BLACK ONYX brings an entrepreneur’s perspective to strategic advisory for founders, investors and boards, drawing on a track record of building, scaling and exiting businesses across industries through the early adoption of technology.
Explore our perspectiveBased in Portugal. Working with founders and investors across Europe and internationally.
BLACK ONYX supports founders, investors and boards with practical experience building businesses across industries, combining an entrepreneur’s judgement with an investor’s perspective and particular depth in modern finance, fintech and asset management.
Collaboration underpins the approach: trusted specialists and firms contribute the expertise each project needs. The founder brings a cross-industry track record in business development, sales and distribution, connecting people and building engaged communities, lasting client relationships and commercial partnerships.
Strategic support for founders building businesses across industries. A qualified non-executive director with extensive board experience, bringing practical judgement to strategy, partnerships, governance and preparation for investment or exit.
An entrepreneur’s perspective for investors assessing opportunities and supporting portfolio companies. Helping founders and shareholders align priorities, strengthen distribution and partnerships, and prepare businesses for their next stage of growth.
Strategic advice and board-level support for financial services, asset managers and multi-family offices. Bringing experience in business growth, governance, investment structures and technology, supported by an established international network.
Active board and advisory engagements, with capacity for selected strategic consulting, portfolio-company advisory and non-executive appointments.
From physical media networks and early internet platforms to travel, financial services and digital assets. Building, scaling and exiting ventures brings practical perspective to new businesses and established teams alike. BLACK ONYX is the entrepreneurial holding company behind that journey.
The founder built and exited businesses in alternative and digital media, early online recruitment and travel. Physical advertising networks evolved into online marketplaces; white-label technology extended platforms across dozens of partner organisations, connecting engaged communities of buyers and sellers.
Travel ventures covered incentives, events, conferences and bespoke experiences for ultra-high-net-worth clients, working with a network of global partners across all continents. Hands-on board and operating roles combined commercial growth, industry partnerships and emerging travel technology, bringing experience directly relevant to businesses across industries.
Fund Hub and CPD Hub connected more than 50 asset managers and 50,000 financial professionals through distribution, media, education and compliance technology. Bespoke learning management systems (LMS) integrated educational content and media to support compliance. These ventures grew alongside family-office advisory work and collaboration with regulators, investment managers and global service providers.
Both businesses were subsequently sold. Navigating regulatory change strengthened expertise in market access, partnerships and governance. This experience now informs strategic advisory work for founders and investors building commercially viable businesses in modern finance, fintech and asset management.
An early adopter of crypto, digital assets and blockchain technology since 2016, the founder led Currency Hub’s South African crypto-FX arbitrage and OTC business as CEO. His remit spanned commercial strategy, technology, operations, regulation and governance, culminating in an exit in 2025.
Through investment, collaboration and a bespoke incubator programme, he helped emerging founders navigate the regulatory environment and establish their businesses. Subsequent applied-AI projects explore how agent-led workflows can support multi-family-office operations, continuing a career of applying technology to practical business challenges.
18 years serving multi-family offices, HNWIs, sophisticated investors and industry stakeholders across America, Europe, Africa and Asia. This experience informs board-level governance, investment oversight and the pursuit of long-term family objectives.
Expertise spans traditional and alternative investments, including ETFs, unit trusts, real estate funds, private equity and venture capital. Fund selection, portfolio allocation and manager due diligence reflect an understanding of the structures best suited to investor needs and different jurisdictions.
Longstanding relationships with leading service providers support cross-border transactions, bringing together legal, tax, administrative and compliance expertise.
For multi-family-office boards, this experience connects investment oversight with ownership, succession and beneficiary needs, aligning professional advisers and industry stakeholders around long-term objectives.
The founder holds qualifications for Key Individual and representative roles across relevant South African financial-services categories, complemented by experience helping businesses prepare for regulatory authorisation.
An entrepreneur’s experience. An investor’s perspective. A commitment to building businesses with purpose.
Andrew actively serves on boards and provides strategic oversight to several businesses and ongoing projects. He brings the perspective of an entrepreneur who has built, led and exited ventures across industries, with particular depth in modern finance, compliance, fintech and asset management.
Based in Portugal and working internationally, he has capacity to take on selected projects and board appointments alongside his existing commitments. He welcomes conversations with founders, investors and leadership teams across Europe where there is a clear fit, a meaningful challenge and scope to help build the next stage of a business.
He is particularly drawn to purposeful businesses where creativity, commercial judgement and cross-industry experience can make a lasting contribution, including selected opportunities in the sustainability sector.
His current focus is on developing practical fluency in AI through hands-on projects and direct experience with emerging tools. This work deepens his understanding of their capabilities, limitations and business applications, helping him better inform founders and boards as they consider how to adopt the technology.
A business to build. A portfolio to support. A board to contribute to. Let’s explore where experience can make a difference.
