João Alves isn’t just another fintech founder chasing hype. When he left Revolut in 2023, he wasn’t looking for the next easy win. He was looking for a problem that felt impossible to solve.

And that’s exactly what he found with Bleap: a self-custodial, blockchain-native financial app that lets people spend stablecoins directly through a Mastercard debit card, no conversion fees, no middlemen, no compromises.

In just over a year, João and his co-founder, Guilherme Gomes (both ex-Revolut), raised $2.3M in pre-seed funding, built a fully working proof-of-concept, and onboarded over 5,000 beta users. All while staying true to a product vision that most said couldn’t be done.

So what makes Bleap different? And how did João and team move from idea to impact so fast?

From Fintech Exec to First-Time Founder

Back in 2023, João was leading the Card Issuing team at Revolut.

“I used to solve problems all the time there, but like in any big company, after a while, that gets harder. I missed the early energy, picking up something that seems impossible and going after it.”

At the same time, João was deep down the rabbit hole of decentralized finance (DeFi). He saw the potential, not just in terms of innovation, but in practical utility.

“In DeFi, there are products that I genuinely believe are better than anything in traditional finance. The risk-reward ratio is strong. Yields of 7–8%, which are way higher than banks, and arguably safer than some bonds.”

But using those products? A nightmare. “You’d start at your bank, send money to a centralized exchange, then to a wallet, then finally into some DeFi pool. It’s clunky, risky, and confusing for anyone who’s not a power user.”

And that’s when it hit him.

“What if we could simplify that? What if we built a product like Revolut but where everything runs on the blockchain?”

Building Bleap: A Bank Account on the Blockchain

Bleap isn’t just another crypto wallet, it’s an attempt to fully rebuild banking infrastructure, but this time without the centralization.

“We didn’t want to just touch the blockchain. We wanted the blockchain to be the backend. No middleman. No database. Just users interacting directly with the chain.”

It was a big bet and one no one had really pulled off. “Coinbase, Binance, FTX, they’re all centralized under the hood. They manage the tech for you. But with Bleap, the user is in control. It’s self-custody, full stop.”

But there was a catch. If the app was truly decentralized, it had to communicate in real time with Apple Pay, SEPA, Google Pay… the real world.

“That was the hardest technical challenge. The blockchain doesn’t talk to the outside world. But a fintech app has to. We spent months trying to bridge that gap, securely, quickly, and affordably.”

By August 2024, the team had their breakthrough. A working proof of concept. “That moment it was like, wow. This actually works. All the assumptions, all the design choices… it paid off.”

The Community Hack That Kickstarted Growth

With the tech working, the next challenge was adoption. João didn’t want to fake traction with ad spend or bots, he wanted real users stress-testing the product.

So he turned to the small but passionate crypto-curious community that had started following Bleap on Twitter.

“We had maybe 120 people who believed in what we were building. So we said: invite three friends, and we’ll give you early beta access. That got us to 1,000 users almost overnight.”

That first wave was vital, not just for stress-testing, but for feedback. “They broke everything,” João laughs. “And that’s what we needed. We wanted to know what breaks before we go big.”

In December, they ran their second growth push, this time using PR around their funding round to open the doors wider.

“We hadn’t announced the raise yet. So we timed it with the beta rollout, pitched a few journalists, and one picked it up. That got us another 5,000 signups.”

Now the challenge shifted from acquisition to activation. “If people wait too long, or if things don’t work, they drop off. So we spent the last few months just tightening everything up, UX, onboarding, performance.”

Hard Truths from the Trenches

João doesn’t sugarcoat the founder journey.

“Raising money was brutal. Every day, you’re getting rejected. But you only need one yes. That’s what kept me going. It’s a numbers game.”

They raised $2.3M in four weeks, a rare feat in a tough market, but it didn’t feel easy at the time.

“Even with our background, it was exhausting.”

His second big lesson? Hiring is everything.

“One bad hire can cost you months. It doesn’t feel that way at first, but it shows up later, when things break or drag. You need to be absolutely ruthless in hiring, especially early on.”

What’s Next for Bleap?

With a stable product and 5 K+ users, Bleap is now gearing up for its full public launch in Q1 2025. And João’s growth playbook is refreshingly no-nonsense.

  • A new referral system designed for everyday users (not just early adopters)
  • An affiliate program tapping into users with large communities
  • Experimenting with events and partnerships to expand their reach offline

Bleap isn’t trying to be a hype machine. It’s trying to be useful. And João’s not in it for the quick exit.

“We want to build something that lasts. A product people actually use every day to manage and grow their money with real control, not just the illusion of it.”

Final Thoughts

Bleap is still early, but it’s real. It’s working. And it’s a powerful example of what happens when a founder blends deep domain expertise, a clear product vision, and the courage to do it differently.

João Alves isn’t just building a better wallet. He’s building a better financial future on the blockchain for everyone.