Solving NRI Fintech Pain with Belong | From Hedge Funds to Startups | Ankur’s Founder Journey

Join us for an incredible conversation with Ankur, a serial fintech entrepreneur who transitioned from algorithmic trading at hedge funds to building products that solve real problems for millions of Indian expats worldwide. Meet Hosts: Srinath - [https://www.linkedin.com/in/skotela/] Phani - [https://www.linkedin.com/in/phanivuyyuru] Sid - [https://www.linkedin.com/in/sidsaladi/] [https://sidsaladi.substack.com/ [https://mobile.twitter.com/Sidsaladi] 💎 Here are more resources for you 🚀 The Ultimate PM Launch Pad - Blast Off Your Career Now! 🚀 https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0KSCr65RCTOupMjArBvrML5VWUGzaKqt 🧰 Master the PM Toolkit - Equip Yourself for Success! 🧰 https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0KSCr65RCTM4acJOjQYFvOVMzfiEFlqE ⚡️ Stay Ahead of the Tech Curve - Charge Your Knowledge Now! ⚡️ https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0KSCr65RCTMvYe4lAYpfdbDoNdPbA33o 🎯 What You'll Learn: How to identify the difference between a product vs. business vs. company The critical importance of channel-market fit beyond product-market fit Why 100+ VC pitches taught him invaluable fundraising lessons How regulatory frameworks can make or break fintech products The reality of building in fintech: "Move fast and break things doesn't apply" 🚀 Key Highlights: Built Goalwise (robo-advisor) with $100M AUM before successful exit Now building Belong to help 32M NRIs invest in India seamlessly Leveraged India's GIFT City special economic zone for regulatory advantages Learned VC perspective by working at early-stage fund Shares brutal honest insights about startup failures and burnout 📊 Perfect for: Aspiring fintech founders Product managers in financial services Anyone interested in cross-border investment challenges Entrepreneurs looking to understand VC fundraising mechanics 🔗 Resources Mentioned: Book: "Working Backwards" by ex-Amazon executives Podcast: Everything Product Companies mentioned: Goalwise, Belong, Neo Bank, Revolut Timestamps: 0:00 Introduction 2:33 Ankur's journey from IIT to hedge funds 5:15 Why he started Goalwise (robo-advisor) 10:11 The costly lesson about channel-market fit 15:19 Deciding when to exit vs. persist 20:36 The NRI investment problem (32M+ people affected) 25:20 How GIFT City changes the regulatory game 31:15 Product development challenges in fintech 36:32 Leveraging AI for customer-facing features 41:22 The emotional ups and downs of entrepreneurship 45:04 VC lessons: Product vs. Business vs. Company 50:55 Common fundraising mistakes founders make 56:35 Book and podcast recommendations #Fintech #ProductManagement #Startup #Entrepreneurship #VCFunding #IndianStartups #CrossBorderInvesting