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In this riveting episode of Money Majlis, host Suvo Sarkar travels to Bangalore for a debate with the legendary T.V. Mohandas Pai, a trailblazer in finance, technology, education, and philanthropy. 

Known for his transformative contributions as the former CFO of Infosys and as a venture capitalist and chairman of Manipal Global Education, Pai shares his insights on navigating the intersections of business, technology, and social impact. 

Discover how Pai helped scale Infosys to a $6.5 billion global powerhouse and the first Indian company to be listed on NASDAQ. As one of India’s most prolific angel investors, Pai discusses his investments in life sciences, education, and technology startups, along with his vision for fostering innovation in India. Also dive deep into Pai’s passion for education and child welfare, including the story behind co-founding Akshaya Patra—the world’s largest mid-day meal program. 

How many hours a week should one work? Is human capital more critical than financial capital? Should start-ups aim to solve social problems? Is a bad college better than no college? Will Bangalore’s traffic problems ever be resolved? And should companies appoint younger members on their boards? Pai debates these and other thorny issues with Sarkar in an unmissable episode peppered with wisdom, wit and a lot of statistics. 

Once you have heard the episode, please visit give.moneymajlis.com to redeem your free gift card of $50 to contribute to a charity of your choice. Thank you for joining my giving movement. 

Research partner : Shekhar Krishnamurthy 

Giving partner : Goodworld 

Production : Poddster

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Welcome to a special episode on customer loyalty where Suvo Sarkar is in deep discussion with Ajay Row, a globally acknowledged expert on loyalty programs and the founder & chairman of Customer Capital. 

Why is data the most valuable commodity but is freely given away? What are the 6 key assets of a loyalty program? Are points better than discounts? Should we try to dazzle and delight every single customer? And how are digitisation and AI transforming the “card-points-rewards” principles of loyalty? 

Ajay analyses the economics of pan-bank loyalty programs and explains why they mostly fail to take off. And he lays out the future factors for success, and argues that marketers need to redefine their job roles. 

Join Suvo & Ajay for a thoughtful discussion on unboxing loyalty programs, enhancing email open rates and sailing in Mumbai harbour every weekend. If you are in the business of banking, marketing, sales or loyalty, or believe making money from customers by delivering affordable value is important, this is one episode you can’t afford to miss.

Visit give.moneymajlis.com to join my giving movement and contribute to a charity of your choice by redeeming your free gift card.

Research by : Shekhar Krishnamurthy 

Production : Poddster 

Giving partner : Goodworld

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In this episode of Money Majlis, I sit down with Chris Skinner, renowned futurist and author, to explore the future of banking and finance. Skinner, known for his influential insights on fintech and digital transformation, shares his views on how technology is reshaping the financial landscape.

We discuss his latest book, “Intelligent Money” and how banking is poised for a “reversal of roles” where money thinks for us. Skinner delves into the rapid growth of fintechs and their potential to acquire traditional banks, as well as the emergence of a hybrid financial system (HyFi) that combines traditional and decentralized finance.

Additionally, Skinner touches on the impact of Generative AI in finance, future jobs in banking, and the importance of purpose-driven strategies in the financial industry. He also shares his predictions for banking in 2050 and the evolving financial landscape in the Middle East.

Join Skinner and me for a fascinating conversation on the future of money. 

Visit give.moneymajlis.com to join my giving movement and contribute to a charity of your choice by redeeming your free gift card.

Research partner: Shekhar Krishnamurthy 

Production: Poddster

“Giving” partner: Goodworld

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In this episode, Ashok Vaswani, international banking veteran and CEO & MD of Kotak Mahindra Bank, explains why he believes money is more emotional than rational, how Indian banking is racing ahead and how his bank is transforming for scale to claim a space among the top 3 private lenders in India. 

What is the new “finternet”? Why is the Indian technology stack being exported overseas? Where do Indian bankers get their new confidence from? Is it the end of the road for multinational retail banks? And what is the next new wow for Indian banking customers? 

Vaswani and Sarkar discuss the growth of financial inclusion, the decline of foreign bank market shares and the challenge of breaking silos in banking organizations. 

Vaswani also talks about his transition to the Indian work ethic, his leadership style, his passion for education and his mother’s influence on his life. 

Please visit give.moneymajlis.com to get your free Money Majlis GiveCard that you can redeem to contribute to a charity of your choice. Join my giving movement today. 

Research partner : Shekhar Krishnamurthy 

Production : Poddster 

Giving partner : Goodworld

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In this XTRA episode of Money Majlis, I talk with Christina Boutrup, journalist, author and China analyst, about how the world’s biggest digital economy is transitioning from a low-cost manufacturing hub into a high-tech innovation centre. The recent launch of the Deep Seek AI platform makes you wonder whether the restriction of chip imports from the US has pushed China to be even more innovative and frugal. 

How is the speed of innovation so high in China? Why does Byte Dance launch over a thousand experiments a day? Was the Starbucks wallet inspired by Chinese consumers? Are the technology trends in China 3-5 years ahead of the rest of the world? And has the fierce competition in the Chinese domestic market delivered products of higher quality and cheaper price?   

And what about energy? With over 60% of all wind turbines and solar panels deployed in China, and with growing production of green hydrogen, is the country the emerging green superpower? 

My guest Christina Boutrup discusses the coming robotic revolution in China that will unleash a new Gen R, the new AI guardrails that are stricter than Europe’s, the forest of over 120 million trees that Ant Financial has planted and the red lines that she could never cross as a journalist. 

Join me and Christina for a fascinating discussion on the future of China, and the world. 

Here is a link to sign up for the China tour that Christina Boutrup leads: 
https://www.wavelengthleadership.com/global-tours/wavelength-china/

Please visit give.moneymajlis.com to get your free Money Majlis GiveCard that you can redeem to contribute to a charity of your choice. Join our giving movement today. 

Research by : Shekhar Krishnamurthy 

Production : Poddster

“Giving” partner: Goodworld

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In this exciting episode, listen to the former president and CFO of SoftBank Group International, Alok Sama, talk about the man behind the legend of Masayoshi Son. Is the iconic founder of SoftBank an iconic visionary who can predict the future or a lucky gambler who bets the house? 

Sama, the chief dealmaker of the most influential technology investor in the world, SoftBank, tells us the fascinating tale of private jets, 5000-dollar wines, dinners with tech bros, elaborate honey traps, corporate smear campaigns and mega-deals worth billions. 

Author of the new book “The Money Trap”, a gripping memoir of his years at SoftBank and Morgan Stanley, Sama talks to Sarkar about the high points and low points of a roller coaster career in high finance. 

How do you value future technology? How much of investing is art, not science? Is growth at all costs worth it? How do you balance ambition and wellness? And what’s a good time to break free from the money trap? 

Listen to Sama and Sarkar debate all these topics and more in this unmissable episode of Money Majlis. 

Please visit give.moneymajlis.com to get your free Money Majlis GiveCard that you can redeem to contribute to a charity of your choice. Join our giving movement today. 

Research by : Shekhar Krishnamurthy 

Production : Poddster

“Giving” partner: Goodworld

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In this first episode of Season 2 of Money Majlis, we bring you a priceless conversation with Mark Mobius, the “Indiana Jones of emerging markets investing”.

Is the asset management industry in decline? How have ETFs revolutionised investing? Why is active investing better than passive? What matters more for an asset manager - size or speed? How does private equity feed into public markets?

Mark delves into the history of emerging markets and the describes the uphill task he faced in the initial years to convince his company and his customers to invest in markets like China, India, South Africa and Latin America.

Why will Trump have a “net positive” effect on emerging economies? Are the G7 countries “too big to fail” or “too big to bail”? Is the idea of a BRICS currency feasible? And should the average investor portfolio have an allocation to crypto assets? Mark answers all these questions and more.

Listen to the guru talk about what the future of investing has in store for us.

Research courtesy : Maurice Gravier

Production : Poddster

To get your Money Majlis GiveCard and join our movement of giving, please visit give.moneymajlis.com. The first 50 listeners to visit the website will get a USD 50 GiveCard that can be redeemed at any of the pre-selected causes. This initiative is powered by Goodworld. 

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In this last episode of Season 1, Suvo Sarkar is in discussion with Craig Moore, founder and CEO of Beehive, the leading P2P platform in MENA. 

Does P2P lending have the potential to disrupt banks? Will open banking force banks to collaborate with fintechs? And can the USD 250 billion funding gap for SMEs in the region be solved by the P2P model? 

Moore explains how Beehive hones its credit model with alternative data sources, why audited accounts are not important and what synergies the e& partnership brings to the table. 

In a masterclass on entrepreneurship, Moore says founders should start with a real life problem, hire the right team and learn from setbacks. Long term success is a relay race, not a solo sprint, is what he believes. 

Research by : Shekhar Krishnamurthy 

Production by : Poddster

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Welcome to another episode of Money Majlis focused on consumer marketing. Suvo Sarkar is in conversation with a doyen of the Indian business world, Bharat Puri, managing director of Pidilite Industries which owns the famous adhesive brand Fevicol, a case study on branding in many business schools. 

Why does a low-involvement brand like Fevicol dominate the Indian consumer psyche over decades with its tongue in cheek irreverence? How does a company and ad agency build a lifetime bond of trust and challenge? And will performance marketing take over from brand advertising in the near future? 

In an entertaining and inspiring discussion with Sarkar, the veteran Puri recounts how Asian Paints trained him to take calculated risks, how he managed the biggest PR crisis that Cadbury’s ever faced and how he is creating a “proneurial” culture at Pidilite. 

He explains how he starts and ends everything with the customer, how brands will become more relevant in an era of digital and AI and why treating marketing like an expense is the beginning of the end. 

Puri says leadership entails building a team that complements you, treating people well and doing the right thing every day. His serious advice to leaders: Don’t take life too seriously! 

Research by : Shekhar Krishnamurthy 
Production by : Poddster

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In this insightful episode about the business of Corporate Venture Capital (CVC), Suvo Sarkar is in a deep discussion with Nicolas Sauvage, President of TDK Ventures, the much-awarded CVC arm of TDK. 

What are some of the factors that are driving legacy corporates to invest in start-ups? Why does innovation have to be external as opposed to internal? Do CVCs turbocharge innovation? What is the ideal oversight for a CVC? And what metrics should we use to measure the success of CVCs? 

In a free-wheeling discussion on the merits and challenges of CVCs, Sauvage and Sarkar debate a few big bets versus many small ones, exploitation versus exploration, financial returns versus innovation objectives and cultural osmosis versus a Chinese wall between the corporate and the venture. 

Listen to two Stanford alumni discuss the critically important topic of CVCs and share your comments.