REFINE Profile: Angel Johnson and the Impact of Embracing Technology
By: Laila Samphilipo
Angel Johnson has never feared technology. Ever since she was a child, she has welcomed it with open arms.
Growing up in Philadelphia, Johnson recalls using a computer her stepfather had brought home for her family. And just like that, a curiosity and passion for technology blossomed— a passion she’d later pursue at Temple University as a computer information systems major.
“You know, it wasn't the easiest major to go with,” said Johnson, “but I will say that I'm very thankful for that tech foundation. I think Temple does such a good job of laying the foundation for people like myself, who have some interest in technology, but no idea where to go. And, you know, I look back over my career, and I'm just very thankful for that technical foundation.”
Now a working professional in D.C., Johnson hasn’t limited her passion for technology to her career— she has incorporated it in her investing.
While at a conference in Philadelphia years ago, Johnson attended a cryptocurrency workshop.
“I got up and asked a question and told them that I was interested in starting to buy [cryptocurrencies],” said Johnson. “[The presenter] basically said to do your research, look into all the white papers, read up, and learn as much as you can.”
With this advice, Johnson gradually began investing and learning about cryptocurrency.
“I really didn't know how it would all work,” said Johnson. “In the beginning, I looked at it just more like stocks since I had already invested in the stock market. For six to eight months, I was just focused on buying coins. Then, right after that, I started learning about staking and mining, where you can create more coins. And so then I became interested because I was like, ‘that's fascinating.’”
And thus began a passion for cryptocurrency investing, which would lead Johnson to connect with other Black investors.
Three years ago, Johnson decided she wanted to be involved with Black-owned coins. Initially, she struggled to find what she was looking for, but after one fateful Google search and some digging, she came across Guapcoin, a cryptocurrency created to “amplify the economic voice of the Black and Brown Community through block-chain technology and financial education.”
Through some research, Johnson found the phone number of Tavonia Evans, Guapcoin’s founder, and decided to reach out.
“[Evans] was looking, at that time, to assemble a Guap Foundation team,” said Johnson. “She was like, ‘I would love for you to join as a director and help us move the coin forward.’ Since then, we’ve just been working as a team to move Guapcoin further, as well as increase the actual merchants who are accepting the coin.”
Johnson says it’s exciting to serve as a director of the Guap Foundation and see the Guap “ecosystem” grow. Through online cryptocurrency educational resources, financial literacy tools, and empowering grants for businesses and individuals, Johnson hopes the Guap Foundation and Guapcoin will help foster Black generational wealth.
“It's a movement that I'm really proud to be a part of,” said Johnson. “The future of crypto isn’t going away. Over time, if you’re mining and staking, it can contribute to a kind of wealth a lot of Black people haven’t had. We've not had a moment in time, really, since [Black Wall Street] where we had Black-owned dollars or currency really circulating within our community. So that alone is revolutionary because the coin is black-owned and then you are staking that coin, receiving coins on a day-to-day basis, and then taking those coins and purchasing Black-owned goods— that's huge. And so, I think that alone is a revolutionary idea.”
Not only has Johnson supported Black communities through her work with the Guap Foundation, but also through her personal purchases with cryptocurrency.
“My first purchase was from a Black bookstore and they weren’t even in the same state I was in,” said Johnson. “I needed some books for my daughter for Christmas, and it was a seamless experience. I can say I felt very proud to have supported a Black business, as well as supported a crypto transaction.”
Despite Johnson’s impressive crypto success, she has made it clear she has no intention of slowing down. Her progress is the beginning of something even bigger. Her latest endeavor? Hotel ownership.
“I would love to be able to have those hotels start to accept crypto for payment,” said Johnson. “I think that would be the ultimate collaboration.”
Through her career in technology and experience as an investor and hotelier, Johnson says she has firsthand experienced how rapidly technology changes, and is very excited to see what the future holds.
“You know, my daughter is almost six and I ask her: ‘What type of payments are you going to accept for your imaginary restaurant?’ She tells me ‘Bitcoin, Guapcoin, Litecoin.’ And, you know, it's heartwarming that she knows about it,” joked Johnson. “It's an exciting time to be in tech. It's an exciting time to be in crypto.”
Needless to say, the future looks bright.