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How to Lend Money to Strangers
Where European FinTech meets up, with Douglas Mackenzie (Fintech Meetup Europe)
We're two weeks away from Europe's most valuable fintech event, so if you want to be a part of that, you have to act quickly - get your tickets, and then get yourself registered on the meeting platform before that closes on Friday. But today's interview isn't just for conference attendees; you might not be able to make it in person, but these are conversations you want to tap into.
You can find Douglas on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/douglas-mackenzie-/
I'm there, too at https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange/
Or just come to FintechMeetUp Europe in Lisbon and us there: https://europe.fintechmeetup.com/page/get-your-ticket
If you work in North American fintech, or want to, you can also head to https://www.fintechmeetup.com/ to learn about the US version of the event, next landing in Las Vegas from 22 to 24 February 2027
Other friends of the show include:
https://www.joinhumoni.com/ (helping international students find accommodation, work, and financial services on day one)
https://beetlesense.ai (AI-powered day one pest detection for forestry)
https://www.begini.co/ (gamified psychometric credit scores for low data/ high risk markets)
https://www.haboomoney.com/ (making collections personalised, flexible and intelligent)
https://www.ontap.co.za/pages/hoedspruit-store-details (for all your Hoedspruit-based bathroom needs)
https://www.ogmara.com/ (customised risk management and analytic consulting)
And since you like podcasts, I also co-create HAIghtened Senses with Christo van Zyl, which looks at the intersection between human senses and technology (and this week, flying cars)
Keep well, Brendan
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204. A fireside chat with Philip Belamant from Zilch
01:11:23||Season 10, Ep. 204I recently hosted a group of MBA students, studying across Hult International Business School's global campuses but in London to experience what makes the fintech scene here so unique. Through the week, we heard from over a dozen guest speakers, each of whom added something special from their experience, but the undisputed highlight was a trip to Zilch's office to hear firsthand how Philip Belamant and the team rode the ups and downs to build the fastest-growing unicorn in Europe - $0 to $2 billion in just 14 months. It's a great story, and one that's only got more interesting since then, but Philip didn't just share the sanitised highlights; he spoke with authenticity, intelligence, and humour to be both inspiring and honest about the role that luck can play in all of this - and th ebest news is, the team at Zilch allowed me to record the session and share it all with you on here.For those of you who appreciate mathematical symmetry, this is episode 204, and the last time Philip was on the show was for episode 102, which you can find here: https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-102To see what Zilch is doing for consumers, head over to https://www.zilch.com/uk/You can find Philip on LinkedIn over here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/philip-belamant/And the Zilch corporate page is over here: https://www.linkedin.com/company/payzilch/You can connect with me on LinkedIn, too, at https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange/Or come to FintechMeetUp Europe in Lisbon and meet me there: https://europe.fintechmeetup.com/page/get-your-ticketOther friends of the show include:https://www.ogmara.com/ (customised risk management and analytic consulting)https://www.ontap.co.za/pages/hoedspruit-store-details (for all your Hoedspruit-based bathroom needs)https://flatwhiteorfoff.com/ (ask for anything other than a flat white, the answer is in the name)https://www.joinhumoni.com/ (helping international students find accommodation, work, and financial services on day one)https://www.haboomoney.com/ (making collections personalised, flexible and intelligent)https://beetlesense.ai (AI-powered day one pest detection for forestry)And since you like podcasts, I also co-create HAIghtened Senses with Christo van Zyl, which looks at the intersection between human senses and technology (and this week, flying cars)Keep well, Brendan
203. AI-first and Shariah by design, with Rajesh Saxena (Intellect Design Arena)
42:17||Season 10, Ep. 203Intellect Design Arena are a global enterprise fintech leader helping financial institutions simplify complexity, modernise faster and create meaningful customer value. But, more than that, with design thinking at their core, they're a company that solves problems, from the ground up, for all flavours of financial services - and on today's episode, we're looking at their new eMACH.ai solution for Islamic Banking, purpose-built with end-to-end Islamic functionality to automate Shariah compliance and eliminate legacy barriers.Rajesh Saxena can be found on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajesh-saxena-033ab44/Rami Roukoss is there, too, at https://www.linkedin.com/in/rami-roukoss-85992066/Intellect Design Arena has its page at https://www.linkedin.com/company/intellect_design_arena/But you'll get all the details a lot quicker if you just head straight to their homepage at https://www.intellectdesign.com/You can connect with me on LinkedIn, too, at https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange/Other friends of the show include:https://www.ogmara.com/ (customised risk management and analytic consulting)https://www.ontap.co.za/pages/hoedspruit-store-details (for all your Hoedspruit-based bathroom needs)https://flatwhiteorfoff.com/ (ask for anything other than a flat white, the answer is in the name)https://www.joinhumoni.com/ (helping international students find accommodation, work, and financial services on day one)https://www.haboomoney.com/ (making collections personalised, flexible and intelligent)https://beetlesense.ai (AI-powered day one pest detection for forestry)And since you like podcasts, I also co-create HAIghtened Senses with Christo van Zyl, which looks at the intersection between human senses and technology (and this week, flying cars)Keep well, Brendan
202. Solving big problems in innovative ways, with Waqas Javed (Bank of Punjab)
52:38||Season 10, Ep. 202Pakistan is massively underbanked, but those gaps are being closed faster than you might think, using a range of innovative solutions that range from traditional credit bureaus to satellite imagery to psychometric scorecards. In this episode, I'm with Waqas Javed, EVP for Data Analytics AI at the Bank of Punjab, talking about the vision behind, and the impact of, their drive to bring fair credit products to the people.You can find Waqas on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/wajaved/The Bank of Punjab is online at https://www.bop.com.pk/BoPBegini is at https://www.begini.co/ (and also via LinkedIn through James Hume, who helped set this one up: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-hume-b8a4642/) You can connect with me on LinkedIn, too, at https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange/And if you book your tickets for FinTechMeetup Europe, over at https://europe.fintechmeetup.com/home, we could meet in personOther friends of the show include:https://www.ogmara.com/ (customised risk management and analytic consulting)https://www.ontap.co.za/pages/hoedspruit-store-details (for all your Hoedspruit-based bathroom needs)https://flatwhiteorfoff.com/ (ask for anything other than a flat white, the answer is in the name)https://www.joinhumoni.com/ (helping international students find accommodation, work, and financial services on day one)https://www.haboomoney.com/ (making collections personalised, flexible and intelligent)https://beetlesense.ai (AI-powered day one pest detection for forestry)And since you like podcasts, I also co-create HAIghtened Senses with Christo van Zyl, which looks at the intersection between human senses and technology (and this week, flying cars)Keep well, BrendanThis is an interview I set up while at Money20/20 Asia. If you want to make similar connections at one of their global shows, you can get tickets at https://www.money2020.com/
201. How to insure stuff for strangers, with Stan Ng
52:23||Season 10, Ep. 201We don't normally talk about insurance on here, but we've just published our 200th episode, so the rules no longer apply to us 🤣 But, also, we're not so different from our insuring cousins, who also need to make an upfront commitment of funds against some measure of risk.Stan Ng is my guide, and you can find him plu shis many ventures at https://www.linkedin.com/in/stan-ng-61228040/Aireka is there, too, of course https://www.linkedin.com/company/aireka-digital-transformation/ but you'll get to the details faster if you head straight to https://www.aireka.co.uk/The Passage is bridging insurtech experience and best practices across Asia, the UK and Europe. and you can find more about it here https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-passage-network/ You can connect with me on LinkedIn, too, at https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange/And if you book your tickets for FinTechMeetup Europe, over at https://europe.fintechmeetup.com/home, we could meet in personOther friends of the show include:https://www.ogmara.com/ (customised risk management and analytic consulting)https://www.ontap.co.za/pages/hoedspruit-store-details (for all your Hoedspruit-based bathroom needs)https://flatwhiteorfoff.com/ (ask for anything other than a flat white, the answer is in the name)https://www.joinhumoni.com/ (helping international students find accommodation, work, and financial services on day one)https://www.haboomoney.com/ (making collections personalised, flexible and intelligent)https://beetlesense.ai (AI-powered day one pest detection for forestry)And since you like podcasts, I also co-create HAIghtened Senses with Christo van Zyl, which looks at the intersection between human senses and technology (and this week, flying cars)Keep well, Brendan
200. Bringing together multiple viewpoints, both in person and in data with Sanjib Kalita (Fintech Meetup and Guppy)
37:10||Season 10, Ep. 200Sanjib Kalita is one of the most recognisable faces in global fintech, and now one of the most recognisable voices in global fintech, too, so when I saw we were approaching 200 episodes, he was who I wanted to get on to mark the occasion. We talk about Sanjib's early career, his move into events, including what it has been like building Fintech Meetup, the Most Valuable Event in Fintech, and then, because Sanjib doesn't just talk the talk, we cover his own startup ventures, including why he created Guppy to transform the way in which consumers and businesses control and use credit data.You can learn more about Guppy at https://guppy.ai/Or start a personal conversation with Sanjib on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/sanjibkalita/You can connect with me on LinkedIn, too, at https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange/For more about FinTechMeetup Europe, head to https://europe.fintechmeetup.com/homeOr go to https://fintechmeetup.com/home if you're one of our many American listeners https://fintechmeetup.com/homeSanjib is also the host of FinTech Talks, the official podcast of Fintech Meetup https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZr40NaBssc&t=3sOther friends of the show include:https://www.ogmara.com/ (customised risk management and analytic consulting)https://www.ontap.co.za/pages/hoedspruit-store-details (for all your Hoedspruit-based bathroom needs)https://flatwhiteorfoff.com/ (ask for anything other than a flat white, the answer is in the name)https://www.joinhumoni.com/ (helping international students find accommodation, work, and financial services on day one)https://www.haboomoney.com/ (making collections personalised, flexible and intelligent)https://beetlesense.ai (AI-powered day one pest detection for forestry)And since you like podcasts, I also co-create HAIghtened Senses with Christo van Zyl, which looks at the intersection between human senses and technology (and this week, flying cars)Keep well, Brendan
199. Empowering financial access for Iceland, the Baltics, and beyond, with Hrefna Sigfinnsdottir and Elari Tammenurm (Creditinfo)
01:01:45||Season 10, Ep. 199Operating in over 40 countries across three continents, Creditinfo is a trusted partner in driving financial inclusion, enhancing credit access, and supporting economic growth in one of the most diverse mixes of markets I know of. You can learn all about Creditinfo on their homepage: https://www.creditinfo.com/ (or follow the links to any one of the regional sites).Creditinfo are on LinkedIn, too, at https://www.linkedin.com/company/creditinfo-group/But for a more personal touch, reach out to Hrefna at https://www.linkedin.com/in/hrefna-sigfinnsdottir-78473b185/ or Elari at https://www.linkedin.com/in/elaritammenurm/You can connect with me on LinkedIn, too, at https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange/Other friends of the show include:https://www.ogmara.com/ (customised risk management and analytic consulting)https://www.ontap.co.za/pages/hoedspruit-store-details (for all your Hoedspruit-based bathroom needs)https://flatwhiteorfoff.com/ (ask for anything other than a flat white, the answer is in the name)https://www.joinhumoni.com/ (helping international students find accommodation, work, and financial services on day one)https://www.haboomoney.com/ (making collections personalised, flexible and intelligent)https://beetlesense.ai (AI-powered day one pest detection for forestry)And since you like podcasts, I also co-create HAIghtened Senses with Christo van Zyl, which looks at the intersection between human senses and technology (and this week, flying cars)Keep well, BrendanThis interview was set up by Red Lorry Yellow Lorry, B2B tech PR and marketing from industry specialists who know what they’re doing and care about the results. If you want to get on shows like mine, you can contact them at https://www.rlyl.com/uk/
198. Fraud prevention & AML compliance, with Nauman Abuzar (SEON)
28:05||Season 10, Ep. 198From fake accounts to payment fraud, SEON’s AI platform connects 900+ first-party data signals to enrich data and provide context for action-taking, all in one place. You can read more about how they do that on their homepage: https://seon.io/They're also on LinkedIn, of course, at https://www.linkedin.com/company/seon-tech/As is this show (https://www.linkedin.com/company/how-to-lend-money-to-strangers/) and I (https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange/)Or reach out directly to Nauman at https://www.linkedin.com/in/naumanabuzar/ and tell him you heard this interview hereYou can connect with me on LinkedIn, too, at https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange/Other friends of the show include:https://www.ogmara.com/ (customised risk management and analytic consulting)https://www.ontap.co.za/pages/hoedspruit-store-details (for all your Hoedspruit-based bathroom needs)https://flatwhiteorfoff.com/ (ask for anything other than a flat white, the answer is in the name)https://www.joinhumoni.com/ (helping international students find accommodation, work, and financial services on day one)https://www.haboomoney.com/ (making collections personalised, flexible and intelligent)https://beetlesense.ai (AI-powered day one pest detection for forestry)And since you like podcasts, I also co-create HAIghtened Senses with Christo van Zyl, which looks at the intersection between human senses and technology (and this week, flying cars)Keep well, BrendanThis interview was set up by FiveNot10, the B2B tech PR agency obsessed with simplicity. If you want to get on shows like mine, you can contact them at https://www.fivenot10.co.uk/
197. Accessing your home equity, with Michael Gifford (Splitero)
26:59||Season 10, Ep. 197Home Equity Lines of Credit (HELOCs) have always made sense for borrowers, but when the Great Financial Crisis showed how contagion could undermine the pricing assumptions, they lost favour with American lenders. But they're back, redesigned, and stronger than ever. In this episode, I'm speaking with Splitero's CEO, Michael Gifford, a PropTech veteran who is helping families get the most out of their real estate by accessing their home equity. Michael is on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeldgifford/Splitero is there, too, at But if you want the details, you may as well head straight to their homepage at https://www.splitero.com/You can connect with me on LinkedIn, too, at https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange/Other friends of the show include:https://www.ogmara.com/ (customised risk management and analytic consulting)https://www.ontap.co.za/pages/hoedspruit-store-details (for all your Hoedspruit-based bathroom needs)https://flatwhiteorfoff.com/ (ask for anything other than a flat white, the answer is in the name)https://www.joinhumoni.com/ (helping international students find accommodation, work, and financial services on day one)https://www.haboomoney.com/ (making collections personalised, flexible and intelligent)https://beetlesense.ai (AI-powered day one pest detection for forestry)And since you like podcasts, I also co-create HAIghtened Senses with Christo van Zyl, which looks at the intersection between human senses and technology (and this week, flying cars)Keep well, BrendanThis episode was set up by Kirstin Robison from Pitch PR, a boutique firm specializing in national media for consumer and business-to-business companies. If you'd like to get onto shows like mine, reach out to them at https://pitchpublicrelations.com/