and previously Co-Founder and CEO of Wind and Pathao. He’s also an alumnus of the 2023 XRPL Accelerator program by Ripple and Tenity in Singapore.

Born and raised in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Hussain Elius began his journey in tech by building one of the region’s largest consumer tech platforms, Pathao. Comparable to Grab or Gojek, Pathao offers a wide range of services from ridesharing to food delivery, digital payments to BNPL. At its peak, the platform served over 5 million users, partnered with 20,000 restaurants and 50,000 e-commerce merchants, and employed around 2,000 people.

After Pathao, Elius ventured into the crypto space with Wind, a stablecoin-based payments app. Wind was recently acquired by River, a US-based fintech company, where Elius is now leading the next chapter of his journey.

Congrats again on Wind’s acquisition. It’s an impressive milestone. What was the big idea behind Wind, and what problem were you trying to solve?

The idea behind Wind was simple: Build PayPal, but with stablecoins and self-custody wallets. We wanted to design a banking experience that felt familiar: web2 on the surface but powered by web3 under the hood.

Why? Because onboarding users globally is a pain when you're stuck with traditional banking regulations, KYC rules, and incompatible payment systems. With stablecoins, we could offer a unified experience to anyone, anywhere. And users could save, spend, invest, and earn yield — all in one app.

One big pain point we solved was on/off-ramps (services that allow you to convert cryptocurrencies into traditional currency). In most countries, it's still incredibly clunky to convert crypto to fiat. We built that directly into Wind, so people didn’t need to go through multiple exchanges or platforms just to cash out.

And now that Wind is part of River, how has your vision evolved?

Being part of River is exciting because it solves our biggest challenge: distribution. We had a cool product, for sure. But how do you get people to actually use it when they already have banks? By pairing fintech with telco infrastructure: Everyone needs connectivity, especially when they land in a new country. It’s something we all buy on day one: SIM cards, mobile plans, data packages. So, it’s a powerful entry point to introduce financial products as well.

We’ve seen this model work phenomenally in places like India with Jio and Kenya with M-Pesa. No one has done it on a global scale yet. That’s the goal now.

What’s a personal philosophy that’s shaped your journey as a founder?

That we’re all imperfect, but we can choose to change.

When you’re young, you look at James Bond and think, “Wow I want to be that guy.” But you’re not just magically going to be him one day. You have to become him. Hit the gym, learn how to talk to people, understand how to dress, and make hard decisions. It’s the same with startups.

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You don’t wake up a great CEO. You grow into one: by learning, failing, and constantly reinventing yourself. I’ve always believed in this mindset of self-improvement, even when it’s hard. That’s what keeps me going.

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Was there a specific experience that helped shape this mindset?

Yeah, honestly: insecurity.

Growing up, I didn’t always feel like I fit in. I got bullied. I wondered why people didn’t like me. And I realized if I wanted things to change, I had to change. That push for self-improvement came from wanting to be better and eventually believing that I could be.

It’s not always pretty, but it’s powerful.

What motivated you to join the XRPL Accelerator program?

It was both a technical and strategic fit. We were building a stablecoin wallet, and XRPL has been working on cross-border transfers for years.

We wanted to explore the potential of XRPL’s infrastructure and how it could complement our vision.

Of all the resources that were provided in the program— what made the biggest impact on you personally?

The masterclasses.  I might not remember every session (it’s been a couple of years!), but the access we got during that time was super valuable.

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They brought in experts from all kinds of fields: product, fundraising, compliance, design. And it wasn’t just theory. It was real, tactical advice from people who’d done it before.

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Was there a particular insight gained through the program that significantly altered your strategy or opened a new opportunity you hadn't anticipated?

There wasn’t a single “eureka” moment, but we did get great feedback from the community while testing our product. That input helped refine some of our thinking. But more than anything though: it was the network we built that had the most lasting impact.

Can you share an example of a valuable connection that emerged from this network?

Ripple themselves.

They became valuable partners through the network we built. The relationship opened the door to ongoing strategic discussions, both during and after the program.

Since graduating, what are some milestones Wind (now River) has achieved thanks to the program?

The acquisition itself was a big one. And I’d say Tenity definitely played a key role in helping us sharpen our strategy, improve our product, and connect with key players like Ripple. It gave us credibility and opened doors that might’ve taken a lot longer to reach on our own.

And finally, what advice would you give early-stage founders about the journey ahead? How would you sum up Tenity’s impact on your own journey?

Brace yourself, it’s hard!

Building a startup is one of the toughest things you can do. You’ll work 16-18 hour days. You’ll sacrifice weekends, friendships, even family time. And often, you’ll do all that with no clear results.

So, ask yourself: do you really want it? If yes, get ready to bleed. But also surround yourself with good people like Tenity. That makes the journey bearable.

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Tenity gave us the tools, network, and credibility we needed to level up, and it helped put us on the path that eventually led to our acquisition.

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From building one of Asia’s most successful super apps to reimagining global connectivity through telco-fintech innovation, Elius’s path reflects bold ideas, deep conviction, and relentless reinvention. For him, transformation isn’t just a business goal. It’s a way of life.

Stay tuned for more Ten Questions with Tenity, where bold ideas come to life. Inspired by his journey? Apply to the XRPL Accelerator 2025 and take your startup to the next level. Learn more at tenity.com/programs/xrpl-accelerator-2025.