Many months ago, I had written a blog post for entrepreneurs that I coach about not putting your eggs all in one basket. The context of that post was the extended downtime of one of St. Kitts and Nevis’ digital wallets, which many of us relied on to transact business. I am back with the same question – where are your eggs? I write in the context of the Eastern Caribbean’s largest bank’s downtime due to what they term “a security incident.” However, the post is NOT about them but the bigger question of disruption and diversification and your contingency plans for these double Ds. As we ponder where to put our financial eggs, we know the answer is clear: it cannot be in one basket. So the likely contingency is multiple financial institutions. However, the answer is not so simple. In fact, I wonder if cash – be it under the mattress or in multiple bank accounts is a sufficient diversification plan for disruption.
The financial system is shifting, the cracks of disruption are becoming apparent. What was deemed by many as fringe and sub-culture are becoming mainstream. Blockchain has gained acceptance. Bitcoin has been purchased by Tesla, and Bitcoin’s value is skyrocketing. Digital currency will soon be ubiquitous and alternative payments and crypto-currency like Bitcoin will become common-place. Disruption is evident. However, disruption brings with it creative destruction in its wake. Those who fail to acknowledge disruptive forces become obsolete, or their productive capacities become constrained at the very least. So the valid question is – have you thought about how to diversify your baskets in the face of disruption?