Hi, I’m Arunjay

where it started

Shaping Thinking.

Making money came easily to me and over the years it helped me understand the impact entrepreneurs make on society, and also the flaws in the system. I worked for a global accountancy firm before launching my startups designed to help improve financial inclusion in developing countries.

My knowledge of the international development and payments industry led me to realize that neoliberal capitalism isn’t working and that we need to proactively shift our consciousness if we’re going to reimagine a better world that tackles the ultimate challenge: including everyone.

the journey

From Bean Counting to Startups.

I grew up in India in a fairly affluent family, and I was entrepreneurial through my teens—at age 11, I traded snacks in boarding school. But I saw a lot of poverty. I couldn’t ignore it and often wondered why as most others did so easily… but it would take me three decades to be able to do something about it.

My career trajectory shaped my global outlook. I moved halfway around the world from India to Trinidad and Tobago when I was 22.
The first five years of my working life were spent as a bean counter for Ernst & Young before I started my entrepreneurial journey. Over a ten year period, I co-founded and exited three startups, one of which eventually sold to Twitter.
‍

And I helped set up DFS Lab to support startups in emerging markets. I've mentored more than 20 startups, including Nala, Nobuntu, Numi, Pezesha, Pula, TaniHub and Teller.

Raising Consciousness.

At age 13, my mother introduced me to meditation. Over the past 30 years, I have slowly increased my consciousness — moving away from narrow-minded self-interest and wanting to be super-rich — to a desire to help humanity. I left a career in investment banking along the way to work in international development.

This desire has grown stronger and stronger along with a simple belief that we can make a difference. But, despite spending the last decade trying to improve the lives of the poor by my work in financial inclusion, the progress the entire international development sector has made is very little. I experienced this realisation during the pandemic.

where to next?

Change is possible.

While 500 million more people have access to bank accounts in the last decade (albeit mostly empty ones), the economics haven’t changed. As a result, more than half the world’s population continues to be left behind.
The feudal system still lives with us today. And we can feel its effects through injustice, inequality, and extreme poverty.

Yet, I strongly believe change is possible and we can create a world where everyone thrives.