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Balancing the Grind with Maggie Ng, Chief Marketing Officer at BVNK

Maggie Ng is the Chief Marketing Officer at BVNK, a crypto banking platform for businesses to manage payments, yields, trading and custody between fiat and crypto currencies.

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1) To kick things off, could you tell us a little about your career background and current role?

I was previously the Head of Marketing at Crypto.com from 2018 to 2021. Accumulating over 10M customers worldwide in just three years, I was also in charge of the U.S. market activation, which comprises 60 percent of the total customer base.

In addition to leading the key US brand awareness program, public relations, influencer and media partnership efforts, I headed the launch of the brand campaign and crypto Visa card, which was pivotal in turning Crypto.com into a household name.

In October of 2021, I co-founded and joined as the CMO for a crypto banking platform called BVNK, for crypto-native and crypto-curious businesses to manage global payments in both fiat and crypto currencies.

Within a short period of time, the company accumulated over 100 business clients and processed over $2 billion in annualized payments volume while closing its $40m Series A round with a $340m valuation, led by Tiger Global in Q1 2022. 

Prior to entering the Crypto industry, I oversaw marketing efforts across Asia in the traditional finance sector for over a decade at Prudential (insurance company) and Oglivy (advertising agency under WPP group).

2) What does a day in your life look like for you? Can you take us through a recent workday?

I wake up at 6am every morning, so that I have plenty of time to get ready and walk my dog. Between 7-8am is my favorite hour as I can think through my priorities for the day without any interruptions!

I will head my way to the office in midtown Manhattan. I prefer compartmentalizing my time in chunks, which is when I’m the most performing. That usually includes a bulk of back-to-back meetings, then moving on to clear my email and Slack inbox. I tend to reserve my afternoon for my team on planning and reviewing project status. 

We have staff and vendors working in different time zones. We take turns to accommodate each other (so that everyone feels included!) So that means twice a week I would start my day earlier or end mine later.

3) What does work-life balance mean to you and how do you work to achieve that goal?

Work-life balance is crucial to me as I have a strong tendency to overwork myself. Speaking from direct experience, when I used to have to travel for work multiple times a month, I got to a point where I was almost burned out. 

I can’t say that I’ve achieved work-life balance as it is something I have to be very mindful of all the time. The key to me is to develop strong awareness towards where I draw my boundary – that my mental and physical health is crucial to my performance. The rest is just up to my discipline! 

4) In the past 12 months, have you started or stopped any routines or habits to change your life?

Yes, I first terminated my Netflix subscription (let alone the fact that I no longer have a TV at home). I realized about a year ago that watching TV no longer helps me relax at night. Instead, I would allocate an hour or so at night to sculpt. I love sculpting friends’ pets and then sending them out as gifts. That really unwinds my mind so that my sleep quality has improved since then!

5) Do you have any favourite books, podcasts or newsletters that you’d like to recommend?

The Algebra of Happiness by Scott Galloway carries a lot of wisdom, especially on relationships with your career, your parents as one pursues their ambitions. Drive comes from finding purposes, not from making the most money.

It’s also a good reminder to everyone that, at the end of the day, it’s the simplest things in life that bring you happiness. Have the grit to work hard young (in your 20’s) so that you have more freedom to design a life that you truly want later on!

6) If you could read an interview about work-life balance by anyone, who would that be?

Brian Chesky. Covid has provoked a great resignation as more and more employees can’t find satisfaction in work. Fintechs / start-ups, for the first time, are not exempt.

Airbnb is one of the few companies I’ve grown to admire a lot judging from how they built the brand, stuck to the company mission, managed crises (Airbnb was not welcome by a lot of main cities when it was first introduced; refugee crisis in the EU etc), and most importantly, how they developed the work culture.

As the leader behind this young company, I would like to learn more about how Brian finds that balance between work and life, and be able to lead Airbnb to where it is today. 

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About Author

Hey there! I'm Hao, the Editor-in-Chief at Balance the Grind. We’re on a mission to showcase healthy work-life balance through interesting stories from people all over the world, in different careers and lifestyles.