From Young Entrepreneur to Financial Icon
Considering he started his first company at the age of 16, it’s little wonder that the young and dashing Bas Kooijman is the Co-Founder and present CEO of the prestigious DHF Capital SA, in just over a decade. An entrepreneur, trader, investor, coach, author and speaker, Bas is a promising young turk in the global financial world.
Speaking about how starting young was a step in the right direction, he shares, “I started my first company in IT when I was 16, having done some paid work making websites the years prior. My IT firm supported SME companies in the Netherlands. I later switched to specialize in datacenter and cloud solutions which landed me very nice freelance clients before starting my telecom firm. First supporting SME companies with a great Digital Telecom Service, we eventually became a wholesale provider to IT and Telecom companies to help them stay ahead of the competition. This firm expanded to 35 countries and we were trading in 7 currencies before I sold the firm in 2015 and became a full time Currency Trader and Investor.”
Today, Bas is the CEO of DHF Capital SA in Luxembourg, a securitization firm for financial services. They also manage 3 hedge funds with strategies he’s developed over the last 8 years of trading. They have managed to have 36 months positive returns of 1-3% monthly profits and averaging 26% per year ROI for their investors. With the securitization part of the company, Bas can make products that fit the larger clients; with the funds, he can help everyone else grow their portfolio.
“I want to help more customers at DHF Capital with their personal and corporate finance goals. We can create custom finance products by listening to their needs. I love this part as Asset Manager the most. Next to that, we want to make the DHF Alpha, Gamma and Forex funds well known to professional investors so that they can enjoy their money growing with our trading strategies, and become a top 100 financial firm worldwide,” he says.
With over 17 years of experience in IT, Telecom and International Business, Bas has created ‘The Infinity Tool’, a proprietary Tradingview trading tool. His other services include Coaching, Live Speaking Events, and Forex Training.
Passionate about coaching, Bas has personally coached 100s of students from over 20 countries on how to be profitable in the Forex Markets. He has also trained many traders and people who want to become traders, yet, “I can teach everyone how to trade but I learned not everyone can become a trader. It’s a mental game that requires focus and patience and many people don’t hold this long enough. That’s why I saw I can help people by letting them invest in the right financial products that DHF is offering with professional traders that I got to know very closely over the years. This way I can help traders and investors improve their financial future.”
Just like any other good leader, Bas is a creator – he creates products, opportunities, jobs, and solutions for any problems on the way. “A follower cannot reasonably expect the compensation to which a leader is entitled, although many followers make the mistake of expecting such pay’, he quotes from the book Think and Grow Rich, adding, “Leadership is the next level and requires creation of new skills and hard work. Become an ‘Intelligent Follower’ first and turn yourself into an efficient leader over time.”
He also suggests goal-setting as a critical element for achievement. Big on setting goals for the week, month, year and every ‘round age’ like 30-35-40 and so on, Bas feels having a plan with goals keeps you on track even when you’re pushed off course all the time. Never one to give up, ‘You just can’t beat the person who won’t give up,’ is the life slogan he lives by.
Reaching the goals you’ve set is probably the best feeling one can have, and Bas is fortunate to have experienced it innumerous times. Few of his achievements include:
Certified Financial Technician (CFTe II) at IFTA – International Federation of Technical Analysts;
MSTA status at the Society of Technical Analysis in London;
Associate Member (ACSI) at the CISI – Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment;
Investment Advisor (EU Brokerage License) and Investment Information Provider (IIP) at the Baltic Financial Advisors Association (BFAA).
A sailing, saxophone and golf enthusiast, he has also written the book ‘Trading and Investing’ so people can learn about the difference, as also how to trade as an investor with patience. The book is an easy read and helps traders in their first years with many tips and tricks. More info and where to buy the book on baskooijman.eu/book.
“A man for all seasons, we end by asking Bas what his biggest challenges are nowadays, to which he answers:”: “For me, the biggest challenge is to find the right sales professionals. Not many people want to do the legwork that is required to sell a financial product. You have to grow your network, build trust, work hard for many hours, and make sure you land some clients while expanding this network. Most sales people give up too early or delay their results at the start for not having some quick wins that keeps them afloat. However, hard work beats talent every time!”
