Highlights of Gulf News Interview with Raj Bagadi
In Case You Missed It…
A fortnight ago, the Scallop CEO, Raj Bagadi, gave an interview to the top-selling English read publication in the UAE — Gulf News. They wanted to know more about the man at the head of the FinTech start-up and asked about all things work and personal. We’re bringing you highlights of that special interview. (For the full interview please read it here).
After summarising his education, with an Aerospace Engineering background, Raj detailed how it is he went into the world of finance and eventually on the path to founding Scallop — ‘The World’s First DeFi Powered Neobank’.
“My step into the finance world then began on the regulatory side. There I learnt much about anti-money laundering and the compliance banks needed to operate. I had a brain trained to identify the restructuring of systems and structures and how they could be improved or solved, so it was a good fit.
By this time, Bitcoin had emerged and I found this new form of money fascinating, along with the potential of the underlying blockchain technology. It wasn’t as well known yet as it is today (in the form of cryptocurrencies) but after a lot of research, I was sure the technology could have a positive effect on the future.”
Scallop was founded in July 2020, in the midst of the global pandemic. Whilst this was indeed a tough time for many companies, there was light at the end of the tunnel for Scallop…
“For Scallop, it was quite different (the negative effect of the pandemic). The exponential growth of crypto helped our cause as we’re the only neobank that fully offers crypto services in the same way that online exchanges and platforms do. There are one or two neobanks that allow you to buy cryptocurrencies but they don’t provide any type of wallet on those, you can’t send or receive coins, nor do you own them or your keys. It’s been done so far almost primitively and just as a novelty. So we created and built the full thing, linking DeFi protocols and crypto wallets directly to your banking account. We’ve even built the technology to allow you to pay for any goods or services directly with your cryptos at any store, online or physical. We hope these tools will give rise to mainstream adoption of crypto overall.”
The future of Scallop looks bright then. They are fully regulated and insured ahead of the product launch in September 2021. With the World’s First DeFi Powered Neobank on the way, these were Raj’s thoughts on what lies ahead…
“I think it’s less about what Scallop looks like. Obviously, I want it to be successful and become the number one neobank. But it’s more about what our world looks like — our financial system, our society and seeing a greater economic opportunity for every person in the world. Our mission is to accelerate the transition to a more decentralised and equitable financial system and that is what matters most to us…I would like to see a world in 10 years with less poverty and more opportunity. I want to be able to stand back and look proudly at the impact Scallop has made, the lives we’ve changed and the products and services that we’ve designed to make day-to-day lives easier.”
When asked about his personal life, Raj spoke glowingly about his new bride, Kim, and his passion for diving, wherever he can in the world. (He is a qualified diver with the renowned BSAC — British Sub-Aqua Club).
“When I’m not working I spend time with my family, which is greatly important to me…Every day is always different, so it’s hard to schedule evenings out or days away, so we enjoy cooking together at home and spending time when we can. When we do have the time though, we like to travel. My preferred holiday is anywhere with water so that I can get some diving in, as I am a qualified diver.”
For the full interview please read it here.
