164 episodes
On Call with Insignia Ventures Insignia Ventures Partners
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- Business
Start your week with new ~30 min calls every Tuesday! Learning what it takes to build an impactful and enduring company in emerging markets globally is just a call away. Join Insignia Ventures' resident storyteller Paulo Joquino and founding managing partner Yinglan Tan on call with the likes of Indonesian unicorn founders, Dianping's founder, Alibaba Global Initiatives founder, MercadoLibre co-founder and former COO, veteran Japan SaaS VC, and more! Get diverse perspectives as they share origin stories, learnings on company building, and unique approaches to leadership.
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From pitching at Davos to hiring, controls, and fundraising: What it takes to be AwanTunai CFO with Shilpa Gautam
Welcome back to our continuing conversation with Shilpa Gautam, CFO of supply chain digitization and purchase financing platform AwanTunai.
In the last episode, we talk about the recent progress AwanTunai has made with its Series B and what that means for its business. We also hear from Shilpa’s perspective as CFO how AwanTunai develops cost-effective risk management and scale.
In part two, we delve deeper into Shilpa's journey as a CFO, from joining the company at the forefront of the tech winter to winning awards at Davos, and her own mindset and approach to various aspects of building a company's finance function, from hiring to controls and fundraising.
Timestamps
(00:03) Highlights;
(00:56) Growing as a Leader in AwanTunai;
(07:33) CFO’s Approach to Hiring, Controls, and Fundraising;
(14:04) In the Orange Corner;
(16:53) What Keeps Shilpa Going;
(18:46) Rapid Fire Round;
The content of this podcast is for informational purposes only, should not be taken as legal, tax, or business advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security, and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any Insignia Ventures fund. Any and all opinions shared in this episode are solely personal thoughts and reflections of the guest and the host.
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On Call with Shilpa Gautam, AwanTunai CFO | Part 1
On Call with Insignia returns with a new guest, Shilpa Gautam, the CFO of AwanTunai! AwanTunai is a company digitizing the traditional FMCG supply chain in Indonesia to enable low-cost, equitable financing for MSMEs, a market opportunity worth US$300B in this segment alone.
Over the years, we’ve heard plenty from CEO Dino Setiawan on the journey of AwanTunai (its origins, growth amidst the pandemic-hit lending space, and its appless, proprietary approach to embedded financing).
This time we get to hear from Shilpa’s point of view as CFO: how her joining AwanTunai was a full circle moment in a decade-long career across lending, audit, M&A, banking, how she approached becoming the company’s first CFO amidst the onset of the tech funding winter and the company’s next fundraise, and how her role fits into AwanTunai’s big picture “building the next wave of financial inclusion in Indonesia”, and a “textbook example for financial inclusion” globally.
Timestamps
(01:15) Introducing Shilpa Gautam, AwanTunai CFO;
(06:44) Scaling a Lending Business with the Capital Efficiency and the Right Investors;
(13:50) The Value and Cost of Solving for Risk Before Scale;
(20:45) Solving for Scale in a US$300B Market Opportunity;
(25:01) Make or Break Corner: From Raising Series B Amidst the Tech Winter to Presenting at Davos;
The content of this podcast is for informational purposes only, should not be taken as legal, tax, or business advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security, and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any Insignia Ventures fund. Any and all opinions shared in this episode are solely personal thoughts and reflections of the guest and the host.
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How this Singaporean firefighter is making life saving everyone's business with deep tech | Call 160 with Leon Yip
Part 2 of our chat with Leon Yip, former Singaporean firefighter, Insignia Ventures Academy VC Accelerator Cohort 2 alumnus, and now working with deep tech startups at Hatch.
Part 1 was all about Leon sharing his journey from the Singapore Civil Defense Force to IVA and finally to Hatch: https://youtu.be/p7w42vX2x_0
More episodes with IVA mentors and alumni on Academy Afterthoughts: https://review.insignia.vc/category/podcasts/iva-afterthoughts/
Insignia Ventures Academy’s Certificate in Venture Capital course is open for applications to its 7th (March) and 8th (June) cohorts! Talk to our program manager Jiaway Koh and learn more here: http://www.insignia.vc/u/calliva
Timestamps
(00:00) How Leon’s time at IVA impacted his career and his work at Hatch;
(06:30) Use cases of deep tech in public safety and security;
(09:51) Advice for founders working with government as customers;
(15:50) How IVA impacted the way Leon engages with founders;
(18:38) Rapid Fire Round;
About our guest
Leon Yip is an alumnus of Cohort 2 of Insignia Ventures Academy’s Certificate in Venture Capital course. Prior to IVA he had built a career in the Singapore Civil Defense Force, from frontline responder to part of the headquarters’ innovation development team. From IVA he was exposed to philanthropic capital at Plans and Development of the Temasek Foundation. Currently he bridges the gap between lifesaving and the startup ecosystem at the Home Team Science and Technology Agency’s Hatch, which curates and accelerates impactful deep tech innovations to thrive in the public safety and security domain.
The content of this podcast is for informational purposes only, should not be taken as legal, tax, or business advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security, and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any Insignia Ventures fund. Any and all opinions shared in this episode are solely personal thoughts and reflections of the guest and the host.
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Why this firefighter invested in learning more about startups and venture capital (Part 1) | Call 159
We are back with another Academy Afterthoughts episode, where we go on call with alumni and mentors of Insignia Ventures Academy’s programs, primarily the Certificate in Venture Capital course which is open for applications to its 7th (March) and 8th (June) cohorts! Talk to our program manager Jiaway Koh and learn more here: http://www.insignia.vc/u/calliva
In this episode we have Leon Yip from Cohort 2, whose career spans firefighting to now working with startups as they develop solutions for public safety and security.
In Part 1 of our conversation, he shares about his time at the Singapore Civil Defense Force, going from the frontlines to innovation development at headquarters. Then we talk about his experiences and takeaways from his 12 weeks at Insignia Ventures Academy, and how that impacted his personal and professional development.
Stay tuned for Part 2 next Monday, where we talk more about deep tech solutions for public safety and security across various use cases, especially in light of Singapore’s greater push for more global activity to find its place in the country, from Asia stopovers for global artists like Taylor Swift to becoming a hub for more digital asset transactions in the region.
Timestamps
(00:00) Introduction;
(02:36) Leon’s days at the Singapore Civil Defense Force (SCDF);
(06:29) Leon’s Insignia Ventures Academy experience;
(15:50) How Leon’s IVA experience impacted his career post-program, leading up to his work with deep tech startups at Hatch;
About our guest
Leon Yip is an alumnus of Cohort 2 of Insignia Ventures Academy’s Certificate in Venture Capital course. Prior to IVA he had built a career in the Singapore Civil Defense Force, from frontline responder to part of the headquarters’ innovation development team. From IVA he was exposed to philanthropic capital at Plans and Development of the Temasek Foundation. Currently he bridges the gap between lifesaving and the startup ecosystem at the Home Team Science and Technology Agency’s Hatch, which curates and accelerates impactful deep tech innovations to thrive in the public safety and security domain.
The content of this podcast is for informational purposes only, should not be taken as legal, tax, or business advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security, and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any Insignia Ventures fund. Any and all opinions shared in this episode are solely personal thoughts and reflections of the guest and the host.
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Why the Middle East is the next big market for Open Finance with Brankas CEO Todd Schweitzer | Call 158
Our conversation continues with Todd Schweitzer, CEO and co-founder of open finance solutions platform Brankas.
After getting a fresh introduction to how Brankas and open finance works as well as developments in the open finance revolution in Southeast Asia, Todd takes us across the world to the Middle East and what Brankas has been doing to meet the banking transformation needs of markets in the region. But first, he shares learnings from selling software to banks and working with us at Insignia Ventures.
A quick recap, in case you’re not familiar: how does Brankas work?
As Todd puts it simply, “We work with tech companies, consumer and SME apps that are looking to have financial services integrations. We also work with the banks themselves to become suppliers of these products. That creates a marketplace where you have the institutions on one side and the tech companies on the other. Brankas is making it much easier for those two groups to connect.”
They provide services across Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Thailand. In 2023, they expanded into MENA, particularly Bahrain, UAE, and Saudi Arabia, which we talk about more in this episode!
Timestamps
(00:00) Make or Break Corner: Patience and Partnerships in Open Finance;
(00:05) Catch up to part 1 here: https://youtu.be/mcmazgnBmw0
(02:50) In the Orange Corner: Finding Partners to Expand Ambition;
(04:40) Brankas’s Approach to the MENA Opportunity for Open Finance
(11:14) Brankas’s Approach to AI Tooling;
(13:57) Rapid Fire Round;
The content of this podcast is for informational purposes only, should not be taken as legal, tax, or business advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security, and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any Insignia Ventures fund.
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Raising the Standards for ASEAN Banking with Open Finance | Brankas CEO Todd Schweitzer | Call 157
In this week’s episode of On Call with Insignia, Brankas CEO and co-founder Todd Schweitzer returns after two years (check out our first conversation with him here) with the latest insights on open finance and Brankas’ progress in driving this transformation in the region.
But first, in case you’re not familiar: how does Brankas work?
As Todd puts it simply, “We work with tech companies, consumer and SME apps that are looking to have financial services integrations. We also work with the banks themselves to become suppliers of these products. That creates a marketplace where you have the institutions on one side and the tech companies on the other. Brankas is making it much easier for those two groups to connect.”
They provide services across Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Thailand. In 2023, they expanded into MENA, particularly Bahrain, UAE, and Saudi Arabia, which we talk about more in part 2, coming out next week!
Timestamps
(00:00) Todd and Brankas’ Introduction;
(05:47) Opportunities for Open Finance in Southeast Asia: SME and Migrant Worker Banking;
(13:38) The Tradeoffs for Tech Companies Integrating Financial Services;
(18:04) Maturing Banking Experiences in Southeast Asia;
(22:08) Southeast Asia’s Developing Open Finance Regulation;
(25:26) Stay tuned for part 2 next week;
The content of this podcast is for informational purposes only, should not be taken as legal, tax, or business advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security, and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any Insignia Ventures fund.
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