TAMPA, Fla. — We’ve all seen cryptocurrency gain popularity over the years.

However, with the recent FTX crash, and what was once one of the biggest players in the world allegedly dipping into client accounts, will it reshape the industry?

A Tampa-based crypto expert says it will.

“As far as the ramifications of the crypto space, we would anticipate regulation coming faster and furiously and already building a wave of regulation around these things and we encourage that,” Rosa Shores the CEO of BlockSpaces said.

What You Need To Know

  •  College student generates multi-million dollar portfolio from investing in cryptocurrency

  •  He has invested since he was 14 years old

  •  He says he wasnt affected by FTX because he never invested with the company 

Jackson Shembekar is used to putting in hard work to achieve big dreams.

“It’s really the feeling of being able to compete,” he said.

He's a sophomore pitcher at the University of Tampa and hopes to make it to the big leagues.

“Working to get into the starting rotation working to move up the levels, just like everyone else and the ultimate goal is to get drafted out of here,” he said.

But just as he competes on the field, off the field it's no different.

“A lot of times I'm reading up on business articles,” he said.

It's hours and hours of reading and researching cryptocurrency, something he does after baseball practice.

"Before you know it from 2018 to 2020 I accumulated a lot of bitcoin,” he said.

He has been investing since he was a 14-year-old freshman at Jesuit High School. He said he started out with only $20, which soon grew to $500,000 during his time in high school. Since he has graduated and started college he says his portfolio is in the multi-millions.

And in regard to the recent FTX collapse and its CEO being arrested, Jackson says he never invested with the company.

“So me personally I tend to air on these of decentralized exchanges. I obviously trade a lot of currencies in a lot of different marketplaces and I prefer to have control over my assets, so I use decentralized exchanges, I use hardware wallets, I use cold storage, I try to keep everything as personal and controlled as I can,” he said.

And as a result of operating this way he says his portfolio is still going strong.

“I am absolutely am going to hit $100 million," he said. "It's about the time line. I want to do it before I'm 30. "I'm on pace to hit $10 million in the next couple of years."

Jackson's goals: Whether a major league career or a $100-million portfolio, he’s willing to put in the work to reach his dreams.