Innovation Is Not Invention

Innovation is not Invention. Invention is a new thing. Innovation is a new way of doing an existing thing that amplifies impact through broader reach. Let me cite a few examples to drive home this difference. 1. AirBnB During Oktoberfest, the city of Munich with a population of 1.2 million residents receives roughly seven million … Read more

Safety Of Money: Bank v. Neobank

Fintech Mafia Carousel Pumping is the circular shilling of one another’s financial products and services by a bunch of fintech founders with least regard for truth or consumer interest. I recently came across the following exhibit of Fintech Mafia Carousel Pumping on LinkedIn. Why do some of us trust Barclays or Bank of America more … Read more

UPI – Too Many Or Not Nearly Enough Players?

On the one hand, there are 48 Payments Services Providers offering UPI payments in India. Which is a lot. On the other hand, many people say there are very few UPI players and claim that there’s a huge concentration risk in UPI. This FUD narrative has scaled new heights after RBI recently cracked down on … Read more

Zepto Becomes The First Quick Commerce Unicorn

Zepto just became the first unicorn in the Quick Commerce space. Zepto, an India-based grocery delivery company, secured a $200 million Series E at a $1.4 billion valuation in a deal led by Stepstone Group. – Axios Pro. Compared to UDAAN and a couple of other startups that became unicorns in six months or so, … Read more

Calling BS Of Bank Fintech Partnership

Fintech came into existence with the charter of disrupting traditional banks. It sought to achieve its mission by democratizing finance with modern technologies and superior customer experiences. The plan was to unbundle banking into multiple products, be a CHILL entrant in each product, bring the unbanked and underbanked into its fold first, then work its … Read more

Copy-Paste Of Western Business Model Works

The founder of India’s largest discount brokerage Zerodha recently sparked off a debate on social networks by declaring that copy-pasting business models from USA and other countries does not work in India because there are many differences between the two markets. @Nithin0dha: India is unique. Copy-pasting models from the US, etc, has hardly worked. Paytm’s … Read more

Six Step Plan For ONDC To Replicate The Success of UPI

Open Network for Digital Commerce seeks to increase the penetration of digital commerce in India by enabling companies to plug into its open and interoperable ecommerce protocol and thereby complete their ecommerce solutions. Setting up an e-commerce platform requires putting together diverse elements and working towards making each element a success. ONDC, on the other … Read more

Seven Money-Making Schemes That Sound Too Good To Be True – But Are True

According to the old adage, “If it’s too good to be true, it’s a scam”. In times of rampant fraud, like we’re seeing in the crypto world now, many people are repeating this warning. Take the OP of this LinkedIn Post for example. I’m sure they’re all well-meaning. I’m also sure that their warning is … Read more