Money Majlis

Suvo Sarkar

Welcome to the podcast that’s redefining conversations on banking, finance, technology and marketing. Exploring topics that are current, consequential and controversial, it is a fortnightly deep-dive with leaders, thinkers and innovators by the veteran banker Suvo Sarkar.Money Majlis is the only podcast of its kind in the region, and since its launch in April 2024, has gained a loyal base of listeners across 110+ countries. Currently in its Season 2, it is among the top 3 business podcasts in the Middle East. It was recently awarded the Best New Podcast for 2024 at the PodClub people’s choice awards in Dubai.

  1. Sep 25

    Ep 65. From Pilots to P&L: QuantumBlack’s CEO on building AI-ready banks

    Please visit moneymajlis.com to share your feedback This episode of Money Majlis dives into how banks and regulators can finally break out of “pilot purgatory” and turn AI from hype into hard P&L impact, with one of the world’s most influential applied‑AI leaders, Alexander Sukharevsky, CEO of QuantumBlack, AI by McKinsey.  Drawing on his global work with financial institutions, sovereigns and regulators, Alexander explains why 88 percent of organisations say they use AI yet only a tiny fraction see more than 20 percent EBITDA uplift, and what it really takes to move that needle. Across our conversation, Alexander lays out a concrete playbook for banks: focus on a few high‑value domains instead of scattered use cases, reinvent customer journeys and legacy processes end‑to‑end, and build the “human stack” of leaders and bankers who can speak the language of AI without needing to be data scientists. We unpack lessons from Rewired 2.0, his updated McKinsey playbook on how leading firms win with technology, and go inside case studies like DBS to show how a traditional bank can become a data‑driven, AI‑ready organisation without derailing business‑as‑usual performance. Alexander also offers a candid assessment of where the GCC and UAE are genuinely ahead of the curve: ambition, speed, bold AI investment, and where execution still lags, from fragmented pilots to under‑invested data and architecture foundations. He demystifies “agentic AI”, imagines organisations where human and virtual team‑members work side by side, and explains why CEOs must personally become chief product and transformation officers, spending time in the “machine room” instead of watching AI from the boardroom.  Along the way, Alexander tackles regulation and digital trust, the future of work, and what great bankers will look like in 2030, before sharing his own leadership journey from building two businesses from scratch to scaling QuantumBlack into a multi‑thousand‑person AI practice born in Formula 1 and now reshaping banking worldwide. Produced by : Poddster Giving partner : Goodworld   Visit moneymajlis.com to join our giving movement and get your USD 50 complimentary GiveCard.

    Ep 65. From Pilots to P&L: QuantumBlack’s CEO on building AI-ready banks
  2. Sep 10

    Ep 64. What Is This Song? The Shazam Story and the Future of Intelligent Enterprise

    Please visit moneymajlis.com to share your feedback What does it take to build an iconic technology company before the technology ecosystem required to support it even exists? In this compelling episode of Money Majlis, Suvo Sarkar speaks with Dhiraj Mukherjee, co-founder of Shazam, investor, speaker and lifelong student of technological disruption. Long before smartphones, app stores and streaming, Shazam began with a deceptively simple human question: “What is this song?” Dhiraj recounts how a group of ambitious entrepreneurs built a way to identify music from a few seconds of audio over a basic mobile-phone line, then spent nearly two decades navigating the far harder challenge of finding a sustainable business model. It is a story of conviction, reinvention and resilience through the dot-com crash, the global financial crisis and the upheaval of the music industry. Dhiraj reflects on the tension at the heart of every enduring venture: holding a fixed vision while maintaining a flexible mindset. He shares why Shazam did not change its fundamental purpose, but repeatedly reinvented the way it created value: from paid SMS messages to music partnerships, advertising and streaming. His lesson for founders and leaders is refreshingly direct: stay relevant, keep learning and live to fight another day. The conversation then turns to AI, where Dhiraj brings the perspective of an early OpenAI investor and a practitioner who believes technology must be experienced, not merely discussed. He explains why failed pilots should not automatically be seen as failure, why enterprises must move beyond simply layering AI onto outdated workflows, and why the greatest opportunities in banking may lie in the “big, boring problems” of compliance, risk, credit and operational efficiency. For boards and senior leaders, this episode offers a powerful argument for curiosity, experimentation and adaptability. Dhiraj explores the importance of sandboxes and guardrails in regulated industries, the benefits of reverse mentorship across generations, and the need to build organisations around skills and learning velocity rather than static roles. He also makes the case that AI should elevate human capability, not absolve institutions of their responsibility to help people reskill and contribute at a higher level. From the founding story of Shazam to the future of autonomous financial agents, quantum computing and AI-enabled work, this is a wide-ranging conversation about navigating uncertainty with optimism, humility and disciplined action. Dhiraj’s governing principle is clear: in an age when knowledge is abundant and change is relentless, adaptability is the capability that matters most. Produced by : Poddster Giving partner : Goodworld Visit moneymajlis.com to join our giving movement and get your USD 50 complimentary GiveCard.

    Ep 64. What Is This Song? The Shazam Story and the Future of Intelligent Enterprise
  3. Sep 4 ·  Bonus

    Ep XTRA 14. Beyond the Stage: Ty Roberts on AI, Avatars and the Future of Music

    Please visit moneymajlis.com to share your feedback Music is no longer confined to a recording, a screen or even a physical stage. It is becoming a living, visual and increasingly interactive experience. One that can travel across arenas, phones, homes, cars, livestreams, virtual worlds and, perhaps soon, the boundary between the living and the legendary. Music is no longer simply something we hear; it is increasingly becoming a living, visual and increasingly interactive experience. One that can travel across arenas, phones, homes, cars, livestreams, virtual worlds and, perhaps soon, the boundary between the living and the legendary. In this special episode of Money Majlis with Suvo Sarkar, recorded in New Delhi, Suvo speaks with Ty Roberts, one of the most influential creative technologists behind the evolution of digital music, immersive entertainment and fan experiences.  Ty’s extraordinary journey spans the earliest days of computer gaming, the development of QuickTime, interactive albums with artists including David Bowie and Todd Rundgren, and the creation of Gracenote, the metadata engine that helped transform how music is discovered across streaming platforms, cars and connected devices. He later became the first Chief Technology Officer of Universal Music Group and now leads FanTracks Digital, building new possibilities for live, hybrid and visually rich music experiences. The conversation begins with ABBA Voyage, the remarkable London production that blends avatars, live musicians, immersive visuals and emotional storytelling into a true time-machine experience. Ty explains why technology alone is never enough: authenticity rests on extraordinary attention to the smallest human details, from facial expression and body language to the precise movement of a guitarist’s hands. Suvo and Ty then explore how AI could make sophisticated immersive experiences radically more accessible, allowing more artists to create compelling visual worlds without the vast budgets traditionally associated with motion capture and visual effects. They discuss the changing economics of live music, the unexpected commercial power of merchandise during livestreams, the importance of high-quality sound and the challenge of creating a richer, more connected fan journey. The episode also takes us inside Ty’s collaborations with visionary artists. He recalls David Bowie and Brian Eno’s ambition to create generative albums that could change with every listen, and reflects on how technology is finally catching up with many ideas that once seemed impossibly futuristic. At its heart, this is a conversation about creativity, reinvention and the human connection that must remain at the centre of every technological advance. From AI-powered visuals and avatar performances to data ownership, artist rights and the concert experience of 2035, Ty Roberts offers a thought-provoking glimpse into music’s next great transformation. Produced by : Poddster Giving partner : Goodworld Visit moneymajlis.com to join our giving movement and get your USD 50 complimentary GiveCard.

    Ep XTRA 14. Beyond the Stage: Ty Roberts on AI, Avatars and the Future of Music
  4. Aug 28

    Ep 63. From Pipes to Platforms: Annabel Spring of Allfunds on the Future of Wealth

    Please visit moneymajlis.com to share your feedback What really sits behind the booming world of global wealth? In this episode of Money Majlis, Suvo Sarkar sits down with Annabel Spring, Global CEO of Allfunds, to unpack the invisible infrastructure that now powers how trillions of dollars move across borders, banks and platforms.  From Hong Kong to Dubai to Dublin, a growing share of the world’s mutual funds, ETFs and alternatives are being manufactured in one place, distributed in another, and serviced on technology stacks most investors never see. Annabel runs one of the world’s largest B2B wealthtech ecosystems, connecting more than three thousand fund groups and asset managers to hundreds of banks, private banks and wealth managers across sixty-plus markets, with close to 1.8 trillion euros in assets running through the pipes. Drawing on three decades at Morgan Stanley, Commonwealth Bank of Australia and HSBC, she explains how the old linear chain of manufacturer–distributor–client has morphed into a dense web of platforms, data pipes and service layers, all supposedly centred on the end investor. Suvo and Annabel explore where the real frictions still lie, from cross-border onboarding and KYC to legacy systems and fragmented data, and how platforms like Allfunds decide what to build, what to partner on and what to leave to others. They dive into the surge in private markets for wealth clients, why access is no longer the main barrier, and how education, liquidity design and secondary markets will determine whether alternatives truly go mainstream. The conversation covers AI, tokenisation and the “boring plumbing” that actually changes economics. Annabel separates genuine operating-model transformation from AI-washing, and describes how Allfunds is using data, analytics and blockchain rails to move from being a transaction pipe to a full-scale digital ecosystem. She also lifts the lid on the strategic logic behind the planned combination with Deutsche Börse’s Clearstream fund services and reflects on the legacy of Allfunds’ late founder, Juan Alcaraz.  Finally, from the rise of Asia and the Middle East as enduring wealth hubs to the blurring lines between private banking, mass affluent and institutional segments, Annabel shares a candid, practitioner’s view of what global wealth will look like in 2035 – and what leaders need to get right now to still matter then. Produced by : Poddster Giving partner : Goodworld Visit moneymajlis.com to join our giving movement and get your USD 50 complimentary GiveCard.

    Ep 63. From Pipes to Platforms: Annabel Spring of Allfunds on the Future of Wealth
  5. Aug 14

    Ep 62. Raising a Decacorn : Nikil & Usha Viswanathan on Crypto, AI and Family Values

    Please visit moneymajlis.com to share your feedback What happens when you combine a decacorn founder at the heart of the crypto infrastructure revolution with the original entrepreneur in the family who quietly built software long before “cloud” and “SaaS” became buzzwords?  In this special episode of Money Majlis, we sit down with the son–mother duo of Nikil and Usha Viswanathan to explore both the future of financial plumbing and the values that shape the people building it. Nikil is the co‑founder and CEO of Alchemy, often described as the “AWS of blockchain” – a web3 developer platform that powers a massive share of global blockchain activity, from NFT marketplaces and DeFi protocols to tokenization pilots and stablecoin rails used by major financial institutions. In just about 16 months from public launch, Alchemy went from zero to a multi‑billion‑dollar valuation with a tiny team, delivering a “team‑to‑impact ratio” that most banks and big tech firms can only dream of.  Usha, meanwhile, is the president and co‑founder of Starnik, the cloud software company she built with her husband Balu while raising two children, bootstrapping through the dot‑com boom and bust and modelling resilience, curiosity and an almost “insane” work ethic that both Nikil and his sister Tara, former CEO and co‑founder of Rupa Health, now see as their core foundation. Across the conversation, we move from the big picture to the deeply personal. Nikil explains why he believes we are moving from a world shaped by governments and banks to a world shaped by platforms and protocols – and why crypto rails will replace much of today’s antiquated financial infrastructure. He breaks down crypto’s four core use cases – from store of value to global payments and AI‑native money – and offers a hard‑hitting message to bankers who still think of digital assets as “that thing my nephew trades at night”. We also unpack how Alchemy emerged from 16 prior “failed” products, what it really takes to build at extreme speed, and how banks can escape the proof‑of‑concept graveyard and move tokenization into production. Then we switch lenses to Usha’s story: a journey from commerce in Chennai to MIS in Texas to building Starnik and raising two founder‑CEOs. She shares practical parenting hacks, the rituals that kept the family grounded, and how to raise curious, kind and courageous children in a world of hyper‑connected ambition. Together, Nikil and Usha reflect on family as a “startup incubator”, ethics at the edge of money and health, and why – whether you are running a family, a startup or a bank – your values remain the ultimate operating system. Produced by : Poddster Giving partner : Goodworld Visit moneymajlis.com to join our giving movement and get your USD 50 complimentary GiveCard.

    Ep 62. Raising a Decacorn : Nikil & Usha Viswanathan on Crypto, AI and Family Values
  6. Jul 31

    Ep 61. AI Earthquake, Quantum Tsunami: Steve Monaghan on the Future of Finance

    Please visit moneymajlis.com to share your feedback What happens when a commercial pilot obsessed with time value, a technologist who helped build Dell and Compaq in Asia, and a board-level strategist for some of the world’s most respected banks and insurers roll into one career?  In this episode of Money Majlis, Tokyo-based investor, general partner and board member Steve Monaghan joins Suvo in Dubai to map out a brutally honest, deeply practical view of where banking and insurance go next in the age of AI, quantum computing and streaming finance. Steve traces his unlikely journey from flying overnight milk runs and teaching himself Lotus 1-2-3 to building pricing models at Dell, early mobile payments at Citi, retail turnarounds in Japan, and major AI and data programmes at DBS and AIA. Along the way, he explains why trust is the ultimate currency and why it is backed not by gold, but by time. Time, in his world, is the hidden balance sheet that banks, insurers and regulators still don’t measure properly. The conversation dives into Steve’s famous framing of AI as an earthquake already shaking business models, and quantum computing as the coming tsunami that could blow up legacy cryptography and risk management much sooner than many boards expect. He is candid about why most corporate AI programmes are still “AI theatre” – pilots, dashboards and press releases with negligible P&L impact – and what it would take for banks to redesign their business models around optimisation, streaming capital and genuine customer value rather than just cost-cutting. Suvo and Steve also explore what an AI-competent, quantum-aware board really looks like, why GCC banks in markets like the UAE have a rare window to leapfrog, and how streaming finance – “money at the speed of information” – could help households pay off mortgages years earlier and turn idle working capital into a national productivity engine. From Apple’s negative cash conversion cycle to paycheck-to-paycheck workers trapped in batch-era salary systems, Steve argues that our operating system for money is no longer fit for purpose. If you care about the future of banking, digital regulation in the GCC, or what an AI-competent board should look like, this conversation will challenge many assumptions you still take for granted.  Produced by : Poddster Giving partner : Goodworld Visit moneymajlis.com to join our giving movement and get your USD 50 complimentary GiveCard.

    Ep 61. AI Earthquake, Quantum Tsunami: Steve Monaghan on the Future of Finance
  7. Jul 17

    Ep 60. Embedded, Invisible, Inevitable: Gaurav Kumar of Yubi on the future of lending

    Please visit moneymajlis.com to share your feedback What happens when credit becomes invisible, intelligent and truly embedded into our daily lives? In this episode of Money Majlis, Suvo Sarkar sits down in Dubai with Gaurav Kumar (GK), founder and CEO of Indian unicorn Yubi, the AI-powered operating system for debt markets. Together they unpack how a company born in Chennai during the pandemic is quietly rewiring how money moves for consumers, MSMEs and banks from India to MENA, Southeast Asia and now the US. The conversation begins at 30,000 feet, with the global revolution in consumer and personal lending. GK explains why finance is no longer about walking into a bank branch or opening a banking app, but about credit showing up instantly and non-intrusively inside the storefronts where customers actually live: e-commerce checkouts, ride-hailing apps, dealer showrooms and payroll platforms. He breaks down how advances in digital identity, India’s public digital rails and AI-led underwriting now allow pre-approved loans to move in as little as 9–12 seconds, and why that changes the ethics, risks and responsibilities of lenders forever. From there, the discussion dives into India’s consumer credit boom and the unfinished business of financial inclusion. GK unpacks how India's household debt-to-GDP ratio of just 38% signals not prudence but enormous untapped potential, and why the next decade will see credit distributed far more evenly across a market that has historically served only thick-file, collateral-rich borrowers. He explains how Yubi’s architecture, co-lending rails and AI tools help banks serve these segments at lower cost while preserving prudence through explainable, auditable models and tighter bureau data cycles. Then there is the founder's story. Why he built through the pandemic, why he deliberately rejected the marketplace model to keep his allegiance to lenders, and why he has personally staked over $39 million of his own capital in Yubi — a signal of commitment to clients, not a funding shortfall. GK shares his near-death moments of self-doubt, his IRMA-rooted belief that access to finance should be a fundamental right, and his ambitions across the Middle East, Southeast Asia and the US, where Yubi already partners with more than 30 banks in MENA. Warm, candid and rich with insight, this is a masterclass for credit geeks, fintech founders, bankers and anyone curious about how money really moves behind the scenes. GK also reveals a hidden talent that catches even Suvo off guard. Produced by : Poddster Giving partner : Goodworld Visit moneymajlis.com to join our giving movement and get your USD 50 complimentary GiveCard.

    Ep 60. Embedded, Invisible, Inevitable: Gaurav Kumar of Yubi on the future of lending
  8. Jul 3

    Ep 59. Breaking Through the Noise: Sally Susman on the Art of Being Heard

    Please visit moneymajlis.com to share your feedback What if the most powerful force in business is not capital, technology or strategy, but the simple human act of one person truly reaching another?  In this episode of Money Majlis, Suvo Sarkar is joined by Sally Susman – advisor, advocate and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of “Breaking Through: Communicating to Open Minds, Move Hearts and Change the World” – for a masterclass in how leaders can use words to move people, build trust and change outcomes in a world that is increasingly sceptical of institutions. For 18 years, Sally served as Executive Vice President and Chief Corporate Affairs Officer at Pfizer, guiding three CEOs through proxy battles, leadership transitions, political firestorms and the most scrutinised vaccine launch in modern history, after senior roles at American Express, Estée Lauder and in the Clinton administration. Together, Suvo and Sally explore why communication is not a “soft skill” but a rock‑hard competency that multiplies every other leadership skill, and why so many boards still underestimate its strategic value. Sally explains what separates game‑changing CEOs from the merely competent, how she built enduring partnerships with leaders like Albert Bourla, and what it really takes for a Chief Communications Officer to have the courage for candour while always serving the institution, not the individual ego. The conversation dives into the global trust deficit, the collapse of traditional media and the rise of hyperlocal, creator‑driven influence. Drawing on the COVID‑19 vaccine rollout, Sally shares what she learned about communicating under radical uncertainty, why facts alone rarely shift behaviour, and how barbers, grandmothers and college students sometimes move public opinion more than politicians or celebrities. She is frank about the temptations of silence, “greenhushing” and performative authenticity – and why all three are dead ends for modern leaders. In the final stretch, the episode becomes more intimate and reflective. Sally talks about the personal values that have guided her – courage, curiosity, empathy and a deep belief in equality – and how coming out to her family shaped a lifetime commitment to living and leading authentically. She reflects on the importance of humour, ritual and friendship in sustaining a high‑pressure career, her love of art, ideas and public life, and why, in her “Act III,” she is focused less on titles and more on mentoring, giving back and leaving the campsite better than she found it.  This is not just a conversation about corporate communication; it is a conversation about how to live, work and speak in a way that feels true. Produced by : Poddster Giving partner: Goodworld Visit moneymajlis.com to join our giving movement and get your USD 50 complimentary GiveCard.

    Ep 59. Breaking Through the Noise: Sally Susman on the Art of Being Heard

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
4 Ratings

About

Welcome to the podcast that’s redefining conversations on banking, finance, technology and marketing. Exploring topics that are current, consequential and controversial, it is a fortnightly deep-dive with leaders, thinkers and innovators by the veteran banker Suvo Sarkar.Money Majlis is the only podcast of its kind in the region, and since its launch in April 2024, has gained a loyal base of listeners across 110+ countries. Currently in its Season 2, it is among the top 3 business podcasts in the Middle East. It was recently awarded the Best New Podcast for 2024 at the PodClub people’s choice awards in Dubai.

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