Note: Since this recording, Ruben Vardanyan was arrested by Azerbaijani authorities in September 2023 and remains imprisoned. His family and the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative describe his detention as politically motivated. This description reflects his work at the time of recording.

What does it mean to give away 90% of your wealth — and build the systems that make giving meaningful?

In this TBLI Talk, Robert Rubinstein sits down with Ruben Vardanyan — Armenian-Russian business leader, social entrepreneur, and co-founder of the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative. As former CEO of Troika Dialog, Russia's first major investment bank, Ruben built a billion-dollar institution before redirecting the vast majority of that wealth into transformational philanthropy. With his wife Veronika, he has committed over $600 million to projects addressing education, humanitarian crises, and sustainable development in Armenia — not through charity, but through a commercial, blended-finance model designed to create lasting structural change. His radical truth: giving money away is not enough. The way you give matters as much as the amount.

In this episode:

• How Ruben and Veronika built a $600 million blended finance and philanthropic portfolio in Armenia
• Why blended finance is essential for solving social problems at scale in post-conflict and developing contexts
• What the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative is — and why a prize named after a survivor of the Armenian Genocide has become a global movement
• How venture philanthropy differs from traditional philanthropy — and why that distinction matters for impact
• What it takes to convince a business community shaped by Soviet-era economics to embrace long-term, values-driven investment
• What 30 years of building and giving has taught Ruben about money, meaning, and responsibility

The key insight: Ruben Vardanyan's grandfather survived the Armenian Genocide because a Turk and four American missionaries saved his life. That gift of life became the moral foundation of one of the most ambitious philanthropic programmes in the post-Soviet world. Gratitude, he argues, is the most powerful engine of generosity.

⏱️ Episode Guide:

• 0:00 — From Troika Dialog to venture philanthropy: Ruben's journey
• 0:X:XX — Building a $600M blended finance portfolio in Armenia
• 0:X:XX — The Aurora Humanitarian Initiative: purpose and impact
• 0:X:XX — Venture philanthropy vs traditional giving
• 0:X:XX — Making philanthropy structural, not transactional
• 0:X:XX — Money, meaning, and responsibility: the lessons

👤 About Ruben VardanyanRuben Vardanyan and his family have made more than $1.5 billion in commercial and philanthropic investments in global education, healthcare, the SDGs, and humanitarian issues. His best-known projects include Troika Dialog, SKOLKOVO Business School, United World College Dilijan, the Wings of Tatev cable car, and the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative. H Uwcdilijanis humanitarian work was inspired by his grandfather, whose life was saved during the Armenian Genocide. He and his family have committed to giving away 90% of his wealth.

Asia TimesFor anyone working in venture philanthropy, blended finance, or strategic giving — this episode is essential listening.

ABOUT TBLI RADICAL TRUTHReal experience. Real results. No greenwashing. TBLI Group is the world's leading ESG and impact investing network — educating, advising, and connecting investors for 25 years.🌐 tbligroup.com

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