How to Lend Money to Strangers (Brendan le Grange)

I feel a strange affinity with peer to peer lending. I've never done it myself as a lender, borrower or connector but one of the first projects I ever did in my MBA, some 16 years ago now, was on Zopa and the emergence of the P2P model. But more recently, the headlines have been bearish, with Zopa and Funding Circle - two pillars of the form - both shutting down their retail P2P arms.

As a lending model, P2P felt all but dead.

Except that, as the tide pulled back, one or two gems were still lying on the beach: like Monexo, the Chennai-based P2P whose founder and CEO, Mukesh Bubna, joined me for this chat. Mukesh and his team have turned P2P into an alternative inflation-beating investment option for investors, and an affordable path to credit-building for borrowers.

You can read more about Monexo at https://www.monexo.co/in/ (and watch some of those videos Mukesh mentioned while you’re there)

Finally, if it is me you're after, you can find me on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ as well as on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Regards,

Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I used to feel a little bit exotic knowing a person born in Moldova, but since he left as a baby, that’s actually all I knew about Moldova. It turns out, I should have been paying attention because it may be a small country, but Moldova is standing on the threshold of significant change: on the one hand, a formal push is now underway to bring them into the EU but on the other, there’s also the still-present threat of Russian aggression.

Moldova was once in the USSR, but arguably its historical and cultural links are stronger with its Western neighbour, Romania. In this episode, we explore those ties - and the broader state of the Moldovan banking landscape - with Bogdan Plesuvescu, CEO of Victoriabank.

If you’d like to start a conversation with Bogdan, you can find him on LinkedIn like I did, and although we didn’t really talk about it, if it his sailing you’re more interested in, which has somehow become a recurring theme among my guests, you might also want to check out his Twitter

You can read more about Victoriabank Moldova at https://www.victoriabank.md/en/ (including their VB24 Pay, Garmin Pay and Apple Pay offerings as mentioned)

Bogdan also spoke about all the help the people of Moldova have been offering to Ukrainian refugees fleeing the Russian invasion. I can’t personally vouch for Refugee Support EU, but if you’re interested in helping they seem to be a good place to start your search.

Finally, if it is me you're after, you can find me on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ as well as on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Regards,

Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The first really big event that I spoke at during my time in Asia was in Shanghai. I was at Lendit China speaking about the emergence of fintech lending in Hong Kong, following a template my US colleagues had first designed to explain the rise (and rise, and rise) of lending fintech there. So I’ve always been interested in the forces that came together to give fintech lenders their first footholds in the American personal loan space, and then allowed them to power the subsequent growth in that sector.

For a decade, Upstart has been one of the forces powering that growth I’d previously just studied from the outside - which is why I was so happy to get Jeff Keltner onto the show. Jeff has been with Upstart pretty much from the start, so we talk about their philosophy, the emergence of fintech lending, and where innovation is happening today.

And Jeff has his own lending podcast, Leaders in Lending, which you should listen to wherever you’re listening to this one or find its links at https://www.upstart.com/lenders/podcasts/

Then, if you’d like to learn more about Upstart and the work they’re doing, head over to https://www.upstart.com/lenders/

Finally, if it is me you're after, feel free to connect on my LinkedIn page, my action-adventure novels on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is discussed at https://confirmu.com/ as well as on episode 24 of this show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Regards,

Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

You may have noticed, but the world is a little unsettled these days. Incomes are variable. We’ve had government support programs come and go. And underlying industries come and go. Prices are rising. Fast. In an episode of this show that I recorded six months ago, I made reference to the price of fuel being £1.50 a litre. That had actually been a slight rounding-up for convenience but already, with fuel touching £2 a litre, it feels like a bargain.

I belabour the point simply because, the more turbulent the times, the larger the premium we should place on fresh data, and my guest today is out there trying to get the freshest possible data into risk decisions. Data on Demand is a UK-based fintech that provides data and insights to companies to help them better understand and improve engagement with customers - I speak to their Sales Director, Simon Gregory, about where they get that data and the situations in which it is being used for up-to-the-minute decision making.

You can find Simon Gregory on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/simon-gregory-84236114/

Or learn more about Data on Demand via their homepage (https://dataondemand.co.uk/) or via email using hello@dataondemand.co.uk

The Vulnerability Registration Service that was mentioned is here: https://www.vulnerabilityregistrationservice.co.uk/

Finally, if it is me you're after, feel free to connect on my LinkedIn page, my action-adventure novels on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is discussed at https://confirmu.com/ as well as on episode 24 of this show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Regards,

Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We all pay a mortgage every month, just sometimes it's our landlord’s mortgage we're paying… I was in London for The Podcast Show in the last week of May and took that opportunity to record another in-person episode of HTLMTS - this time kindly hosted at OnLadder Towers by Cameron Orcutt, half of the exciting entrepreneur pair that’s using deposit loans to help first-time home buyers get on the property ladder faster.

Mortgage down-payments have always been expensive. A 20% downpayment on the average house in the UK 10 years ago, would have been about £30,000 and, at the time, that would have been 13 months of after-tax income for a typical household. So yeah, too expensive for many. But it’s gotten worse, much worse. Right now that same household would need to find 23 months of disposable income, having already paid over £100,000 in rental in the meantime.

You can learn more about OnLadder, and join their mailing list, at https://onladder.co.uk/ or find them on LinkedIn

Finally, if it is me you're after, feel free to connect on my LinkedIn page, my action-adventure novels on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is discussed at https://confirmu.com/ as well as on episode 24 of this show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Regards,

Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When I was living in Denmark and working at Experian, my boss’s boss was a rockstar, you would never hear Burak Kilicoglu’s name mentioned without an associated compliment. And I wasn’t the only one to notice, so he was soon snapped up by Creditinfo to be their Director of Global Markets - a perfect sounding guest for this show, right?

Unfortunately, though I tried, I never managed to get Burak on… which is why I was doubly happy to be chatting to today’s guest, Burak’s boss and Creditinfo CEO, Paul Randall 🤣

We talk about disrupting the credit bureau industry, about improving access to credit in developing markets, and about sharing knowledge back-and-forth between developed and developing markets.

You can find more information at https://creditinfo.com/ but if you want to jump straight to their news, that’s over here https://chronicle.creditinfo.com/#, while an example of the cookbook we mentioned is here https://chronicle.creditinfo.com/2020/12/16/creditinfo-cookbook/

Finally, if it is me you're after, feel free to connect on my LinkedIn page, my action-adventure novels on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is discussed at https://confirmu.com/ as well as on episode 24 of this show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show

Regards,

Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Early in Dead Poets Society, we’re introduced to Dr J. Evans Prichard’s approach to measuring the greatness of a poem, a dual-axis model which plots ‘perfection’ against ‘importance’ and which is immediately ripped up - because it is excrement. Luckily, I’m not trying to confine something as ethereal as poetry, so bear with me, and imagine a market for loans being described using two axes, with the horizontal axis showing the level of standardisation and the verticle axis showing the average values involved.

The top right corner is where we place standardised loans of relatively large values. Every lender would love to operate here - because it is easy to automate solutions and the rewards for doing so are high. But there’s not going to be enough space for everyone, so lenders will have to spread out: some to provide basic solutions for lower value but highly-standardised loans, and some to build bespoke solutions for customer high-value loans.

But who will provide loans that require significant customisation but offer as a reward, only relatively low values? Well, maybe you can, because this is the space where personal lending can thrive. In today’s episode, I speak to Alex Breshears of Lend2Live Learning, and find out how she provides capital to local real estate developers, and how she and her partner teach others to do the same.

First and foremost, the Lend2Live book launches today, and you can buy it here https://store.biggerpockets.com/pages/coming-soon?fbclid=IwAR1QazmmZp-1_9NTMyYIwjiLIv3fAOFv2SEdHSZpwxVExrxDHdB2v_TPp3o

But you can also head over to the Lend2Live Facebook group here if you’re just looking to dip your toes in for now: https://www.facebook.com/groups/privatelendinglessons/discussion/preview/

And as mentioned, you can also reach out to Alex directly on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/investpassively2liveactively/

Finally, if it is me you're after, feel free to connect on my LinkedIn page, my action-adventure novels on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is discussed at https://confirmu.com/ as well as on episode 24 of this show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Regards,

Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s not often that a bank’s ATMs running out of cash is a sign of its success, but that’s exactly what happened when Cantilan Bank - with its systems on the cloud - was able to get back on its feet after Typhoon Rai, and to dispense much-needed cash to the people, when no one else was able to. In today’s episode, I speak to Antonio Separovic, co-founder of Oradian, the fintech whose cloud-native core banking system made that bounce-back possible.

But, though forged in developing markets, the market for cloud-based core banking systems has continued to expand and so we chat about everything from working around infrastructure gasp to powering cutting-edge fintech.

You can find Oradian on their homepage here - https://oradian.com/

And, if it is me you're after, feel free to connect on my LinkedIn page, my action-adventure novels on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is discussed at https://confirmu.com/ as well as on episode 24 of this show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Regards,

Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

“Please, sir, may I have some more regulation?”

The Lending Standards Board is the primary self-regulatory body for the banking and lending industry in the UK, driving fair credit outcomes by giving lenders a way to hold themselves to a higher standard. I chat to Anna Roughley, Head of Insights at the LSB, to find out how this drives fairer outcomes for lenders and borrowers alike, and why self-regulation can be a strategic advantage in the modern world.

You can read more about LSB at https://www.lendingstandardsboard.org.uk/ (or on their LinkedIn page at https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-lending-standards-board-limited/) or you can email Anna’s team directly at insights@lstdb.org.uk

Finally, if it is me you're after, feel free to connect on my LinkedIn page, my action-adventure novels on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is discussed at https://confirmu.com/ as well as on episode 24 of this show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show

Regards,

Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

South Africa has an awkward history with payday lending and payday adjacent lending, so I was a touch concerned when I first heard that a fresh pair of South African entrepreneurs were looking to shake up the industry. Luckily, all my concerns were misplaced, because SmartWage is not looking to rethink payday lending, they're looking to make it redundant.

You can read more about SmartWage, now re-branded as Jem at https://www.jemhr.com/

In today’s episode, we talk about digitising communication between employers and employees, removing trucks’ worth of paperwork, and providing access to earned wages.

Follow Carolyn van der Merwe on LinkedIn for news on SmartWage but also updates from the Yale Africa Startup Review (or just head there directly at https://www.yasr.org/)

Follow Simon Ellis on LinkedIn for news on SmartWage but also his thoughts on leadership and his podcast hot tips - including The Knowledge Project and The Tim Ferris Show which were mentioned.

Follow Simon Ellis on LinkedIn for news on SmartWage but also his thoughts on leadership and his podcast hot tips - including The Knowledge Project and The Tim Ferris Show which were mentioned.

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Regards,

Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Stephen Hawking starts A Brief History of Time with an anecdote he attributes to Bertrand Russel who, having just finished a lecture on the heliocentric nature of the planets’ orbits, was challenged by a lady in the audience.

“What you have told us is rubbish.” She said, “The world is really a flat plate supported on the back of a giant turtle."

"If your theory is correct, madam," Russell replied, "then what does this turtle stand on?"

"You're a very clever man, and that's a very good question," she replied, "but the first turtle stands on the back of a second, far larger, turtle, who stands directly under him."

"But what does this second turtle stand on?" persisted Russell patiently.

And I think we all know her answer to this, which was of course that “it's turtles all the way down."

The World Turtle is a mytheme of a giant turtle supporting the world. It occurs in Hindu mythology, Chinese mythology, the mythologies of the indigenous peoples of the Americas, and, of course, has nothing to do with lending. So why am I dedicating so much real estate to the idea?

Well, because the idea was reflected in Terry Pratchet’s incredibly popular Disc World Series of books, and those inspired today’s guest, Gideon Griebenow, to give up his credit risk career to become a game developer. World Turtles is a wholesome colony builder where you guide a tribe of creatures called Meeps on their mission to save themselves and the world they live on, and it’s gaining interest from players and publishers around the world - wishlist it now on Steam.

But you can also get involved in these final stages via many other routes - the Discord Server is here (https://discord.com/invite/2NEb4HxwhF), Youtube channel is here (https://www.youtube.com/c/RecOgMission) and there is a subreddit, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram account, too.

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Regards,

Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Singapore might not feel like a natural home for a mobile banking app built on a vision to increase access to credit, but the city is not all glass skyscrapers and besuited bankers; and women are the ones most likely to fall through the cracks. That’s why Lucy is here. If you’re an entrepreneur, or a momtrepreneur, or a micropreneur, then it’s like your bank, but better.

In today’s episode, I speak to Lucy’s impressive co-founder, Debbie Watkins, about her globe-spanning career and how a better banking app can empower entrepreneurial women in ways that traditional banks simply can’t.

You can find Lucy at https://welucy.com/ (and while you’re there, check out the Team page with its awesome art, and equally awesome talent https://welucy.com/team-lucy/)

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Regards,

Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

BNPL is usually spoken about in terms of it being a more convenient payment tool for people in option-rich credit markets, but a revenue model that doesn’t require interest resonates with Middle Eastern customers for even more reasons.

So in this episode I speak to Ziyaad Ahmed, co-founder and COO at Spotii, a Dubai-based BNPL now in the ZipPay stable.

You can learn more about Spotii at https://www.spotii.com/

Their social tag is @spotiime ala https://instagram.com/spotiime?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the HTLMTS.show page

Regards,

Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Not all bankers wear suits - some, like Todd Kleperis, are built for frontier markets. It has been a decade since Washington and Colorado legalised the use of cannabis, and 17 States have followed suit, but with federal legalisation not yet on the books, most banks in the United States remain wary of the £33 billion industry. This, in turn, leaves the fast-growing recession-resilient sector starved for credit.

Forged out of frustration with this status quo, Todd and his team built Payzel to fix this, and are offering banking and funding to cannabis businesses, both startup and established. More on Payzel can be found at https://payzel.com/ or on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/river-florida/

And it turns out, cannabis isn't the only industry considered too risky to touch, so Payzel have expanded into other frontier market spaces. The Sea Pods we spoke about have just been launched this week, so head over to https://oceanbuilders.com/ for some modern living design inspiration

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Regards,

Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nicole Lapin, Host of Money Rehab with Nicole Lapin, is “the only financial expert you don't need a dictionary to understand”.

And sure, you may not need a dictionary to understand lending anymore, but that’s because you work in the industry. I’m going to guess that most of your borrowers don’t. And I’m also going to guess that most of your borrowers don’t want to spend their days reading dictionaries, which is why Nicole is where they are going to learn and to vent about their credit troubles.

As lenders, even with our best intentions we sometimes talk past our borrowers, we describe products in confusing terms or build them in ways that may allow customers to work against their own best interests.

That is why I think it is so important to have a channel to those grassroots experiences. With a new episode out every weekday, a handful of New York Times best-selling books, and her own experience of being in debt and out of control, there is no better channel today than Nicole Lapin - so I was absolutely delighted to have her on my show, talking about how and where consumers are feeling the pinch, and how and where consumers are going astray with their credit products.

You can, and really should, find Nicole’s books, courses, and other insights on https://nicolelapin.com/. You can even follow Nicole on LinkedIn

While Money Rehab with Nicole Lapin can be found wherever fine podcasts are followed, or via its home on iHeart

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Regards,

Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

More than 200 million formal and informal micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises in emerging markets lack adequate financing to thrive and grow; and the majority cite the lack of collateral and credit history and business informality as barriers to that financing. Today's guest, Sabelo Sibanda, has built CreditAis to solve this by providing explainable deep learning models that use alternative data to accurately score small businesses that don't fit the incumbent scoring criteria.

You can learn more about CreditAIs on their website at https://www.creditais.com (or follow them on LinkedIn)

We also mentioned Tuse, an earlier venture by the same pair. If that sounds interesting, learn more at https://tuseapp.com/

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Regards,

Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Open Banking is a proven technology with proven use cases, and in the UK, perhaps its spiritual home, user numbers continue to rocket - there are now more than 6 million active Open Banking customers there.

However, some other markets are looking on and wondering what the fuss is about.

This was surprising to me. And it was surprising to today’s guest, Nick Tuttelberg of DirectID. After all, there’s not a business alive today that wouldn’t want better data, and Open Banking provides some unique ways to generate and leverage data. But it seems the concept is still misunderstood in some sectors, so Nick and I take a step back and look at how a market like South Africa could benefit from encouraging Open Banking.

As we mention in our chat, this is the second time I have interviewed someone from DirectID, so if you’d like to deeper dive into the company and its mission, you can listen to my chat with its founder, James Varga, in episode 36 of this show: https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-36

But you can learn more about DirectID on their (recently redesigned and now looking very lovely) homepage https://www.direct.id/ or via LinkedIn

LinkedIn is also a good place to find Nick if you’d like to start your own Open Banking journey, he’s here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicholas-tuttelberg-87bb0628/

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Regards,

Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We eat volatility for breakfast, we make love to volatility!

Which is handy, because we’ve all heard it, most of us have even said it ourselves, the world is very volatile at the moment. So when Evan Chrapko of Trust Science told me how their models embrace volatility, I knew we were onto something interesting. Even more so, because I spent a decade working in the credit bureaus myself, and that’s the industry that Trust Science is disrupting right now with its volatility-eating models.

As mentioned in our chat, your first port of call for further information is https://www.trustscience.com/ (though they are also on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/trust-science/)

Or you can jump straight to the news articles about their work https://www.trustscience.com/articles-page (including the Mail and Globe article we spoke about)

Evan was also recently at LendIt USA, and you catch a video clip behind the scenes here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=34PrP7Ak4aw

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Regards,

Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"It was, at that time, a very crazy idea", Neel Juriasingani tells me. "A lot of people still look at us as those crazy guys. But coming from that tech mindset, we were forced to think about how tech could be built to solve these challenges".

Over the last decade or so, lenders have invested a lot of time and money to turn the smartphone into an optimised account acquisition tool - you want to be where your customer is, after all. But the fact that their smartphones are where your customers are at, means we could be using them for far more than data transfer. And maybe we just needed someone from the Telco industry to open our eyes to that.

Neel and his team at Datacultr have optimised the smartphone as a contact tool, even when they're outside of network range, to create as many opportunities to engage with a customer as possible, and in a language that they understand. They're even able to turn phone service into virtual collateral if that's what's needed to secure a loan for the most underserved and underbanked populations.

More on Datacultr can be found at https://datacultr.com/ (or find their Fintech50 recognition at https://www.inclusivefintech50.com/2021-cohort)

If you'd like to learn more about their model, or if you'd like to maximise the risk-reduction potential of your customers' smartphones, Neel can be reached for discussions via neel@datacultr.com.

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Regards,

Brendan

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In February, I spoke to Phil Blows about backing traditional loans with digital assets. The crypto markets had a rough time in the months that followed, so I wasn’t expecting much progress on that front, but I was wrong. Bull markets are a great time to build, after all.

So I have Phil back today, talking about ByBrix and their new crypto-backed mortgage offering.

And sure, to crypto outsiders like me, this might feel like a scary time to be building in this space, but as Phil reminds me, “a lot of these people didn't get into crypto to then move back into fiat, they go into crypto because they think they're going to stay there for the rest of their lives. So it's more that they're dabbling in the world of fiat, but living their lives in crypto.”

There’s a significant demographic out there who have built wealth in crypto, and would like to keep as much of their wealth there as possible, even as they look to finance a home.

You can learn more about ByBrix at their home page https://bybrix.io/ (or on their LinkedIn)

While you can find more on AQRU at https://aqru.io/ (plus Phil has been on before, on episode 29, talking about crypto and AQRU)

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Regards,

Brendan

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This is a special interview for me. HTLMTS doesn't pull in huge volumes of listeners, but that's OK, that's not really what I'm after. I want the right listeners, not the most listeners, and so I get excited when a guest tells me they got a business lead after their interview, or when one guest asks to be set up with another for some new project, or when, like today, I get to look inside a company that I've long admired.

Kiva first came into my consciousness in 2006 as an early grad school project. I actually tried to back this up with some old PowerPoints, but although I found an old CD with 'MBA files' scribbled on it, it turns out we don't have a CD reader on any of the computers in this house, so you'll just have to take my word for it 🤣 Anyway, the point is they're a foundational fintech, and one with a social drive to boot.

Today I'm chatting to Lev Plaves about the ways in which Kiva has evolved since my school project, and in particular how he and his team are lending money to refugees. The Kiva Refugee Investment Fund successfully closed with $32.5 million, and they're multiplying that impact by following an open approach, sharing their lending results as they go, so others can take heart from the fact that loan officers now say that "refugees are now the first people they look to, because of what their performance has been and how strong they've been as clients".

Kiva is, of course, at https://www.kiva.org/ but then you'll want to jump straight to the refugee tab - I'm helping Ali put up solar panels and Alaa with her sewing business, for example.

Or find their blog at https://www.kiva.org/blog

You can reach out to Lev and the team by email via refugees@kiva.org

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Regards,

Brendan

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Credit scores are near to my heart. I kinda work around them now, but still, I spent a wonderful decade rolling the things out and so I’m getting back to my roots. In today’s episode, Toni Hubbs talks to me about how the team at VantageScore is driving inclusion and transparency in credit scores at scale (a really, really big scale), and about how and why those scores are being used in securitization deals.

Head on over to https://vantagescore.com/ to find all their educational material

You can find The Score, VantageScore's own podcast on their website, https://vantagescore.com/lenders/tools-and-resources/the-score-podcast/ and wherever you're listening to this one.

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Regards,

Brendan

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"Fairness in pricing often starts with the idea of competition - if there's healthy competition, that will bring the price down. But, in the United States, if you look from the 1990s to the 2020s, credit card profits have steadily risen, and real interest rates have steadily risen and at the same time, default rates have fallen and it's just less expensive, in some ways to run a credit card company than it used to be - so I think that's the first clue that the pricing isn't fair".

In this episode of HTLMTS, I speak to Elena Botella, a fellow CapitalOne alum who, when she realised how incentives in the modern could become misaligned in the modern lending model, decided to do something about it, something rather inspiring to a wandering soul like me - she took herself on a road trip around America to hear the human story of consumer debt.

"In the credit card industry, you see the transaction, you see what some this credit enables, but you don't always see the harm side of it... I heard from consumers who had followed a similar pattern, and came to feel that credit cards had done them more harm than good".

Delinquent: Inside the American Debt Machine launched this week (11 October 2022) and is now widely available in all bookstores, but the folks over at https://bookshop.org/books/delinquent-inside-america-s-debt-machine/9780520380356 probably appreciate your business more than the bigger names we might gravitate to first (I’m not pointing fingers, I have my own Amazon links down below 😅)

You can find more of Elena’s writing at http://elenabotella.com/about or on Twitter as @elenabotella. While Elena’s work at Omidyar Network starts here: https://omidyar.com/omidyar_team/elena-botella/

The research of mine that looked ta price sensitivity is getting old now, but is over here https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/increased-price-transparency-shake-up-hong-kong-loan-market-brendan/

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Oh, and since you like banking podcasts, head on over to https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/ to find related content that you may find interesting.

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I spend a lot of time talking about how to create debt for consumers. I do it because I believe that, when done right, debt can be beneficial to all parties involved, like a mortgage that generates wealth for the middle classes through property ownership. But that doesn’t lessen the fact that debt carries a cost, a cost that is now quickly rising. We know that mortgage rates are on the up, because it’s on every other newspaper headline these days, but what’s harder to ascertain is what we can do about that - other than building a time machine to take us back to when houses were cheaper.

Except, there are other ways.

It’s just not in the interest of lenders to make them obvious. Which is why it sometimes takes an outsider to disrupt the status quo. Enter, Jinesh Vohra and Sprive, the app that helps you overpay your monthly mortgage, turning the power of compounding interest in your favour for once.

“Being mortgage free should be achievable for everyone… it really changes your life”

Jinesh posts regularly on LinkedIn and is open to DMs, so follow his account and do reach out if you have questions

As mentioned in the show, your first port of call if you want to check out the app is your friendly local App Store (Apple) or (Android)

If it is just information you’re after, then Sprive’s home page is where it is likely to be https://sprive.com/ And you don’t take their word for it, it seems like every week there’s a new letter in the press, or update online, from a happy customer (~40% of SpriveApp's active user growth was from customer referrals).

More on annuity curves, can be found here (https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/articles/perfect-paydown-curves) and here (https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/articles/annuity-curves-for-portfolio-management)

While you can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Oh, and since you like banking podcasts, head on over to https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/ to find related content that you may find interesting.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

“Would I prefer cash through debt, or cash through equity?

I would always choose cash through debt - what happens in partnerships is one person always works harder, and there is always some level of resentment towards the other ones, (and) you could always find a coach, you could always find a consultant or a mentor. And typically, you're going to have a lot fewer challenges.”

There's good debt and bad debt. Essentially, debt is good when it is funding the purchase, today, of an asset that will create value in the future. This is why, in the consumer lending world, mortgage debt is typically good and credit card debt is, well, less commonly so. There are so ways in which we, as consumers, can be tempted into using debt to purchase consumables. But in the business lending world, that ratio skews more towards the good debt side of the equation, because there are so many more value-generating assets to consider - does the business need a new building, or a new machine, or to hire a team to break into a new region.

Unfortunately, the business lending world can also be overwhelmingly confusing for small business owners. Jonathan Fodera, president at Integrated Business Financing, is here today to help me get my head around the options. Jonathan helps businesses of all sizes grow and scale by finding the best financing solution possible, from SBA loans to equipment financing to working capital lines to invoice factoring to startup loans and more.

You can find Jonathan over on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathan-fodera-391a98a1/ (or using jonathan.fodera on the other platforms)

Integrated Business Financing is there, too, but there home page is over here: https://www.integratedbusinessfinancing.com/ for a more direct route to the info you’re after

They also have a YouTube channel if videos are more your thing https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCv9gp1n6t2lmyVicsTXZYeQ

For my stuff, visit me on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), while my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Oh, and since you like banking podcasts, head on over to https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/ to find related content that you may find interesting.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The credit card landscape glitters with options for the consumer - different rewards earned at different rates, in different ways, sometimes with an annual fee and sometimes not, all wrapped in countless different brands and colours.

Chances are, there’s a product out there that is perfect for every consumer.

Chances are, it’s bloody hard to find.

That’s where Chris Hutchins comes in. In, All The Hacks, Chris gets deep into the weeds matching consumers to credit card offers with an understanding of the market that can benefit both sides. All The Hacks is not just a great listen, it can save you money and improve your life, so seek it out on any of the major podcast platforms, or listen on its home page here: https://www.allthehacks.com/

You can find my research on first card in wallet over here https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/younger-consumers-seeking-out-credit-cards-clear-value-le-grange/ or at https://www.transunion.hk/resources/transunion-hk/doc/insights/Insights-On-Being-First-Card-In-Wallet.pdf

If you want to start your own Laid Off Camp - here’s the wiki to get you going http://wiki.laidoffcamp.com/w/page/14510849/FrontPage (and it’s a great idea for this economy because if I think back to my own MBA thesis, there’s a momentary spike in entrepreneurial activity post layoff but that drops with as unemployment persists, so we really only have a narrow window to make it work).

And, speaking of me, you can pop over to my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU with our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Oh, and since you like banking podcasts, head on over to https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/ to find related content that you may find interesting.

Keep well, Brendan

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The Mexico lending market is not one I know well. It’s not one I know at all, truth be told.

Luckily, Jorge Enriquez is blessed with an infectious laugh and an easy manner that immediately put me at ease. It’s something I soon learned was part of the DNA of his business: “we understand that asking for a loan is a stressful situation, so we need to create the right environment for our customers to feel 'eh, we got you, you're with Credilikeme, just chill, relax, we're going to take care of you...'”

Credilikeme is a personal loan business built on experimentation and gamification, and built for borrowers - we discuss all of this and more on today's episode.

If you would like to learn more about Credilikeme, head on over to their website: https://credilike.me/

But they're also big on social media. Start with YouTube, where they put out a lot of content https://www.youtube.com/c/CredilikemeOficial or click here for Instagram or Twitter

For my stuff, visit me on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), while my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Oh, and since you like banking podcasts, head on over to https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/ to find related content that you may find interesting.

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“This is not a small change, and it doesn't affect isolated groups. This is not just an IT problem. This is not just a modelling problem. This is not something the business can solve on its own. This really requires board attention to actually bring together those teams and ensure that there is really cohesion across the organisation.” - Frank Gerhard, Solution Associate Partner and CTO at Risk Dynamics, part of McKinsey & Co.

Gone are the days when senior business leaders could leave the data crunching to propellor-hat-wearing quants in a back room, now there’s a seat at the Boardroom Table for data and analytics, or at least there should be. In this episode, Frank and I speak about the strategic elevation of analytics and how innovations from just a year or two ago are already mere table stakes, but in particular, we talk about all of this in the context of SME lending where lenders are feeling them acutely.

I first found Frank via his co-authorship of this article on “How banks can reimagine lending to small and medium-size enterprises” but we also reference this article on “Designing next-generation credit-decisioning models” which is worth a read, and has more insights we had time to fully explore.

Frank is on LinkedIn and available via email, or for more insights from him and his colleagues, you can head over to https://www.riskdynamicsgroup.com/our-insights or https://www.mckinsey.com/

Frank also mentions Quantam Black, AI by McKinsey’s - their work is at https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/quantumblack/how-we-help-clients

Andrew Ng's thoughts on great data versus big data: https://spectrum.ieee.org/andrew-ng-data-centric-ai

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

Oh, and if you’re in need of more banking podcasts, you can find related content at https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/

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“If you look at the things we do as a company, whether it's in digital assets, renewable energy, or media and entertainment, we are always looking at how to structure financial products to push disruptive industries forward. We are banking on, and betting on the future.”

Let's fund a movie. Truth be told, I don’t watch a lot of movies these days. There was a time I could use long flights to catch up, but even those days are gone for now. Maybe that’s why I’ve never spent much energy thinking about how they’re funded. I guess I always just assumed that they were exclusively funded by a small group of risk-hungry Hollywood types with incredibly deep pockets, winning big on some rolls and losing big on others.

Well, as it turns out, there’s a lending model there. And more than that, it’s a lending model that connects movies to green energy to digital assets. Join me and Zachary Tarica, founder and CEO of The Forest Road Company as he talks me through tax credits and tax credit lending, and how TFRC is putting “money in the hands of people that are pushing transformative industries forward?”

As Zach mentions on the show, you’re free to start a conversation by emailing them at info@forestroadco.com or by reading the extensive content on their homepage www.forestroadco.com

On Twitter they’re @forestroadco and on LinkedIn they’re @theforestroadcompany

For my stuff, visit me on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), while my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Oh, and since you like banking podcasts, head on over to https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/ to find related content that you may find interesting.

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Pawnshops are one of the oldest forms of lending, allowing people to turn assets they’d like to keep for the long-term into cash in the short-term - granny’s broch, those statues great uncle Thomas brought back from Greece, your Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT. OK, one of those is not the same as the others, but our definition of ‘asset’ is changing, so where do holders of digital assets go if they want to access quick cash but they don’t want to sell?

Well, maybe to Zharta, “a real-time NFT loan platform for borrowers and lenders”. Zharta allows consumers to get instant loans with their NFTs without losing ownership over them. Join me and Nuno Cortesão, their CEO and co-founder as we talk about NFT-backed lending and where digital assets might go in the future.

Zharta is found at https://www.zharta.io/ Or on LinkedIn and the other social medias (Twitter, Discord, and the ones for kids cooler than me)

Zharta was speaking at Web Summit earlier this month, and I expect they will be back at the event again next year - certainly, I will be. If you would also like to attend, I suggest you jump on this link for the last few 2 for 1 early bird tickets. You'll also hear that Nuno and I will both be at the Rugby World Cup in France, so let me know if you're heading to either event, and maybe we can grab a drink.

We also speak about traditional pawnshops, which were featured on episode 31 of this show with James Constantinou (check it out to see how unique physical assets are evaluated and used as collateral)

For my stuff, visit me on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), while my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, if you would like to participate in the show, or if you'd like to find full written transcripts with timestamps head on over to HowtoLendMoneytoStrangers.Show

Oh, and since you like banking podcasts, head on over to https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/ to find related content that you may find interesting.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, I feel an affinity for the peer-to-peer lending model. My initial interest was sparked during an MBA project 16 years ago and reinvigorated more recently by interviews on here with Monexo and Kiva. And I’m building on that today, with Anzhelika Osmanova, founder of Lendwill, a community-first P2P platform coming to us out of Norway.

You can read more about Lendwill, right where you’d expect to, https://lendwill.com/ (worth the click for the design touches alone) but both Lika and Lendwill can be found on LinkedIn, too.

During our chat, Lika raised issues around cross-border credit scores also covered by Misha Espiov and Ash Bhatt on this same show, so you can click those links if that’s your area of interest.

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect). The show has its own page there, too, and is also present, but less active, on Instagram and Twitter using the @HTLMTS handle. My action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

And if you’re in need of more banking podcasts, you can find related content at https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/

Keep well, Brendan

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In one way, it's slightly surprising that Mateo Infantozzi Riembau was a fintech founder. Not because there were no signs of entrepreneurial thinking, but because his early successes came from the travel industry. And yet he's done it twice, at a time were "there was little room for startups in Uruguay, and even less room for fintechs". But local innovators have changed that quickly. Now "fintech is sexy", and Mateo and his co-founders played a significant role in that change.

You can find Prezzta at https://www.prezzta.com/ (or on LinkedIn)

You can find Octa at https://www.octa.dev/ (or on LinkedIn)

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect). The show has its own page there, too, and is also present, but less active, on Instagram and Twitter using the @HTLMTS handle. My action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/contact-us

Oh, and if you’re in need of more banking podcasts, you can find related content at https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/

Regards,

Brendan

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When I was living in Denmark and working at Experian, my boss’s boss was a rockstar, you would never hear Burak Kilicoglu ’s name mentioned without an associated compliment. And I wasn’t the only one to notice, so he was soon snapped up by Creditinfo to be their Director of Global Markets - a perfect-sounding guest for this show, right? Unfortunately, though I tried, I never managed to get Burak on…

That’s how I introduced my episode with Paul Randall, CEO of Creditinfo but I’m pleased to say, it is no longer true. Because in this episode of HTLMTS, I’m sitting down with Burak himself to chat about data as a route to improved access to credit in emerging markets, about lending to SMEs, and about what it means to react quickly in volatile markets.

Creditinfo can be found at https://creditinfo.com/ or, as Burak mentioned, if you want to start a conversation with one of the team, their contact info is here https://creditinfo.com/about-us/our-group-management/

They are also on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/creditinfo-group/ (from which you’ll find links to the individual country pages)

The ESG data project he mentioned is explained in more detail here: https://chronicle.creditinfo.com/2022/10/24/creditinfo-launches-esg-data-platform/

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect). The show has its own page there, too, and is also present, but less active, on Instagram and Twitter using the @HTLMTS handle. My action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/contact-us

Oh, and if you’re in need of more banking podcasts, you can find related content at https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/

Regards,

Brendan

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I'm almost old enough to start voicing opinions about youngsters needing to cut their hair and get themselves some jobs. Which is convenient, because that's sort of what we're talking about today with Ethan Fraenkel from ProGrad - a UK-based fintech that's taking an objective-first approach to improving student financing.

"You're not looking for car financing, you're looking to buy a car, you're not necessarily looking for credit, you're you're looking to make a purchase, you're not looking for mortgage, you're looking to buy a house. And so that's really the approach that we've taken with our algorithm as well, that allows us to predict how much money a customer will earn over the next five years."

You can learn more about ProGrad at https://www.prograd.uk/

I mention Guy Kawasaki in our chat, here's his 'must see' TED Talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mtjatz9r-Vc

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect). The show has its own page there, too, and is also present, but less active, on Instagram and Twitter using the @HTLMTS handle. My action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/contact-us

Oh, and if you’re in need of more banking podcasts, you can find related content at https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/

Regards,

Brendan

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To grow from a small island you need a dual aspect: looking inward, CIM has a relationship with about 60% of commercially active Mauritians; looking outward, CIM is expanding into East Africa and possibly beyond?

You can read more about CIM's finance arm at https://cimfinance.mu/mu/en/

Or, if you'd rather visit them and the beautiful island of Mauritius in person, here's where you can start your planning https://www.mymauritius.travel/ 🤣

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect). The show has its own page there, too, and is also present, but less active, on Instagram and Twitter using the @HTLMTS handle. My action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/contact-us

Oh, and if you’re in need of more banking podcasts, you can find related content at https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/

Regards,

Brendan

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“AI is not something that's come around today, right? What has changed is our ability to store an enormous amount of data economically; the processing speeds; and the speed of transmission of information. Those three in combination are the most fertile ground to bring AI to life.”

As we’ve heard on this show before, AI as such is not a new tool, but it is now really coming of age. And today’s guest, Sanjay Uppal, co-founder and CEO at Finbots.ai, saw an opportunity to use it to transform and democratise credit scoring.

“I just said, ‘the solution has to be transformative. So we're not talking about taking a task that takes six months and do it in four months, we're talking about, 'can I bring six months down to 60 minutes? Can I bring it down to six minutes?'“

You can read more about FinBots on their homepage (https://finbots.ai/) and, as Sanjay mentioned, they aim to get back to every contact within 24 hours so if you’re wanting to know more, feel free to start a conversation right at https://finbots.ai/contact/

And due to their great content, whether you need scoring transformation or not, you should follow them on LinkedIn, too: https://www.linkedin.com/company/finbots-ai-pte-ltd/ There, you can also find and follow Sanjay or previous guest of this show from all the way back in episode 10 and now current Chief Revenue Officer at Finbots, Andre Marques

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Regards, Brendan

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Developing markets have a reputation for being unavoidably high-risk for lenders. And sure, developing markets are associated with less stable employment which can undermine repayments but in reality, how much of the observed historical losses could be avoided by embracing local knowledge and implementing better collections?

It turns out, quite a lot of it. And by better collections, mind you, I don't mean tougher collections. In fact, its almost the opposite. BFREE is a Nigerian fintech founded on a deep dissatisfaction with the available credit collection options which seemed to thrive on humiliating customers - so they set out to change the narrative by offering borrowers a clear path towards long-term financial stability through a combination of our self-servicing, messaging automation, contact centre, and machine learning solutions.

I'm speaking to Moses Nmor, co-founder and Chief Product Officer of BFREE, to hear the full story.

You can reach the team and learn more about their work at https://bfree.io/ or on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/bfree-global/ (you'll also find the team there, and as Moses says, they're very friendly)

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Regards, Brendan

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In any property transaction, you need a willing buyer and a willing seller. What you don’t need, but almost always have, is a disinterested lender.

That third wheel can be problematic, so Paul Watts is trying to get rid of it via owner financing for home builders.

As Paul mentioned, Lenuity’s home page is at https://lenuity.co.uk/ but you can also find him on LinkedIn

You can learn more about Barclays Eagle Labs and the Black Founder Accelerator here: https://labs.uk.barclays/

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Oh, and if you’re in need of more banking podcasts, you can find related content at https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/

Regards, Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When I moved to Scandinavia, Finland quickly became one of my favourite countries to work in. That much colder than my home in Copenhagen, it was where I first experienced 'proper snow'; visiting Helsinki before Moscow, meant it was where I got my first up-close experience of Russian-Byzantine architecture and a sense of being truly far from home; and thanks to its stoic people, it taught me to present to an audience with near zero interaction, a skill that served me well when Covid lockdowns meant I was suddenly doing all my webinars to a muted computer screen 🤣

So it was a delight to be returning for this episode, at least conceptually, as I speak to my old colleague Kim Ahola about his work at Creditstar and the emergence of tech-first digital lending in Finland and the broader region.

You'll find Creditstar at their home page (www.creditstar.com/) or if you want to find the Finnish business directly, that's at https://www.creditstar.fi/

Kim also mentioned Monefit, that's at www.monefit.com (and coming to the UK soon at https://www.monefit.co.uk/)

Kim and Creditstar are both on LinkedIn, at www.linkedin.com/in/kimahola/ and https://www.linkedin.com/company/creditstar-group-as/ respectively

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on my site: https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/contact-us.

Oh, and if you’re in need of more banking podcasts, you can find related content at https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/

Regards, Brendan

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"Retailers are obsessed about consumers." And it is by leveraging the fruits of this obsession, their understanding, that retail creditors can take on the bigger, more cheaply-funded banks

RCS is found at https://rcs.co.za/ and they're on LinkedIn, too (plus Facebook and Instagram)

Mobicred is at https://mobicred.co.za/

Read more about the RCS rising star tennis academy at https://www.tennissa.co.za/w/play/rising-star-tennis (or click here to read the announcement and at see a snap of Regan's formidable forehand in action)

Forest Whitaker's Peace and Development Initiative is an important one, and can be found at https://www.wpdi.org/ (for more on RCS's role with it, click here)

Piketberg where Regan found himself as a straight-out-of-university engineer, is a small town about a hundred miles north of Cape Town. It might not have been the most exciting location for a young man to start his career, but it seems to have embraced active tourism - so if you're looking for some mountain biking within reach of the (ice cold) sea and some exciting wine producers, check out their tourism offerings. Travel a little bit further up the coast and you'll find Lambert's Bay, where I once worked at the Crayfish Festival but there's a whole different story in there 😂

I tease Sam a little for his tennis here, he is remarkably talented when it comes to brand health tracking, so look him up and tell him I sent you if that's something you need.

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on my site: https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/contact-us.

Oh, and if you’re in need of more banking podcasts, you can find related content at https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/

Regards, Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Alif Bank has grown into one of the leading fintechs in Central Asia; and with its portfolio of Sharia-compliant lending, payments, and banking products it's showing that fintech can be based on noble values.

Alif Bank and all its products can be found at www.alif.tj (click the link to jump to English) or on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/alif-capital/

Abdullo himself, who you've heard is very personable, is also there at https://www.linkedin.com/in/akurbanov/

You can read about the academy and how Alif are building future tech stars at https://fintechmagazine.com/financial-services-finserv/fintech-in-tajikistan-director-of-alif-academy-on-diversity

Then, in the episode Abdullo mentions how Alif are now an AWS case study, and he means that literally, you can read more about their hybrid migration to AWS at https://aws.amazon.com/solutions/case-studies/alif-bank-case-study/

Somon.tj is exactly where you'd expect it: https://somon.tj/

Tajikistan is a mountainous, rugged country - if you'd like to visit it, read more here https://wikitravel.org/en/Tajikistan or here https://advntr.cc/the-not-knowing-an-adventure-in-tajikistan/

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on my site: https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/contact-us.

Oh, and if you’re in need of more banking podcasts, you can find related content at https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/

Regards, Brendan

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So you want to own a boat but you don't know how to finance it? Then we've got you covered. I'm in Venice with the family this week, a city more closely linked to boats than almost any other. That's a coincidence. We're not talking about gondolas or cruise ships, today, but we are talking about pretty much every vessel in between.

You can read more about Salt and its launch at https://www.salt-finance.com/

Joe is on LinkedIn, as is Salt itself (they're also on Instagram, where their pictures are getting me a bit too interested in buying a boat myself).

Or if you're really quick, you can find them all in person at Boat Life 2023 in Birmingham where they're sponsoring the Live Stage

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on my site: https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/contact-us.

Oh, and if you’re in need of more banking podcasts, you can find related content at https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/

Regards, Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Imagine you rent your home.  Now imagine your landlord gave you a straight choice: (1) pay rent for forty years, renewing the lease biennially for the rest of your life, or (2) pay the same rent for thirty years at the end of which your landlord gives you the house.

Pick your answer, but don't tell me yet, because I have one more pair of choices for you, this one from the funding side of things.

This time I want you to imagine yourself as an investment manager at a pension fund with £1 billion to invest, would you rather place it in (1) a 40-year gilt to earn an inflation-adjusted return of zero or (2) buy the right to receive monthly rent from a club of motivated renters that give you an inflation-adjusted yield of two or three per cent for forty years?

OK, now let me guess... hmmm, you picked two and two, right?

Yeah, I'm not a genius for knowing that. It's simple. And yet... also quite complicated. My first degree was in structured finance, so I really should have a handle on this bond pricing stuff, and how to split income streams from asset growth, but when I went from university into lending instead, I promptly forgot it all.

My guest today, Ike Udechuku, has no such blind spot. With a, frankly astonishing, track record in the bond markets and a passion for property and property management, he looks perfectly positioned to shake up these two huge industries with Pathway Points - which will give both investors and renters a way to answer 'two' to those simple questions.

You can learn more about Pathway at https://thepathway.club/ (which includes some great little video clips explaining the process), but you should also follow them on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/pathway-points/) where they publish regular insights

If you're an investor, you can reach out to Ike on LinkedIn to start a conversation: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ikeudechuku/

We mentioned Ampersand House, and if you'd like to see more of that, check out this great article from 2017: https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/ampersand-house-everything-is-for-sale

Ike mentions Sharia mortgages in our conversation. In episode 88 of this show, Abdullo Kurbanov explains murabaha in more detail

I mention an accidentally pilfered Alvar Aalto glass vase, see how this vase may have inspired the swimming pools that inspired modern skateboarding https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/the-pool-and-the-stream/

You can learn more about me on my LinkedIn page, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you would like to participate in the show, reach out to me at https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/contact-us

Regards, Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When you lend someone money, you give up the usage of those funds - temporarily if things go well, permanently if they don't - and so, to make it worth your while, you charge the borrower interest. That's just business. But sometimes business is good to you, and instead of your interest being paid in boring old Euros, you get paid in fine wine!

That's the concept behind WineFunding, the world's first crowdfunding and alternative financing platform specifically for wine companies. With equity and debt-based model, any wine lover can now also become a wine producer, and drink the glorious rewards of that work.

"It's a passion investment, but it doesn't need to be irrational or risky."

WineFunding's home page is at https://www.winefunding.com/en, with the list of available and funded projects at https://www.winefunding.com/en/projects/explore (I picked this one essentially out of the hat for the episode, https://www.winefunding.com/en/domainebaudon but you're just out of time to participate now)

You can also find videos of those projects on Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/c/Winefunding

WineHub, the co-working and events space dedicated to the wine industry and whose seed funding was raised on the WineFunding platform, can be found here: https://winehub.fr/ >>> And if you would like to get involved in any of those wine projects, use the code HTLMTS at checkout to save €20 on any investment or €100 if you invest over €1,000!

If LinkedIn is more your pace, you can find Maxime there (https://www.linkedin.com/in/maximedebure/) as well as pages for WineFunding and WineHub. While you're there, send me a connection request, too.

The wine estates that were bought by the other Pierre's aboard the Berg China were https://cabriere.co.za/ and https://www.la-motte.com/, and are both worth a visit

You can learn more about me on my LinkedIn page, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you would like to participate in the show, reach out to me at https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/contact-us

Regards, Brendan

Oh, and if you’re in need of more banking podcasts, you can find related content at https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/

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This is a special episode for two reasons: (1) it is my long-awaited debut in Australia, a market that's slipped through the gaps for too long on this show, and (2) it's a birthday bonus episode. Well, no, actually, it's actually special for three reasons, because it is also a story about taking chances. First, someone had to take a chance on Oli, when he was a restaurant manager looking for a change into credit risk management. Then Oli had to take a chance on a restaurant of his own, when he was looking for a change out of credit risk.

Oli is now at ERA, which you can read about here https://era.bar/ and if you're in Brisbane, book yourself a table (they're at 3/75 Redcliffe Parade, Redcliffe, QLD 4020)

You can read more about the fight to save Suttons Beach Pavillion here: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-05-29/qld-redcliffe-sutton-beach-pavillion-rally/101106584

On a happier note, Oli wants you to visit Tasmania, if you agree check this out: https://www.discovertasmania.com.au/

And you'll have heard about Oli's fantastic wine guy, he's at http://www.thewinetradition.com.au/#/home or if beer is more your thing, he also gave shout outs to https://www.catchmentbrewingco.com.au/, https://www.bentspokebrewing.com.au/pages/beer-core-range, and https://yourmatesbrewing.com/products/larry

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on my site: https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/contact-us

Regards, Brendan

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The fact that it takes 45 days to close a mortgage in America today is not just a one-time hassle for home buyers, it can be a source of ongoing compounding costs. Nobody wants that, least of all Eilon Shalev my guest today and the co-founder and CEO of Elphi, a fintech that wants to bring that down to fifteen days.

“Elphi is a technology company. We provide enterprise software as a service to mortgage lenders, to help them close loans faster. That's the gist of it.”

You can find Elphi and more on its story at https://www.elphi.io/ (or on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/elphi-inc/ )

Eilon is on LinkedIn, too, though don’t forget to mention the podcast when you reach out (https://www.linkedin.com/in/eilonshalev/)

Eilon also shares his email in this podcast, so listen out for that if you prefer to make direct contact - or find it in the transcript at https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-88

We also talk a lot about Eilon’s time at MIT Sloan, if an entrepreneurial MBA is on your 2023 wishlist, learn more here (). Need to fund it, perhaps my guests from episode 22: https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-22?

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on my site: https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/contact-us

Regards, Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This whole show is built on the premise that lending money is a tricky endeavour, but, let's face it, borrowing money can sometimes be easier said than done, too: instalment or revolving, secured or unsecured, long-term or short-term, monthly cost versus APR, affordability versus need, etc.

There's a lack of transparency and a lack of knowledge. "And when there is a lack of knowledge, there is a lack of trust, and as long as there is a lack of trust, there's always going to be a hindrance to the advancement of the industry" says Vlad Sherbatov, President & Co-Founder of Smarter.Loans - helping Canadians discover top loan providers for any credit purpose.

Head on over to https://smarter.loans/ to see what's there, or https://smarter.loans/videos/ for a wealth of lending content.

Or get them ont he socials, they're big on TikTok (at https://www.tiktok.com/@smarter.loans?lang=en), YouTube (at https://www.youtube.com/c/SmarterLoans) and Instagram (at https://www.instagram.com/smarterloans/?hl=en)

We also discuss the Canadian Lenders Association, that's over here: https://www.canadianlenders.org/

You can learn more about me on my LinkedIn page, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you would like to participate in the show, reach out to me at https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/contact-us

Regards, Brendan

Oh, and if you’re in need of more banking podcasts, you can find related content at https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/

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One of the most exciting things about working in emerging markets is the opportunity to leap frog old systems - a tool that once had a cutting edge is now an anchor, and to be free of it a means to be nimble.

Now, I’m not suggesting traditional data has reached the point of being an anchor, but markets rich with it have created fully developed ecosystems that may be stifling innovation on other alternative data fronts.

This is why it was so exciting for me to be given a chance to see what’s happening in Latin America, a region that, by and large, fixing gaps in traditional with new and varied alternative data experiments.

I’m spoke to Santiago Espinoza, LexisNexis’s Director of Market Planning for LATAM, to learn more.

You can find LexisNexis Risk Solutions at: https://risk.lexisnexis.com/

They’re also on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/lexisnexis-risk-solutions/

Santiago is also on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/santiago-espinoza-6385ba

I am on LinkedIn, of course, so feel free to send me a connection request there: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange

My action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Keep well, Brendan

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When Naureen Hyat and Humza Hussain joined forces with Nadeem Hussain, the founder behind the world’s second-largest branchless banking solution, they decided to pivot their B2B microfinance business towards the consumer, giving rise to Tez, the first FinTech in Pakistan to get a digital lending licence. They made mistakes quickly and learned from them, creating a scalable and digital lending model with risk at or below the levels of the OpEx heavy manual models of old.

"Our first cohort was probably the best part of the learning journey for us, because we actually got over 50% defaults on that first cohort... And then the credit scoring engine started taking shape. And we started bringing defaults down from 50 to 40, 40 to 30, 30 to 20, 20 to 15. Then the tougher bit came because it was not only about the credit scoring, it had to be about the experience of the consumer, how is the product structured, from the first interaction of the consumer with the company till after he or she has been paid, everything matters... the latest cohort actually closed at under three percent default. This was uncollateralized cash lending to the masses, so yeah, it was quite an interesting experience and we learned a lot from it."

Tez, now ZoodPay Pakistan, is at https://www.zoodpay.com/pakistan (or visit the group page if your interest are more global)

ZoodPay is on LinkedIn, too, where you can also follow Naureen, with 50,000+ others that are learning from her journey (https://www.linkedin.com/in/naureen-hyat/)

If you're interested in the broader fintech ecosystem in Pakistan, check out the Pakistan Fintech Network at https://pfn.org.pk/

The early growth of Tez was supported by, among others, Accion Venture Lab and Omidyar Network who have both got indirect links to this show, via episode 42 with Jayshree Venkatesan (a primer on microlending) and episode 68 with Elena Botella (a lesson in responsible lending)

You can learn more about me on my LinkedIn page, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you would like to participate in the show, reach out to me at https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/contact-us

Regards, Brendan

Oh, and if you’re in need of more banking podcasts, you can find related content at https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/

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“So how is it that we can make credit more equitable and affordable? The question hasn't changed, it is the answer that needs to change.”

In a traditional model, the end-to-end cost of consumer credit involves the merchant paying a commission to the credit card company for facilitating the payment, the consumer paying the credit card company fees and interest for maintaining a line of credit, and the merchant paying Google or Meta for presenting an ad to their audience. As a career credit guy, I’d only ever considered the first two, that in a low-risk segment where interest is lower then fees might compensate and vice versa. But that marketing spend is really the cornerstone, because people don’t borrow for borrowing’s sake, they borrow to purchase a thing or service.

“Now you can actually get in front of customers, and you know what they've bought in the past, you know what their affordability is, and you also know that they're spending in a sustainable way and that you, as a brand, are contributing to that sustainable commerce. And that's really where we think the sweet spot exists. Why don't we let brands rather pay our customers? In other words, use the brand's marketing budget to subsidise the cost of credit to our customer, and convince our customer to buy from that brand.”

Zilch is at home at https://www.zilch.com/uk/ (or find the app for Apple or Android )

Zilch is also on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/payzilch/ (plus Youtube, TikTok and Instagram with the PayZilch handle)

If you want to follow the work of StepChange, the Debt Charity that got a shout-out in the episode, they’re at https://www.stepchange.org/

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Regards, Brendan

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A credit risk specialist with over two decades in credit risk spread across Canada and the US, Frank Tian now writes, teaches, and consults on a wide range of lending risk management topics - so in this episode, I pick his brain, delving into everything from content to creation to the regional bank crisis and how AI might actually be the productivity boost we need to navigate ageing populations in the developed world.

Your best bet for all things Frank Tian is https://www.franktian.net/ but as he mentioned on the show, you’ll find him on LinkedIn, too, at https://www.linkedin.com/in/frankgtian/

You can also buy Frank’s books and courses via the affiliate links below. Being affiliate links doesn't increase the price to you, but if you choose to buy something, I will earn a small commission. That said, these are also available on Amazon and Udemy, if sending billionaires to space is more your jam.

Courses:

Consumer Lending Risk Management Fundamentals (free) https://risk-school.thinkific.com/courses/consumer-lending-risk-management-fundamentals?ref=dfc750

Consumer Lending Risk Management Essentials https://risk-school.thinkific.com/courses/consumer-lending-risk-management-essentials?ref=dfc750

Books:

New Credit, New Finance (ebook) https://risk-school.thinkific.com/courses/new-credit-new-finance?ref=dfc750

Unsecured Lending Risk Management (ebook) https://risk-school.thinkific.com/courses/unsecured-lending-risk-management?ref=dfc750

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Regards, Brendan

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Last week I compared credit bureaus to city walls, defensive structures that, because they’re solid and immovable, can keep the riskiest of customers out, but, also because they’re solid and immovable, can’t always let all the good customers in. Today, we look at those walls from the inside, and it turns out, their design is keeping some defenders out, too.

Let’s say the first step is too high for some to step up onto. Am I stretching this metaphor too far? Possibly. The idea is that lenders and their data are the defenders, and that the process to bring new lenders onto a credit bureau is flawed. Now, if you’re sticking with me, you can think of Dillion Harindiran and his co-founders at Slipstream are building ladders, allowing more defenders to get to the top where they can be useful.

Or, in sensible adult language, Slipstream have built a single, simple API that allows lenders of all sizes - they count start-ups, unicorns, and household names among their early customers - to connect to the three major UK credit bureaus simultaneously, hyperfast and with minimal effort.

You can find Slipstream at: https://oneslipstream.com/

You can find Dillion on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/harindiran/

Or just arrange to speak to him in person via https://calendly.com/dillon . You can also read how he and the team got their cool Calendly links over here https://www.linkedin.com/posts/harindiran_allof-slipstreamsco-founders-have-a-calendlycom-activity-7051568664638021632-51tN?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop)

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Regards, Brendan

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I'm bad at passing KYC checks. I know the classics, mother's maiden name, first pet, colour of my first car, all that sort of stuff. But, chances are, so do the fraudsters. Where I struggle is the financial data that banks now use, I simply don't pay that close attention to what they name their products, I don't know if my wife having a secondary card means I have two credit cards or one, I don't know which email address they have as their one on record, and I don't remember when I opened my last credit card.

The problem with these events they want me to recall, is that they are once off tasks that have quickly faded from memory. But every day I travel through my neighbourhood. Actually, that's not the best example as I work from home and the kids school is a thirty second walk away, but I've just got back into golf, so I do drive to the range a few times a week and I'm not a complete hermit yet 🤣 Anyway, as each day passes and I remember less about the details of opening that credit card, I remember more about my neighbourhood. And that's what Honey Badger's geo authentication product relies on.

In this episode, I'm chatting to Matt Salisbury, co-founder and CEO of Honey Badger, who are creating user-friendly authentication challenges to stop fraudsters in their tracks. Matt loves to chat to lending people on LinkedIn, so feel free to hit him up, and tell him the podcast sent you.

You can book a demo by, or first learn more about, Honey Badger at https://honeybadgerhq.com/ - including direct jumps to their geo authentication and their mobile data for credit risk and fraud solutions

Honey Badger were also at the Future Identity Finance event in London a couple of weeks ago, and technically this post is speaking about that, but it also gives a wonderful timeline of that relationship with Amplifi Capital that is discussed in our chat: https://honeybadgerhq.com/future-identity-finance/

You can learn more about me on my LinkedIn page, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

Oh, and I'll announce it properly, but I'll be recording an episode of this show at Money2020 Europe in June so if you're going to be there, too, let's meet up. And if you're not, but you would still like to participate in the show, reach out to me at https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/contact-us

Regards, Brendan

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About five years into my time in Hong Kong, I slipped my foot into a shoe only to bump into a frog sleeping inside it. Rough calculations say that, by that stage, I’d slipped a foot into a shoe 3,650 times in the city so the odds were greatly stacked in my favour. And yet, so great was my shock, and so increased was my awareness of what might slip under the door, that I checked every shoe every morning from there on out.

Lending is similar. The pain from the one loan you lose can overshadow the joy from the nine, or even ninety-nine, that pay you back. So you take precautions. You tip over the shoe. Or maybe you’re more scared of frogs than I am, and you poke a stick in there. Fair enough. But sometimes, those precautions become overkill. Maybe you’re that scared of frogs that you won’t settle for anything less than one of those bendy cameras surgeons use. Unfortunately, you don’t have one of those bendy cameras surgeons use so you go barefoot.

Or, if we bring this back to lending, new to credit borrowers get turned away, not because they’re risky, but because lenders lack the data we want to be one hundred per cent sure they’re safe. Lenders are too scared of frogs.

The study we’re speaking about is here: https://content.transunion.com/v/english_report_empowering-credit-inclusion-a-deeper-perspective-on-new-to-credit-consumers

And as we mentioned, your local TransUnion homepage will also have links to the country-specific versions where those are available: the USA, Canada, South Africa, among others.

Charlie can be found on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/charlie-wise-959570/

You can learn more about me on my LinkedIn page, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

Oh, and I'll announce it properly, but I'll be recording an episode of this show at Money2020 Europe in June so if you're going to be there, too, let's meet up. And if you're not, but you would still like to participate in the show, reach out to me at https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/contact-us

Regards, Brendan

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I scheduled this episode to follow the Honey Badger episode because I liked the alignment of their names, but I could just as easily have linked it to the Wine Funding episode, because we're once again turning engaged fans into even more engaged financiers! Only this time, we're taking all comers.

So when George says Honeycomb is "helping business owners really activate this community of customers and fans and neighbours that they already have, and to level up those customers and turn them into evangelists for their business by getting them on board and then literally invested in the long term success of those businesses" we hear echoes of Maxime, who described his lenders as "the most sincere and genuine ambassadors you can dream of as a wine estate, because they're part of the adventure, and they share that with their friends."

You can find Honeycomb Credit and all their projects over at https://www.honeycombcredit.com/ Twisted's artisanal egg roll project is already funded in Chicago, but maybe check out InBox Beverage in Chestertown (MD) with their turnkey micro-brewing system; or Bless Thy Skin in Riverview (FL), a black-owned, woman-owned, family-owned business that specializes in skincare products and treatments; or even the Rockfish Oyster Bar, a new seafood restaurant coming to Cleveland’s Chagrin Falls neighborhood... there really are so many great options.

They're on LinkedIn, too, where they publish wonderful little glimpses into those projects and the impact that capitalised small businesses are making to their communities.

You can learn more about me on my LinkedIn page, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

Oh, and I'll announce it properly, but I'll be recording an episode of this show at Money2020 Europe in June so if you're going to be there, too, let's meet up. And if you're not, but you would still like to participate in the show, reach out to me at https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/contact-us

Regards, Brendan

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☝️ Click above ☝️ to follow the show, it is pretty much the only thing that keeps the show visible and it makes me very happy.

Paydown curves are one of my favourite things. Get a few glasses of wine in me and the right audience at an industry event, and I'll happily chat about them long into the night. The thing is, they can create the impression that there's only one route to Present Value = 0

And that really doesn't need to be the case. After all, everything else in life fluctuates, so why can't your loan balance follow a more fluid path downward? That's not the most elegant way of describing Custom Credit's philosophy, but it's not that far off.

Custom Credit was set up with three mission statements in mind: (1) to become the most customercentric fintech in the UK; (2) to ensure our colleagues better reflect our customers; and (3) to improve financial literacy, both in terms of our customers and the broader community.

Join us as we chat about spending time to understand customer needs, staffing to reflect customer needs, and, ah, designing products that react to customer needs.

Custom Credit is at https://www.customcredit.co.uk/

Custom Credit are also on Linked in at - https://www.linkedin.com/company/custom-credit/ - and as Damien said, you can find him on LinkedIn, too (just tell him the podcast sent you)

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Regards, Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"Profitability is paramount for the global lending industry in 2023. But for lenders to increase profitability under the new status quo, much of the industry must undergo change. To stay ahead of the game, lenders need to fully enable every level of their business to react quickly to market changes and proactively steer their risk selection."

Taktile is using cutting edge data tech to allow businesses to build, run and evaluate automated decision flows quicker and more data-driven than ever before. You can't guess your way to the right decision, as they say. That's right in the target area of this show and yet, we're largely skipping over their skills for this episode, and delving instead into the results of their first annual State of Lending Report. When people ask me about this show, one of the first questions they ask is about reach. And my answer is it's small. But it is also mighty: the most common job titles in my audience run, in descending order, from CEO to founder to co-founder to Managing Director to Credit Manager. Quality over quantity and all of that.

That's also one of the reasons I love this State of Lending Report - at a time we need it more than ever, it builds a guiding star from the combined insights of global lending leaders, half of whom are credit leaders and another quarter of whom are CEO, CPOs, or CTOs. It's a treasure trove, and today we going through it with Maik Taro Wehmeyer, Taktile's co-founder and CEO.

You can - and should - download your own version of the report over here: https://www.taktile.com/articles/taktile-s-state-of-lending-report-reveals-how-lenders-plan-to-grow-more-profitably-in-2023

Or read more about Taktile over here: https://www.taktile.com/

If you're more socially minded, you can - and should again - follow the Taktile journey over on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/taktile1/)

Since we're talking bout LinkedIn, you can - and should - follow me there, too: www.linkedin.com/comm/mynetwork/discovery-see-all?usecase=PEOPLE_FOLLOWS&followMember=brendanlegrange

Otherwise, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Oh, and Taktile are one fo the big sponsors of the big AltFi Lending Summit coming to London on the 18th of October - register to meet the team there: https://www.altfi.com/events/altfi-lending-summit-2023

Regards, Brendan

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Bartek Staszewski has seen the credit industry change during his career, but he's also seen his country change, and in the amplification of those two forces there's plenty of insights for all of us. Join us as we start Money20/20 week with a discussion of the Polish consumer credit landscape and about lessons learned from the coal face of one of the most changed markets in the world.

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24 And if you're at Money20/20 in Amsterdam this week, come say hello at the MoneyPot Booth where I'll be recording shows on Wednesday and Thursday.

Oh, and if you’re in need of more banking podcasts, you can find related content at https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Regards, Brendan

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I've been an immigrant three times: into Denmark with Experian, into Hong Kong with HSBC, and most recently into the UK with TransUnion. So, I understand some of the issues immigrants face, but you'll also notice that each of my moves was made under the wing of a big financial services company, which made for soft'ish landings. Most people don't have the same support. And it is not just about getting a credit card in week one, it's about getting a phone contract, renting a house without needing to make a six-month layout, or maybe furnishing a new apartment.

That's what I'm discussing today with Matt Davies as Nova Credit expands its cross-border credit reference service to the UK.

More about Nova can be found here: https://www.novacredit.com/uk (or https://www.novacredit.com/uk/business if you want to get straight to work)

You can also check out American Express's use of the Nova plug-ins here: https://www.americanexpress.com/us/credit-cards/features-benefits/us-newcomers/

And Misha Esipov, co-founder and CEO of Nova Credit, was on this show in its early days: so if you're interested in more of the background, listen here https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-11

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Regards, Brendan

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It’s hard enough for consumers who earn precipitable salaries to manage unpredictable expenses, so imagine the situation for fast-growing e-commerce businesses that have unpredictable incomes and unpredictable expenses. To compensate for the perceived risk, big banks tend to take a very conservative view of repeatable earnings, hampering these businesses' ability to fund their growth.

But what if loan obligations were tied to revenue instead of fixed every month? That’s a great question, and one answered by revenue-based finance. In today’s episode, Pratik Sawal teaches me about revenue-based finance and what it means to turn e-commerce data into growth-powering loans.

Pratik is on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/pratiksawal/

You can find and follow me on LinkedIn (or connect) at: www.linkedin.com/comm/mynetwork/discovery-see-all?usecase=PEOPLE_FOLLOWS&followMember=brendanlegrange

Otherwise, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Regards, Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When I lived in Hong Kong, which was not all that long ago, there were these rather complicated-looking ATMs around town, covered with instructions to help you correctly feed a passbook into them without the staples causing problems. I never actually saw a passbook in the flesh, but they were explained to me as a paper-based statement of record that you updated as needed, like an automated receipt stamp after a significant deposit or withdrawal, rather than the statements the bank sent to you on month end. Since I had internet banking, I never looked any deeper. But not everyone has internet banking.

Rohit Bhargava started his career in banking the year I was born, so he experienced passbooks in their prime, and he was running a retail bank in Malaysia when they were phased out. The arrival of text messages had made them less popular for most customers, and now only a shrinking segment of less tech-savvy consumers relied on them. As a result, the economics went underwater from the bank’s point of view.

Rohit realised that, so he helped the bank convert to monthly statements. But Rohit also realised that that shrinking segment relied on their passbooks. Relied. So when he retired, he set his mind to solving that problem with the BOMTech. I think of it as a Kindle, but for your loan data.

BOMTech is Banking on Mobile + Tech so you can learn more at https://bankingonmobile.com/

Or reach out to Rohit directly on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohit-bhargava-849aab5/) or through me if you’d like to have a chat.

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Regards, Brendan

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Recorded yesterday in front of live audience at Money2020 Europe, I welcome Craig Smith back to the show. Last time we spoke, all the way back in episode 9, Craig was busy launching JustLend but a lot has happened since so we chat about that journey, about where JustLend are today, about communities, and also about a certain appearance on our TV screens.

Anyone who caught Craig’s Dragon Den appearance will already know that their homepage is at: https://justlend.co/ (but also now at www.justlend.co.uk)

And anyone who didn’t, can find that here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VlWfgYT_4sY

Or watch a short on the swimming school in Poole (https://www.youtube.com/shorts/s1qh_mE9HhY) - there are many others to be inspired by.

And honestly, this Money20/20 has shattered and then rebuilt my expectations for an industry. They run shows in the US, in Europe, and in Asia which you can read about at https://www.money2020.com/

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Oh, and if you’re in need of more banking podcasts, you can find related content at https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/

Regards, Brendan

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When I first conceived of this show, I actually assumed it would be more academic in nature, more about the practical 'how' than the strategic 'how' as it were. When it went live, though, it quickly became clear that it would be more about fintech, more about uncommon global viewpoints. But that's not to say that I don't still love getting into the weeds of credit scoring minutiae!

So I am delighted to have weaselled my way into the Credit Scoring and Credit Control Conference that's happening in Edinburgh this summer. You have a week left to get early bird pricing if you want to be there, too (find me there, and I'll even buy the first beer)

I'll be there in person from August 30 to September 1st to see what's happening on the cutting edge and to record some interviews, but first, I wanted to learn more about the conference’s goals, its philosophy, and its history, and about how and why it has garnered such a strong following among credit professionals. Seriously, I've spoken at Fintech Nexus and will recording live at Money20/20, but it's the CSCCC that makes my credit friends swoon 😅

So I’m speaking to the organising committee to learn more about the conference’s goals, its philosophy, and its history:

Professor Galina Andreeva, Credit Research Centre, University of Edinburgh Business School

Professor Jonathan Crook, Credit Research Centre, University of Edinburgh Business School

Mr David Edelman, Caledonia Credit Consultancy

Professor Christophe Mues, University of Southampton

The Credit Research Centre is at home online at https://www.crc.business-school.ed.ac.uk/home (or jump straight to the conference’s pages at https://www.crc.business-school.ed.ac.uk/conferences)

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Regards, Brendan

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Recycling is a good thing, right? Well, in that case, let me recycle this from yesterday’s show notes. Most consumers borrow to manage expenses. It’s different for SMEs, though, who often borrow to drive income. As such, being denied credit is not just about having their lifestyle curtailed, it’s about having the business growth, and sometimes even their business survival, put at risk.

“When iloan launched back in 2018, the lending market in Sri Lanka was $5 billion, almost 40% was which was raised from loan sharks and individuals who have very dubious practices of charging excessive interest rates, as well as very unpleasant collection methods”. Lakshan da Silva is a Sri Lankan serial entrepreneur whose goal is to fix this for mom and pop stores around the island.

Lakshan is very approachable on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lakshan-de-silva-a9b11328/

Or you can look into his many ventures:

iLoan is at https://www.iloan.lk/

HyperGlase is at https://hyperglade.com/

Spectrify is at http://www.spectrifyai.com/

Also, and I really hate to link this, but if you’re interested in the terrible cricket game in question, you can see the drama here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TKeOX9AAJXg (I hate-watched it, and was just reminded that poor old Lance Klusener was involved again, that guy deserved better)

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

And finally, if you’re in need of more banking podcasts, you can find related content at https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/

Regards, Brendan

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When you want a model, you typically start with a target variable in mind. But sometimes that's not possible. Perhaps you're entering a new market or expanding into a new niche, you could start lending on a small scale and wait to see what happens. We used to call that a deep risk test, often somewhat euphemistically when a cohort was accidentally approved through a gap in the system. But even if you're happy to take a chance, that takes time - there's no way to shortcut a 12-month outcome.

Enter the u-score, Matogen AI's novel approach to applying an analytical layer to the old-fashioned expert model. In today's episode, I'm speaking to Jacobus Eksteen to learn more about how they did this with Open Banking data from DirectID. This provides a way to jumpstart an Open Banking modelling project, but Open Banking has many arrows in its quiver, so I also speak to Clare McCaffery about the state of the landscape.

Clare is Chief Commercial Officer at DirectID and can be found at https://www.direct.id/

Jacobus is CEO at Matogen Applied Insights and they can be found at https://ai.matogen.com/

And of course, they're both on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/clare-mccaffery-045a7113/ and https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacobuseksteen/

And while you're there, come and find and connect at https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange

As mentioned more than once in this episode, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Keep well, Brendan

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We all love how easy it is to change bank accounts these days... until it is our customers (and their planned-on deposits) who are moving. After all, we just sent them a pamphlet that very clearly invited them to apply for a loan at an APR of between 5% and 25% variable on term and risk and changes in the base rate, and subject to final credit checks, and late fees and penalties could apply in certain circumstances - that's a good deal, what was there to not understand?

Our lending business have changed dramatically, the way in which we communicate with our customers needs to change, too. In this episode, we chat about deposits and, in particular, about how influencer marketing and affiliate marketing is moving attention and balances to the organisations who know how best to speak to their customer base

In this episode, I'm speaking to Nicky Senyard from Fintel Connect: the leading partner marketing solution for financial services.

Fintel Connect is at https://www.fintelconnect.com/ but of course, being in the influencer game, they're all over social media, too. Find them at LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/fintelconnect/) and Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/fintelconnect/) for a start.

Nicky is on LinkedIn, too https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickysenyard/ And that's where you'll find me https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange (send me a connection request there)

My action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Oh, and as mentioned, you should be following Marcel van Oost if you are not already https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcelvanoost/

Keep well, Brendan

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Most consumers have a fairly steady income stream that turns hours into wages on a weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly basis. Sure, we hope those payments rise over time, but still, we’re typically talking in terms of percentages per year. And when we borrow, it's usually to spread a large expense into a series of smaller payments that better aligns with their earnings.

It’s different for SMEs, though. Not only can their income streams rise and fall in multiples, but they can rise or fall in multiples based on their ability to access credit. As such, it can be frustrating for business owners who get caught up in lenders' red tape: you might want to tick more boxes, but they really need that money. That's often where the Funding Guru steps in.

Matt Haycox was a borrower before he was a lender - a trait that gives him a unique perspective, that allows him to be more commercial as a lender.

You can find more info about the Funding Guru lending products at: https://www.fundingguru.com/

Or more about Matt's other projects at: https://matt-haycox.com/

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24 And if you're at Money20/20 in Amsterdam this week, come say hello at the MoneyPot Booth where I'll be recording shows on Wednesday and Thursday.

Oh, and if you’re in need of more banking podcasts, you can find related content at https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/

Oh, oh, and if you're at Money20/20 on the day this comes out, let me know!

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Regards, Brendan

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Today's episode stretches the lending niche, but fifty-four years ago, humanity landed on the moon, so I'm feeling flexible. And anyway, people lend to airport operators all the time, so it won't be too long until spaceports are seen as similarly stable fixed-cost operators.

When I was younger, if a conversation involved a South African tech billionaire and space, you were talking about Mark Shuttleworth (lovely nominative determinism there, by the way). More recently, the same talking points would more of course be associated with Elon Musk. I'll never not enjoy seeing a SpaceX rocket land back on a barge after a successful launch. But Elon's been busy with other matters, and now there's a new name in the Industry: Russell Shaw.

Is Russell a tech billionaire? No. But I'm not Joe Rogan, so I can't exactly point fingers 🤣 And Russell is involved in an exciting project launching satellites from equatorial Australia.

You should visit Equatorial Launch Australia at https://ela.space/ - the launch footage alone is worth our click.

If you're interested in investing, or indeed if you're interested in launching something into space, feel free to contact Russel on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/russellshaw/

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Regards, Brendan

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Lendoe are a UK-based lender focused on supporting black, ethnic minority and early stage entrepreneurs. Their journey started when a few young adults raised £220,000 to save their church building from repossession, and, in so doing, discovered first-hand the lack of support offered to small businesses from underrepresented communities. I caught up with one-time entrepreneur, one-time investment banker, and now founder of Lendoe, Demi Ariyo, while we were in Amsterdam last week for Money20/20 Europe.

We had a tight timeline to work within, so it's a snappy interview, but also one of my favourites to date!

You can find Lendoe (that's lend with an 'o' for owners and an 'e' for entrepreneurs) at https://www.lendoe.com/

Or via their socials: Instagram, Twiter with @wearelendoe and on LinkedIn where you can find Demi, too: https://www.linkedin.com/in/demi-ariyo-119548b7/

We were recording on a super tight schedule, so we had to rush the end, but if you like what you heard and you're in or around London, The Update (https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-update-tickets-607190662617) is behind the Bike Shed in Shoreditch next Thursday (22 June 2023).

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Oh, and if you’re in need of more banking podcasts, you can find related content at https://blog.feedspot.com/banking_podcasts/

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It's no secret that I am a fan of the BNPL concept while still being a little nervous about how it has been implemented. Some of the valuations have been built on sand, but that's not what I'm concerned about here, instead, I'm referring to independent lenders all chasing growth with no thought to see the combined impact of their independent activities. Luckily, there's a relatively easy fixe for that: the good old-fashioned credit bureau. There's still work to be done to make the infrastructure fit the data, as you'll hear from Simon Forster, but the good news is that we're already a few months into this journey in the UK.

Picking up from what we covered with ZIlch on episode 102, today we're talking about what we're learning now that BNPL's are sharing their data with Experian, and the credit bureaus.

There's a huge amount of information over at https://www.experian.co.uk/business/ (or at https://www.experian.com/business/ for American listeners) However, if it's the given the topics discussed today that have you intrigued, you can go straight to https://www.experian.co.uk/business/industries/buy-now-pay-later for insights from their BNPL work.

As Simon said, his team create more than just BNPL insights, so also poke around at https://www.experian.co.uk/blogs/latest-thinking

Simon is on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/simon-forster-78b8897/ (the company as a whole is at https://www.linkedin.com/company/experian/)

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Keep well, Brendan

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Stephen Hawking starts A Brief History of Time with an anecdote he attributes to Bertrand Russel who, having just finished a lecture on the heliocentric nature of the planets’ orbits, was challenged by a lady in the audience.

“What you have told us is rubbish.” She said, “The world is really a flat plate supported on the back of a giant turtle."

"If your theory is correct, madam," Russell replied, "then what does this turtle stand on?"

"You're a very clever man, and that's a very good question," she replied, "but the first turtle stands on the back of a second, far larger, turtle, who stands directly under him."

"But what does this second turtle stand on?" persisted Russell patiently.

And I think we all know her answer to this, which was of course that “it's turtles all the way down."

The World Turtle is a mytheme of a giant turtle supporting the world. It occurs in Hindu mythology, Chinese mythology, the mythologies of the indigenous peoples of the Americas, and, of course, has nothing to do with lending. So why am I dedicating so much real estate to the idea?

Well, because the idea was reflected in Terry Pratchet’s incredibly popular Disc World Series of books, and those inspired today’s guest, Gideon Griebenow, to give up his credit risk career to become an independent game developer. World Turtles is a wholesome colony builder game where you guide a tribe of creatures, called Meeps, on their mission to save themselves and the world they live on... and it’s just gone live for early release on Steam (20% off until 8 May)

But you can also get involved on their Discord Server (https://discord.com/invite/2NEb4HxwhF), while the Youtube channel is here (https://www.youtube.com/c/RecOgMission) and there is a subreddit, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram account, too.

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Regards, Brendan

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“So eventually we raised capital, left our previous platforms, and built this place where the black community around the world could feel like they belong, where their dreams can be financed, from innovation to stories. If they create content, we'll help finance it, we’ll help them grow. And that's the platform that we built.”

Chinedu Enekwe was a fine example of the American Dream: the son of Nigerian immigrants who became a lawyer and then an investment banker. But then he surprised his parents by following an opportunity that took him back to Lagos where the venture-building bug bit. Chinedu has been growing businesses in Africa and America ever since.

In today’s episode, I speak to him about one of those, Nandi Labs, and about how and why he is helping Africa’s premier creators access fair and efficient financing.

Nandi Labs are at https://nandimarket.com/ and on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/nandilabs/

You can also find them on Twitter at https://twitter.com/nandimarket

Passbook Ventures is at https://withkoji.com/@Passbook and https://www.linkedin.com/company/passbookvc/

Or if you prefer your interactions more human in nature, reach out to Chinedu directly on LinkedIn (and tell him you found him here)

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Regards, Brendan

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"Living without a bank account is not only a hindrance to everyday life, but also stunts the financial growth of families and communities. Seymur Mammadov, Founder and CEO of Simbrella, wants to improve the quality of life for unbanked populations through access to financial instruments and microloans." I don't usually quote a different source for these, but when your guest wins the title of EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year™, you feel like you have to aim the spotlight that way!

Today the show is taking you to Azerbaijan, an unexpected home to one of mobile fintech's pioneers: Simbrella. Simbrella have now served 220 million customers via 25 companies in 20 countries worldwide, many of whom would otherwise have no access to credit. You can learn more about SImbrella and their services here: https://www.simbrella.com/

They're also on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/simbrella/

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Regards, Brendan

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This week sees a Dutch double-header on HTLMTS, with two episodes I recorded in Rotterdam while attending Money20/20. First up, a bonus episode that explores how Lendahand gathers capital from socially conscious European investors to empower loans to entrepreneurs in the developing world.

250+ investors are backing d.light, for example, who, with a next loan of EUR 120,000, will provide product financing to families living in rural off-grid communities of Kenya. That project is currently fund-raising over here, by the way; Kaebauk Investimentu no Finansas is raising $150,000 to fund agri-loans to small farmers in Timor-Leste; or, if Modlova is more your scene, Mikro Kapital will provide loans to about 17 small and micro-entrepreneurs there. You get the picture. Choose from proven companies. Invest in the projects that fit your needs. Fight poverty in emerging markets.

It is a simple but effective model.

Lendahand is at https://www.lendahand.com/ (or jump straight to the Impact Report at https://www.lendahand.com/en-EU/blog/856-5-surprising-insights-from-the-impact-report)

Have you ever wondered why your non-ginger friend has a ginger beard? As you'll hear, Adriaan also has you covered on that in one of Vice's most-read articles: https://www.vice.com/en/article/ezv38a/why-do-so-many-men-have-red-beards-but-not-red-hair

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Regards, Brendan

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Criminals keep changing the game. Which is annoying, don't they know our models depend on them re-enacting the past behaviours over and over and over again? Sygno have flipped the script by modelling the good behaviour of your customers... because they're not trying to outmanoeuvre you. Also, there are a lot more of them. Sygno's automated machine learning technology generates monitoring models for Anti-Money Laundering and fraud to make transaction monitoring more effective at a lower cost.

You can start a conversation with Sjoerd over on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sjoerdslot/

Sygno is at home at https://www.sygno.com/ but also on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/sygno/

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Regards, Brendan

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The Fifa World Cup is the biggest prize in football. So, about ten years ago now, the world's best men's team headed to Brazil with glory on their minds, but it wouldn't be easy: home to loud and loyal fans of the sport's most storied national team, winning in Brazil would take a monumental effort. In fact, many thought it would be impossible. Global lenders know the feeling. Home to half of the people in South America, the Brazilian market is oh so tempting, but oh so hard to break into. But not impossible. Like Germany ten years ago, if you play it right, you can win.

In today's episode, I'm speaking to Vinícius de Andrade Vieira, Head of Business Development at BEXS - connecting Brazil to the world through a digital platform with payment and exchange solutions. We chat about fintech and BNPL in Brazil, the growing global trade, and how international companies can crack the market.

Bexs is over at: https://www.bexs.com.br/

Vinicisu is on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/viniciusdeandradevieira/

And I' writing this from the airport, having lost track of the day in the pre-holiday chaos 😳 You can also find and follow me on LinkedIn (or connect) at: www.linkedin.com/comm/mynetwork/discovery-see-all?usecase=PEOPLE_FOLLOWS&followMember=brendanlegrange

Otherwise, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Regards, Brendan

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We Finance Progress... when you visit www.m-kopa.com you're met with this brief but powerful message that, I think, captures the dual business and social impacts of their connected financing platform. In today's episode, I speak to Mayur Patel, Chief Commercial Officer at M-KOPA, about financing life-changing assets collateralized by the service those assets provide. And we talk about a lot more. M-KOPA was founded in 2010 to combine the power of digital micropayments with GSM connectivity to make life-enhancing assets more accessible and has since deployed $1 billion in products and credit to the financially excluded.

"For the majority of our customers - over three-quarters of our customers today - this is the first time they are owning a 4G handset. Those individuals are living under 4G wireless spectrum that's above their heads, but it's really been the affordability of the handset, which is the gateway into that. We've been able to build a strong credit profile for them. That’s unique. We're building a consumer FinTech business here, where the first step with our customers is to help them get access to a productive asset, and then use that as a way to bring them into a much broader financial relationship."

M-Kopa is at https://m-kopa.com/ (and on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/m-kopa/)

Mayur Patel is on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mayur-h-patel/

You can learn more about myself, Brendan le Grange, on my LinkedIn page (feel free to connect), my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback, questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Regards, Brendan

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It's only thirty years since Lithuania's broke free from the Soviet Union, but already it's home a buzzing fintech scene: "Leapfrogging was probably the largest idea behind the Lithuanian success". Join me and Jekaterina Rojaka, Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) at Creditinfo Lietuva, as we explore the roots of that success.

Creditinfo Lithuania can be found at https://lt.creditinfo.com/en/ or jump straight to https://lt.creditinfo.com/en/strongest-in-lithuania/ for award-winning Lithuanian businesses

But, as we've covered on this show before, they've got operations all over the world, so you can also head to https://creditinfo.com/ to find your closest office

On LinkedIn, you can follow them at https://www.linkedin.com/company/creditinfo-lietuva/ but they're also on Facebook and Youtube

And that's where you'll find Jekatarina, too: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jekaterina-rojaka-49909910/

I am on LinkedIn, too, so feel free to find me and send me a connection request there: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange

My action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Keep well, Brendan

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Today is Ukraine’s National Day, so there's no better time than to support the people in their endeavours to survive and resist the Russian invasion: donate to World Kitchen at https://donate.wck.org/give/499865/#!/donation/checkout or to Save Life in UA at https://savelife.in.ua/en/donate-en/#donate-army-card-monthly

“Launch any lending business in an hour.” Normally I write a bit of a blurb here, but really it comes down to that. Launch any lending business in an hour. Actually, as you’ll hear, it’s more like 20 minutes. In a world that is changing, you need to be able to change even faster, which is where no code solutions come to the fore. In today’s episode, I’m speaking to Svitlanka Sergiichuk Romaniuk, co-founder at Neofin - Ukrainian tech going global.

Follow the Neofin story over at https://neo-fin.com/

Svitlanka is on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/svitlanaromaniuk/

And follow Neofin while you’re there: https://www.linkedin.com/company/neofin-solutions/

You can also find and follow me on LinkedIn (or connect) at: www.linkedin.com/comm/mynetwork/discovery-see-all?usecase=PEOPLE_FOLLOWS&followMember=brendanlegrange

Otherwise, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Regards, Brendan

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I've got a drawer in my bedside table that is filled with an assortment of foreign notes and coins: euros and dollars and Rands that I need relatively often but that I'll nevertheless forget to take when I travel next; some Indian rupees that have long since been decommissioned; some Hong Kong dollars because how can it have taken me four years to find an excuse to get back; some, what I think are Cambodian riel; and an unseemly number of hotel room keys. It's chaotic, but even more organised people than me have to work extremely hard to keep international trade relatively efficient, with multiple accounts at different banking institutes to Rands into American dollars so those can be turned into Hong Kong dollars.

Or at least they did, Currencycloud makes this easy to do, enabling efficient cross-border lending at cross-border lending operations at scale. One example doing it really well, is the Spanish startup Ritmo.

Ritmo is at home online at https://www.getritmo.com/ and on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/ritmo-capital/

And as he mentions on the show, you can either email Jorge directly, or find him at https://www.linkedin.com/in/jorge-juttner-cfa-55a3a068/

Currencycloud can be found at https://www.currencycloud.com/ and on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-currency-cloud/

And if you'd like to learn more about what Currencycloud can do for your international business, Maggie can be found at https://www.linkedin.com/in/maggie-gemmill-779697119/

LinkedIn is also where you'll find me, and when you do, send me a connection request: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange

As mentioned more than once in this episode, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Keep well, Brendan

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"If you help a bank to create lending IP, there's always a question around 'who now understands how it works' and 'who owns it'. And the lending IP, that is something that, as a fintech, as a bank, you should own yourself. 

And that is why (instead of consulting) we decided to build software that helps internal risk teams and internal credit teams to create more lending IP, faster, and on their own without having any external dependencies."

Data used to be scarce and rigid, and so the legacy systems we built were designed with that in mind. But data is now everywhere and fluid, and those rigid legacy systems are starting to hold us back. Taktile is a modern decision engine built on a local no-code platform that makes it really easy for credit and risk teams to build and run automated underwriting decisions with a really high level of accuracy. 

Find Taktile at https://www.taktile.com/ or jump directly to their State of Lending report at https://www.taktile.com/state-of-lending-2023

As Maik mentions on here, both he (https://www.linkedin.com/in/maik-taro-wehmeyer) and Taktile (https://www.linkedin.com/company/taktile1/) are active on LinkedIn. I'm there, too, so feel free to send me a connection request while you're there: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange

My action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Keep well, Brendan

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We've spoken about lending systems, we've spoken about lending models, and we've spoken about the nuance of diverse markets and even more diverse market niches, but in the end, there's one thing that ties every successful lending business together: people. In this episode, I welcome Northreach's Robbie Blake about how fintechs can attract and grow the right talent, and about how the current market conditions are bringing new recruiting strategies to the fore.

Northreach is over at https://northreach.uk/ (or jump straight to their jobs at https://northreach.uk/search-jobs/)

You can find Robbie on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/robbie-blake-16095616a/ and while you're there, follow the Northreach page at https://www.linkedin.com/company/northreach-uk/

If Instagram is more your flavour, they're here: https://www.instagram.com/northreach_uk/

But as mentioned, you can also find their own podcast, called Coffee Mornings with Northreach, on all the main platforms of by clicking here https://open.spotify.com/show/62vRWLXSzz7FUi7SOtMZSy

I am on LinkedIn, of course, so feel free to send me a connection request there: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange

My action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Keep well, Brendan

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Moishe Gubin is a workhorse, a mule. And now it's paying off: for him, for the banks he leads, and for the communities they serve. In today's episode we chat about work ethic and an old-fashioned path from the bottom to the top, we chat about what communities are, and we talk about bankers becoming a footnote in someone else's success story.

Optimum Bank are at home at https://www.optimumbank.com/ (but as mentioned, you can also find more investor news by searching OPHC on the NASDAQ and financial press, https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/OPHC/)

You can find Optimum Bank on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/company/optimumbank/

LinkedIn is also where you’ll find me (https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange/) and this show (https://www.linkedin.com/company/how-to-lend-money-to-strangers/) - so pop over and send me a connection request

My action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Keep well, Brendan

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"Distressed property can always be repaired, not so distressed people. And so we focus on distressed properties. And that platform has worked very, very well for us: I've done a billion dollars of this, and I will tell you, I have never ever lent on a property that I was not able to fix."

The modern mortgage model is designed to work at scale, so when a deal pops up that's a little outside the norm it can often be more efficient to say no quickly than to spend time thinking it over. But that means that a lot of great deals never see the light of day within the big lenders. But it has to be that way... doesn't it? You couldn't possibly employ a team of property experts to select hidden gems in good neighbourhoods and then ensure they're well restored while still protecting your margin... could you?

I love a lending model that leverages community knowledge and that's what ZINC does - providing financing to contractors who are looking to improve neighbourhoods by buying good but distressed properties and fixing them up. Margins are good. Collateral grows in value. Borrowers have skin in the game and every reason to make it work for your mutual benefit. In this episode, I speak to Todd Pigott about their win-win-win-win approach to private lending for property developers.

ZINC Financial's homepage is at https://zincfinancial.com/ (or at https://zincinvesting.com/ for investors)

But you can also find the ZINC companies on LinkedIn: the lending side at https://www.linkedin.com/company/zinc-financial-inc-/ and the capital side at https://www.linkedin.com/company/zinc-income-fund/

Todd is there, too, at https://www.linkedin.com/in/todd-pigott-893aa861/

My action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Keep well, Brendan

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Dr Joseph Breeden is an entrepreneur and a researcher. or perhaps I should describe him as an entrepreneur and a discoverer, so keen is his curiosity. And, with 30 years spent at the sharp point of credit analytics innovation, he is also a fantastic speaker on some of the most important topics of the day: machine learning, AI, and managing economic cycles among others. In fact, just yesterday, he delivered a phenomenal keynote address on the topics at the Credit Scoring and Credit Control Conference in Edinburgh.

I was there, but if you weren't, don't worry, we have those insights and more on today's episode of HTLMTS.

Deep Future Analytics is at home on the internet at: https://deepfutureanalytics.com/

Joseph himself can be found on LinkedIn, https://www.linkedin.com/in/josephlbreeden/, or, if it is his research you're after, the root to all of that starts here: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Joseph-Breeden

Not content with just that, Jospeh is also the associate editor of two journals you may want to add to your reading list: https://www.risk.net/journal-of-risk-model-validation and https://www.risk.net/journal-of-credit-risk

Oh, and his work on forecasting the auction prices of fine wine can be found here: https://auctionforecast.com/

As mentioned, yesterday saw Joseph on the stage at a packed Credit Scoring and Credit Control Conference in Edinburgh, delivering the opening keynote. It's an exceptional event for those in the industry and while you're busy missing this year's edition, it will be back in two years https://www.crc.business-school.ed.ac.uk/conferences

You can also find and follow me on LinkedIn (or connect) at: www.linkedin.com/comm/mynetwork/discovery-see-all?usecase=PEOPLE_FOLLOWS&followMember=brendanlegrange

Otherwise, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Regards, Brendan

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"Trust matters more than ever, but in today's anonymous landscape, it is becoming rarer by the day. (At Bondafidee) we want to change that."

I recently sat down with Sasha Marley for one of the most personal interviews I've done here, because fraud isn't just a numbers thing, it has very real human impacts.

Bonafidee is at home online home at https://bonafidee.com/ (or jump straight to YourQNA at https://bonafidee.com/features/your-qna-kba/)

As she mentioned in our chat, Sahsa is very active on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/sasha-marley-19156a2/), where you can also find Bonafidee (https://www.linkedin.com/company/bonafidee-com/) But as I went to get the right links, I saw they have just been awarded the Digital Innovation of the Year - Cyber Security/ID Verification Award at the Motor Finance Europe Awards for the Consumer Duty Package we discussed, so you might also want to read more about that (https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7122962260506882048/)

Find the police's tips at https://www.actionfraud.police.uk/

Or walk a very different path by going on your own reiki retreat https://fayjohnstone.com/

I am on LinkedIn, too, so feel free to find me and send me a connection request there: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange

My action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Keep well, Brendan

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Nigeria is Africa's biggest economy. Or maybe not quite, economic variables can be hard to measure and somewhat fickle, but whatever way you slice this cake, it is in the top three with Egypt and South Africa. Fintech has played a growing role in that economy, but until now, almost none of the 'fin' that the 'tech' has been modernising was lending-related.

"I knew that if Nigeria was going to grow and the middle class was going to emerge, there has to be a credit culture, right? And I knew that one person wouldn't be able to do it... so I want to be that platform that makes the creation and discovery of credit significantly easy, cheap and very secure."

Adedeji is a Top Leadership Voice on LinkedIn, follow him there for his regular insights at https://www.linkedin.com/in/adedejiolowe/ Check out his work at Lendsqr (https://www.linkedin.com/company/lendsqr/) and Open Banking Nigeria (https://www.linkedin.com/company/openbankingnigeria/) while you're there

But Lendsqr's real home on the internet is https://lendsqr.com/ - go see how they've 'cracked the lending code'

I am on LinkedIn, of course, so feel free to send me a connection request there: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange

My action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Keep well, Brendan

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Nearly two out of every three Colombian jobs are in the informal economy! That's a huge number that needs to come down, and no doubt it will, but until then, someone really needs to bring the benefits of formal financing to the small business owners in the informal sector. Enter Quipu with whose AI-powered loan decisions "growing is easier, fairer and more alternative".

You can find Viviana on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/viviana-siless/

There's a Quipu page there, too, https://www.linkedin.com/company/quipulatam/ but there's even more information on their homepage over at https://quipu.com.co/

I am on LinkedIn, too, so feel free to find me and send me a connection request there: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange

My action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

I met Viviana while in Edinburgh at the 18th meeting of the Credit Scoring and Credit Control Conference - the next one is in two years time and it’s well-wroth planning for. In the meantime, follow the CRC’s work at https://www.crc.business-school.ed.ac.uk/home

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Keep well, Brendan

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No good deed goes unpunished and no well-intentioned government loan program goes undefaulted upon, even more so when that government program was designed and implemented in the chaotic early days of the COVID lockdowns.

We've all seen the headlines, but what do the numbers say, what sort of businesses have been defaulting on COVID loans in the UK? Well, Dr Maurizio Fiaschetti is writing the paper on it - along with Drs Ahmed Barakat, Meryem Duygun, Eddie Gerba (PhD), Tian Han, Enrico Onali, Afshin Sabri, Mike Tsionas and Huamao Wang - so I sat down with him to learn more.

You can reach out to Maurizio at https://www.linkedin.com/in/maurizio-fiaschetti-6979073/ to learn more about the research and the publication schedule

If you're interested in studying further at UCL, or indeed in reading their research, you can find the Institute of Finance & Technology at https://www.ucl.ac.uk/institute-finance-technology/ucl-institute-finance-technology

And they're also on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/ucl-institute-of-finance-and-technology/)

Surprise, surprise, LinkedIn is also where you'll find me, and when you do, send me a connection request: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange

My action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

I met Maurizio while in Edinburgh at the 18th meeting of the Credit Scoring and Credit Control Conference - the next one is in two years' time and it’s well-worth planning for. In the meantime, follow the CRC’s work at https://www.crc.business-school.ed.ac.uk/home

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Keep well, Brendan

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"Causality is the new explainability."

We all know credit limit increases are one of the most, if not the most, important levers in the card profit model. And we all know the reality of managing credit limits is far more complicated than the theory - every action has a reaction and all of that. So we focus on pulling back and releasing the spring of the pinball machine and then just get ready to react as best we can.

But as data analytic techniques become more advanced, we can plan more and leave less to chance. So in this episode, I sit down with Dr Cristian Bravo, from Ontario's Western University, to talk about Sherly Alfonso-Sánchez's research into "Causal Learning for Credit Limit Adjustment in Revolving Lending Under Adversarial Goals"

Western University has data science programs at https://uwo.ca/sci/datascience/index.html

The Banking Analytics Lab is at https://thebal.ai/

If you'd like to speak to Cristian, or just stay up to date with the work he and the BAL are publishing, you can find him on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/cristianbravor/

In our chat, Cristian mentions an early version of this research - that paper can be found and downloaded here: https://arxiv.org/abs/2306.15585

Or go read Sherly's blog on this same topic at https://thebal.ai/2023/07/11/optimizing-credit-limit-adjustments-under-adversarial-goals-using-reinforcement-learning/

Then come and find me on LinkedIn, and while you're there, send me a connection request: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange

As mentioned more than once in this episode, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Keep well, Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

You can't afford rigid systems in a world that moves fast, but also, for a long time at least, you couldn't afford agile systems in a more dollars and cents sort of way. But these days you can.

Timvero's solutions are all laid out at https://timvero.com/ or head towards a demo by jumping straight to https://timvero.com/request-a-demo/

You're welcome to start a discussion with Dmitriy over on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/dmitriy-wolkenstein-7a19b79a/

And while you're there, come and find and connect at https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange

As mentioned more than once in this episode, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this very show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Keep well, Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Japan is an uncommon blend of known and unknown: I drive a Nissan, you might drive a Toyota, my TV is a Sony, and since my time in Hong Kong, my go-to beer on hot days is an ice-cold pint of Asahi... but I know little about their FinTech scene. So, to set that right, I sat down with Morris Iwai, a seasoned business executive with 20+ years of experience in the credit card, consumer lending, and payments industries of the US, Taiwan, Singapore, and, of course, Japan.

Morris shares that experience - and some hard numbers - as we cover:

1. An overview of the credit card and payments markets in Japan 
2. Tokyo, the new Fintech Hub in Asia
3. Digital Payment trends and the push towards cashless 
4. Insight on the Japanese consumer mindset 
5. The rise of BNPL and leading players in Japan 
6. Acceleration of e-commerce spend 
7. Challenges with the credit underwriting process  
8. The state of Open Banking in Japan 
9. The impact of Digital Wallets and QR payment providers 
10. Future of payments in Japan and new opportunities 

You can find Morris on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/morris-iwai/

And while you're there, come and find and connect at https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange

Or see this all happening in the flesh by attending one of these great upcoming events: Japan Fintech Festival, Sushi Tech Tokyo, or Fintech Summit

Need help launching your startup in Japan? Check out www.launchstarz.com/ for more details.

Meanwhile, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is discussed at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Keep well, Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Big data analytics used to require multiple sources of data, fed into your systems via a complex array of pipes of varying structural integrity: leaks, hassles, and something to be left to only the most advanced of data organisations. In today's episode, we find out how all that has changed:

"As the name suggests, we are one big data pipe with a lot of information flowing through it, and we fuse that with AI to produce some high-value analytical products coming out the other end. And this 360 degree view of a customer, with more than 500 unique attributes, is a pretty powerful position to be in. And from there, we can do some wonderful things in real-time."

1datapipe is at home at https://www.1datapipe.com/ and that's where you can arrange a demo

Or you can find both 1datapipe (https://www.linkedin.com/company/1datapipe/) and the wider Provenir Group (https://www.linkedin.com/company/provenir-global/) on LinkedIn

And while you're there, come and find and connect at https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange

Meanwhile, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is discussed at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Keep well, Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"It's important that in every interest rate environment, in every market environment, an average family can afford an average home" - Arjan Verbeek, co-founder at Perenna Bank.

The UK mortgage market has long been underpinned by the belief that, as long as the music kept playing, you would be able to refinance from one lender's short-term teaser rate to the next, without ever having to pay the full price... but then the music stopped and UK borrowers found themselves saddled with fast-rising standard variable rates. Household budgets were torn to shreds, and all while inflation ran rampant on the High Street, too.

Few escaped. And perhaps fewer still realised that variable rates were the reason they'd been unable to qualify for a mortgage in the first place. Variable rates can, of course, vary, and so, not wanting to carry the risk for this, lenders build a buffer to protect themselves through both a regulatory stress-test applied to affordability calculation and a significant down payment requirement. In a world where we all have to stretch ourselves incredibly thin to afford a house, that can be the difference between renting again and owning.

If only there was another way... like, say, the way they've been doing it in Denmark for the last two hundred years! In today's episode, I'm speaking to Arjan Verbeek, co-founder and CEO at Perenna Bank and vocal proponent of fixed-price long-term mortgages in the UK.

Perenna Bank is over at: https://perenna.com/

They're also on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/perenna/

As is Arjan himself, who is well worth the follow: https://www.linkedin.com/in/%F0%9F%87%B3%F0%9F%87%B1-arjan-verbeek-5884681/

And while you're there, find and connect with me at https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange

Meanwhile, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is discussed at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Keep well, Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"At its core, Credit Canary is a data platform that consolidates and reconciles multiple different data sources in a standardised way to produce a really rich set of flags and real contextual insights. And the essence of that is flexibility within lending. With the data that we have, there is a great opportunity not just to help make better decisions, but to help make better lending products." - James Fell, Founder and CEO

All too often, a borrower and their unique circumstances are thought about at the point of application and then entirely forgotten until a payment or two is missed. That might have been OK in a world of slow and scarce data, because what else could you do, but that excuse doesn't hold up any more - and with credit data, open banking data, and more, Credit Canary are helping us to put that right.

You can find Credit Canary and view their offerings at https://www.creditcanary.co.uk/

James gives his email in the episode, or you can find him on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesafell/ In fact, the whole team is available there (https://www.creditcanary.co.uk/about)

And while you're there, find and connect with me at https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange

Meanwhile, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is discussed at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Keep well, Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The story of East African fintech is built around the mobile phone. Not the smartphone, mind you, but the humble feature phone. In markets where all but the most significant of locations lacked an established infrastructure of landlines and local bank branches, these phones leapfrogged both: powered by pre-paid sim cards that often served as a secondary currency and cleverly leveraged USSD technologies. But it has been seventeen years since M-PESA arrived on the scenes and yet traditional credit tools have often failed to cross the floor - in Uganda, the credit bureaus are filled with the data of there are just 2.4 million traditionally banked consumers, while a further 14 million sit waiting, with their data-rich mobile banking histories all but ignored.

But no more. In today's epsidoe I'm speaking to Charles Wandia of gnuGRID who, with Airtel, have built a national-level mobile credit score.

gnuGRID is the first and only indigenous credit reference bureau in Uganda, enabling financial inclusion through credit information sharing - and you can find them online at https://gnugridcrb.com/

You can also watch the official launch of that score at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4VbEI_0l57A&t=19s

gnuGRID is also on LinkedIn, of course, as is Charles Wandia: https://www.linkedin.com/in/charles-wandia-983b4a65/

As you'll hear on the show, Charles also offers tailor-made training on credit scorecard development via Credit Tick Consulting at https://www.linkedin.com/company/credit-risk-tick-consulting/

Speaking of LinkedIn, that's where you can also find and connect with me: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange (please do reach out, follow the show's page, and share the content with your networks)

Meanwhile, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is discussed at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Keep well, Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Designers speak about 'the job to be done' - you don’t need a taxi or an Uber or tuk-tuk, you need to get home to bed; you don’t need a mortgage, you need to finance your house purchase; you don’t need to spend every second weekend researching market rates, you just need to be on the best deal you qualify for. In this episode, I speak to Vincent Turner about Australian mortgages, about startups and why ‘early-stage businesses’ is perhaps a better term, about design thinking and deep working, and about a rather special belt.

Uno is at home online at https://unohomeloans.com.au/  Or on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/uno-home-loans/

You should check out Yoku belts at https://yokumensbelt.com/ (you know you need a smart new belt)

And you should also follow Vincent at https://www.linkedin.com/in/vhturner/

LinkedIn is also where you can find and connect with me: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange (please do reach out, follow the show's page, and share the content with your networks)

Meanwhile, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is discussed at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Keep well, Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The global covid pandemic shut down a lot of things, but new vehicle supply chains were among the hardest hit. A knock-on effect of that was that Taran, an advanced analytics and AI consultancy saw their hot lead for a new contract evaporate. But sometimes setbacks are really opportunities in disguise, and as Taran's leadership team adjusted to put all their eggs in their remaining project, they realised that they were more than a consultancy, they had a product on their hands - and, more or less, that's how Taran Decision Manager was born.

In today's episode, I'm speaking to Martin Chudoba, co-founder and CEO about that journey, and about how Taran DM can help lenders to automate and improve their complex, data-driven decisions.

As you'll hear, you can find Taran on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/taran-ai/

Which is also where you'll be able to reach out to Martin (https://www.linkedin.com/in/martin-chudoba-76703b15/) or Steve Henderson (https://www.linkedin.com/in/steveghenderson/) who is the MD of their North American operations

Or you can go straight to the source, and find what you need over at https://tarandm.com/

I'm on LinkedIn and always open to new genuine connections - https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange - please do reach out, and follow the show's page, too

Meanwhile, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is discussed at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

But I'm also co-creating a new podcast called hAIghtened senses which will look at the intersection between human senses and technology, especially AI-powered technology. You can already start to follow it wherever you're listening to this one - there's only a trailer there at the moment, but we've recorded some of the early episodes and it's going to be a fun ride!

Keep well, Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rwanda is rising as a regional financial centre, catching the East African fintech wave to drive economic and social transformation and to broaden financial inclusion. In today's episode, I'm speaking to TransUnion's CEO for Rwanda and Head of Africa Growth Regions, Sam Tayengwa to hear about the energy and progress that's bubbling to the surface there. We talk about mobile loans, of course, but also the emergence of old classics like mortgages and vehicle loans.

TransUnion is, as Sam said, at https://www.transunion.com/ but also at https://www.transunion.co.za/ and https://www.transunionafrica.com/rwanda (I think he got that a little wrong in the episode)

You can jump straight to Sam at https://www.linkedin.com/in/samtayengwa/, he's well worth the follow, and also check our TransUnion Africa's regional president, Lee Naik at https://www.linkedin.com/in/naikl/ and subscribe to his Elewa newsletter at https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/elewa-africa-thinking-6706525337850781696/

LinkedIn is where you can find and connect with me: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange (please do reach out, follow the show's page, and share the content with your networks)

Meanwhile, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is discussed at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Keep well, Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"Data is a bit like the blood of an organisation. It goes everywhere. However, because it goes everywhere, you cannot just silo it somewhere. Of course, you need to have some standards around data, but every part of the of a business has to be responsible for the data". 

Daniele Forni cuts through systems and technologies to solve the complex data issues that otherwise prevent financial institutions and startups from unlocking their data potential. And luckily, he loves sharing those insights with us: on LinkedIn, at conferences, in articles, in free-to-download reports such as his Guide to Data for AI, and in books for professionals and their kids alike!

You can find all of Daniele's work at https://www.danieleforni.com/

Or follow him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danieleforni/ And he's just moved to Hong Kong, so if you're there, pop into HSBC and say hello 😁

The Pirate and R is on your local Amazon or directly at www.littledatascientist.co.uk 

Is It Pronounced Data or Data? is at https://lnkd.in/e3HZRN-d (USA), https://lnkd.in/excjrGCW (UK), https://lnkd.in/eAy2nsPT (IT), and https://lnkd.in/eyYdYw3U (ITA)

Daniele's music (Doctor Shall Burn) is at https://open.spotify.com/artist/4KR0BUcZj5eOV9mxLgrniw?si=SPhptSMoTU-GchQruC-PmA

I'm on LinkedIn and always open to new genuine connections - https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange - please do reach out, and follow the show's page, too

Meanwhile, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is discussed at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.

Oh, and In this episode, I got to have a bit of fun incorporating Daniele's drumming into the introduction - isolating them from the full track using https://splitter.ai/

Keep well, Brendan

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.