Daniel Tierney began his career in the early 1990s in the pits of the Chicago Board Options Exchange, one of the world’s leading options exchanges—a world of suited traders who carried out transactions by shouting and using hand signals, a world that would soon undergo fundamental change. Dan, not yet thirty years old, was to be at the forefront of this change.

Entrepreneurship shaped his childhood; his grandfather built a company in construction, his father started various kinds of businesses, and Dan started a house painting business of his own at age 15 and ran it through his university years. “At the age of 9, I started selling my old toys on the street. Later, I shoveled the snow out of driveways without asking for anything in return. I still got paid by everyone,” Dan recalls, thinking back to the early days.

In 1999, he co-founded the Global Electronic Trading Company (GETCO) with his partner Stephen Schuler. GETCO was a pioneer of automated market making - also known as “high frequency trading”. The two founders recognized early on that automation would overtake physical trading pits; it was faster, more efficient—and reduced transaction costs to benefit global investors.

“Entrepreneurship excites me most when innovation and technology are at the heart of it,” says Dan, describing his motivation. “I always ask myself: What is the end result? Am I creating value? In GETCO’s case, reducing bid-ask spreads in global financial markets by 95% meant companies would get more access to capital, which in turn leads to more jobs, more innovation, and ultimately higher standards of living.”

Ten years later, GETCO was already buying and selling 15 percent of all stocks traded in the U.S., with a similar presence on more than 100 exchanges around the world. GETCO was also instrumental in the start of new exchanges like Chi-X Europe, Chi-X Japan and BATS in the US. When it acquired Knight Capital in 2013, GETCO’s footprint grew even more. It was during this time that Dan developed his desire for privacy. “We knew that we were on to something special. Our competition didn’t need to know about it any sooner than necessary. So there were two rules for our employees: First, never talk about GETCO, and second, never talk about GETCO.” But inside the firm, there was extreme transparency, with everyone having access to nearly all information within a highly collaborative culture. Dan and Stephen believed in hiring the best people, both in terms of talent and character, and then empowering and trusting them.

With success came a surge of interest; book authors reached out, and industry media planned cover stories. Dan turned them all down—with the exception of one interview granted to Forbes magazine and one to The Wall Street Journal, but no pictures were granted in either case. To this day, not a single photo of him can be found on the internet. “I’ve kept my privacy. It’s in line with my values. I’m not someone who needs applause. For me, the best combination has always been success without fame.”

After GETCO acquired Knight Capital, Dan and Stephen turned over the reins of the company and later sold it. Dan did this in large part to prioritize spending time with his family. Later, he established himself as a VC investor and moved to Silicon Valley. Wicklow Capital, his family office founded in 2013, focuses primarily on innovations in the areas of A-B-C-D: Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain, Climate, and Democracy. This includes non-profit allocations in each category, as another way to support entrepreneurship. According to Dan, “Great research is fuel for great entrepreneurship.” This is why Dan joined the board of the Salk Institute for biomedical research nine years ago and the Santa Fe Institute for complex adaptive systems research two years ago, in addition to supporting many other non-profit organizations.

People often ask him why “Democracy” is a category for his venture investing and philanthropy. His answer: “Because Democracy 2.0 is now a legacy system, a version which was adapted to the dynamics of the Industrial Age. The same is true with Capitalism 2.0. We need a well functioning version of these systems, but to achieve that they need to be adapted into their 3.0 versions—versions that are highly suited to the new conditions of the Technology Age in which we now live. I believe that freedom and prosperity for everyone’s children depends upon these kinds of transitions being successful.”

He advises entrepreneurs to take a lot of risk while they are young—and not to focus solely on the money. “How are you going to feel on your deathbed? What’s going to be important to you at that moment? It’s not going to be your bank account.” Furthermore, Dan believes the world needs people who can set their egos aside. “During the hiring process at GETCO, we gave potential employees an impossible task to solve. We wanted to see whether they would give up or ask for help. Asking for help indicates you care more about solving the problem then you care about being seen as smart. And it indicates that you’ll put your ego aside to do what it takes to help your team to win.”

To find these people of character, Dan has been traveling across Europe for many years. One country in particular has caught his interest: Austria. “The potential of the research and innovation landscape here is impressive, and its geographical position at the intersection of East and West is very interesting.” Dan has already invested in the non-profit organizations AustrianStartups and the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) and helped initiate the Calm/Storm Venture Fund which exclusively backs Austrian tech startups.

In conclusion, Dan states: “I really appreciate what Lucanus has built with Calm/Storm. It’s a perfect example that even when you start as a small player, you can foster international collaboration and partnerships which can lead to exceptional impact and results. I was excited to be one of the first investors in Calm/Storm’s Austrian Founders Fund, as another way to support Austrian entrepreneurship. This can serve as a blueprint for others in Austria,” believes the entrepreneur. “Maybe others will look at this and it can inspire them to also support initiatives that can unleash the full potential of entrepreneurship in Austria.”