Revolutionizing the Food Chain: Tridge Emerges as the Bloomberg of Global Agriculture
Activant Capital Founder Steven Saracino on Tridge: “A Company that will do better than Alibaba in China”
Steven Saracino, Founder of Activant Capital, an American venture capital firm that manages a $2 billion fund, recently shared his insights on Tridge, a Korean agricultural and food startup that has earned the title of unicorn. In an interview with Maeil Business Newspaper, Saracino likened Tridge to Bloomberg, a company that transformed the global financial market.
Saracino explained that just as Bloomberg resolved the information opacity and asymmetry in the financial market, Tridge is now resolving the information opacity and asymmetry in the global agricultural and fishery products market. He emphasized that Tridge’s data-based approach will shrink the margins of middlemen, benefiting farmers and consumers alike.
When asked about his first impression of Tridge’s CEO, Shin Ho-sik, Saracino recalled, “It was like seeing a young Jack Ma.” He added that he was impressed by Shin’s approach to the business and believed that Tridge would be a better business than Alibaba in China.
![Stephen Saracino, founder of Activant Capital, an American venture capital (VC), is being interviewed by Maeil Business Newspaper on the 5th. [이승환기자]](https://pimg.mk.co.kr/news/cms/202409/06/news-p.v1.20240906.0549f66d212e44da8fbbe172bb0b34d2_P1.jpg "Revolutionizing the Food Chain: Tridge Emerges as the Bloomberg of Global Agriculture")
Saracino also addressed some criticism that Tridge has not yet shown clear financial performance despite its high corporate value. He emphasized that Tridge has spent 6-7 years developing a complex and difficult product that secures data on the production and prices of global agricultural and marine products, and further builds a supply chain that can be traded globally.
He added that Tridge’s focus on product development is a strength, and that the company is now ready to shift its focus to marketing and sales. As an investor, Saracino plans to support Tridge’s global operations and use Activant’s sales and marketing capabilities to help the company demand higher prices for its excellent products.
![Stephen Saracino, founder of Activant Capital, an American venture capital (VC), is being interviewed by Maeil Business Newspaper on the 5th. [이승환기자]](https://pimg.mk.co.kr/news/cms/202409/06/news-p.v1.20240906.2d673c0359a84170860b29125aae6e65_P1.jpg "Revolutionizing the Food Chain: Tridge Emerges as the Bloomberg of Global Agriculture")
Saracino expressed great expectations for Tridge’s payment service, which will be introduced within the Tridge platform as early as next month. He predicted that the service will significantly grow Tridge’s marketplace by increasing the stability and reliability of trade between countries.
He concluded by saying that he will be disappointed if Tridge’s corporate value does not reach $100 billion in 10 years. Tridge’s CEO, Shin Ho-sik, will attend the World Knowledge Forum and present at the session titled ‘AI-Changed Agricultural and Food Industry’ on the afternoon of the 11th.