Phil with F30

009 | "Your Rent Payment Can Now Raise Your Credit Score" (Samir & Abbey at Esusu)

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Today’s guest on the “Phil with Forbes 30” podcast is Samir Goel & Wemimo Abbey - Co-CEO’s of Esusu


Forbes List: USA

Year: 2020

Category: Social Entrepreneurship


I had the privilege of interviewing the two founders of Esusu, a company that helps individuals save money and build credit scores by working with landlords and linking rental payment data to credit unions.


Our conversation includes:

  • How Wemimo and Samir met at the Clinton Global Initiative conference
  • Sharing the joy of making the Forbes 30 under 30 list which has less than a four percent acceptance rate – even more selective than Harvard.
  • Wemimo’s life in the slums of Lagos, Nigeria and her Mom’s insistence on education, immigration to the United States and learning first-hand about predatory lending.
  • The beliefs and facts of predatory lending in the United States and the idea of where you come from can determine where you end up.
  • Credit scores in the U.S. can hold people back in reaching financial goals.
  • Samir’s immigrant family came from New Delhi, India and emigrated to the United States. He shared the same financial obstacles as Wemimo when arriving in the U.S.
  • After graduating from NYU and working at the United Nations, Samir wanted to leave bureaucracy and to find out how businesses worked. He later joined LinkedIn.
  • Both Wemimo and Samir acknowledge their parent’s journey and their sacrifices and how obstacles made both of them wanting to give back.
  • The premise of Esusu is based on when a person pays rent that they should also get a credit score rating like someone who pays a mortgage.
  • Esusu has established credit scores for people in the range of 620, which is considered a good credit score, upwards to 722 points which is considered a very good credit score.
  • Using landlords as part of the marketing strategy.
  • The challenges of hiring the best people and competing with Silicon Valley in the start-up stage; understanding the legal issues of protecting people’s data; protecting the reputation of a startup; finding technology that is scalable.



    • “Under 30 Seconds Round”

    1. What is the book you’ve gifted more often than any other book, and why?

    • ABBEY -- Never Eat Alone, Keith Ferrazzi – a great book about networking
    • SAMIR -- Rich Dad, Poor Dad - Robert Kiyosaki. It helps to change mindset.


      2. What’s one of the best investments and one of the worst investments you’ve ever made and why?

      • ABBEY
      • Best - Esusu
      • Worst - Facebook stocks
      • SAMIR
      • Best - Investing in Airbnb
      • Worst - Investing in Facebook and in the “netflix of China stock.”


        3. What’s the most impactful thing you do in your Morning routine and most impactful thing you do in your Evening routine?

        • ABBEY
        • AM - Pray, faith reflection and meditation.
        • PM - Check the emails before bed so I have a running checklist in my head and I can sleep.
        • SAMIR
        • AM - Walk and reflect.
        • PM - Cook and share a meal.


          4. Pretend you won the Peter Thiel Fellowship and you were going to get money to start a business instead of go to college, what’s the very first thing you’d do to start a new business?

          • ABBEY
          • I would find the best co-founder in the world - hopefully Samir. And then I would understand how to best create value for the customers we're going to serve.
          • SAMIR
          • Find a great partner


            • 5. What’s something you never knew you needed?

            • ABBEY
            • Love.
            • SAMIR
            • I need to believe in myself. And my next goal is to see every country in the world I can.



              • GUEST INFO: Samir Goel & Wemimo Abbey - Co-CEO’s of Esusu

              CONTACT: On Instagram @myesusu

              WEBSITE: http://www.esusurent.com/

              PROMOTION: Rent Relief Campaign: http://givebutter.com/EsusuRent

              Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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              Phil with F30By Phil Michaels
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