How to Lend Money to Strangers Brendan le Grange

I was going to use a quote from Drachen here, because I remembered being quite proud of how I described Tallinn in there, but it turns out I remembered... generously So let's just say that Estonia is a fantastic place to visit this summer. But don't stop there, explore the other Baltic States while you're at it, maybe make a road trip of it and check out Poland, Czechia, and Germany, too. The borderless EU is your playground.

And, before the disaster that is Brexit, I enjoyed that freedom of movement as a resident, spending two wonderful years living and working in Copenhagen. Many still do, and that's where Mifundo come into the picture. We've spoken about cross-border credit bureau solutions before, and how they help immigrants, Kaido Saar will talk about that today, too, but within Europe immigration is often more of a tidal flow than a river's unidirectional run to the sea so we'll also discuss how that's baked into their solution.

Kaidoo and the team will once again be at Money20/20 in Amsterdam next month as part of the Estonian Fintech booth - https://europe.money2020.com/ I should be there, too, provided I get my logistics sorted in time, so if you're going to be in town, let's make a plan to meet up at the event or at one of the many after parties 😉.

You can learn more about Mifundo and book a demo at https://banks.mifundo.com/

Or you'll find them and Kaido both on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/mifundo-com/ and https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaido-saar/

For natural biodegradable straws from reed, go to https://sutustraws.com/

I'm on LinkedIn, too, and always open to new genuine connections - https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange - and follow the show's page, too, while you're there.

Meanwhile, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is discussed at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

And finally, I'm also co-creating a new podcast called hAIghtened senses which will look at the intersection between human senses and technology, especially AI-powered technology. You can already start to follow it wherever you're listening to this one - there's only a trailer there at the moment, but we've recorded some of the early episodes and it's going to be a fun ride!

Keep well, Brendan

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"It started by just going out and networking, listening to people, asking them what worked, what didn't work, you know, ringing up estate agents saying, look, I'd love to do your mortgages and walking up and down the high street with my briefcase."

As much as I love featuring VC-funded, AI-powered, alternative data-consuming startups on this show, it is well worth remembering that there's still a very big place for businesses built on human interactions - provided those interactions lead to better products, of course. In today's episode, I'm speaking to Chris Schutrups, founder of The Mortgage Hut and some of the UK's leading mortgage brands.

We cover that story of shaking hands and building businesses, of understanding people's needs and building products for them, but we also look at the role of professional advice in a world flooded with opinions, the current mortgage landscape and its opportunities there for brokers and lenders to work together for the benefit of borrowers, and how a changing drinking culture is changing pubs.

The Mortgage Hut is at home online at https://www.themortgagehut.co.uk/ They're also on LinkedIn over at https://www.linkedin.com/company/themortgagehut/ (Police Mortgages are there, too)

And speaking of LinkedIn, Chris is kind of a big deal on the platform, so you can join the 20,000+ of us following his insights over at https://www.linkedin.com/in/schutrups/

Or if it was the pubs that caught your interest, check out the great options at https://hendersonpub.co/. With summer finally showing signs of its approach, I might well take on the 2-hour coastal drive to get me to Romsey and The Hunters Inn.

I'm on LinkedIn, too, and eager to reach Chris's heights so I'm always open to new genuine connections - https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange - and follow the show's page, too

Meanwhile, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is discussed at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

And finally, I'm also co-creating a new podcast called hAIghtened senses which will look at the intersection between human senses and technology, especially AI-powered technology. You can already start to follow it wherever you're listening to this one - there's only a trailer there at the moment, but we've recorded some of the early episodes and it's going to be a fun ride!

Keep well, Brendan

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“Buy now and pay in up to 24 monthly instalments using your existing credit card.​ Zero interest. Zero fees. Zero new credit.” With copy that good, you might not actually need to listen to this week’s episode 😉 But please do, it’s a really good one as we hear first hand from one of South Africa’s most exciting new fintech founders.

Float is all about taking a payment tool that you already know and love, stripping away the cost, to providing cash flow management that enables spend without an unnecessary expansion of unsecured credit.

Float is at home at https://www.float.co.za/

And on social media at https://www.instagram.com/float.co.za/ and at https://www.linkedin.com/company/floatcoza/

Or reach out to Alex directly at https://www.linkedin.com/in/alex-forsyth-thompson-cfa-cfp%C2%AE-6b42a75a/

If you’re interested in Guy Kawasaki’s new book, you can buy it here: https://guykawasaki.com/books/think-remarkable/ (or at any online bookstore)

I'm on LinkedIn and always open to new genuine connections - https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange - please do reach out, and follow the show's page, too

Meanwhile, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is discussed at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

And finally, I'm also co-creating a new podcast called hAIghtened senses which will look at the intersection between human senses and technology, especially AI-powered technology. You can already start to follow it wherever you're listening to this one - there's only a trailer there at the moment, but we've recorded some of the early episodes and it's going to be a fun ride!

Keep well, Brendan


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Always curious, always outspoken, Carolyn Rohm has a deep passion for helping analysts and analytical teams to engage with the wider business and stakeholders to deliver solutions that provide real value and bottom-line benefits. In today’s episode, we talk about her career in credit risk, about the different nuances of credit risk analytics in high-risk and low-risk environments, about credit scores and credit strategies, about analytics for modern collections, and about how to build teams with hard and soft skills.

Carolyn is at home online at https://www.carolynrohm.com/ (or just straight in and book a complimentary 30 minute chat at https://calendly.com/carolynrohm/30min?month=2024-04)

Luckily, much of Carolyn’s insight and wisdom is captured in her book - It’s a Risky Business: A field Guide to Retail Consumer Credit Analytics - which you can get from her site but also on Amazon.com and .co.uk and, I imagine, all the others.

But also feel free to find her on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolynrohm/

Scores4All is on LinkedIn, too, but their homepage is over here: https://www.scores4all.io/

I'm on LinkedIn and always open to new genuine connections - https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange - please do reach out, and follow the show's page, too

And finally, I'm also co-creating a new podcast called hAIghtened senses which will look at the intersection between human senses and technology, especially AI-powered technology. You can already start to follow it wherever you're listening to this one - there's only a trailer there at the moment, but we've recorded some of the early episodes and it's going to be a fun ride!

Keep well, Brendan

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The global covid pandemic shut down a lot of things, but new vehicle supply chains were among the hardest hit. A knock-on effect of that was that Taran, an advanced analytics and AI consultancy saw their hot lead for a new contract evaporate. But sometimes setbacks are really opportunities in disguise, and as Taran's leadership team adjusted to put all their eggs in their remaining project, they realised that they were more than a consultancy, they had a product on their hands - and, more or less, that's how Taran Decision Manager was born.

In today's episode, I'm speaking to Martin Chudoba, co-founder and CEO about that journey, and about how Taran DM can help lenders to automate and improve their complex, data-driven decisions.

As you'll hear, you can find Taran on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/taran-ai/

Which is also where you'll be able to reach out to Martin (https://www.linkedin.com/in/martin-chudoba-76703b15/) or Steve Henderson (https://www.linkedin.com/in/steveghenderson/) who is the MD of their North American operations

Or you can go straight to the source, and find what you need over at https://tarandm.com/

I'm on LinkedIn and always open to new genuine connections - https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange - please do reach out, and follow the show's page, too

Meanwhile, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is discussed at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

But I'm also co-creating a new podcast called hAIghtened senses which will look at the intersection between human senses and technology, especially AI-powered technology. You can already start to follow it wherever you're listening to this one - there's only a trailer there at the moment, but we've recorded some of the early episodes and it's going to be a fun ride!

Keep well, Brendan

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Caleb Maru called M-Pesa the "company that changed Kenya forever", and the crazy thing is, its impact was even bigger than that - because the dominoes that M-Pesafirst tipped over in Kenya, seventeen years ago, are still having an impact all over East Africa. In today's episode, I'm speaking to Nassor Abubakar, an M-Pesa veteran and digital lending expert who is spreading mobile-first digital loans across Tanzania with NMB Bank.

You should follow Nassor on LinkedIn for https://www.linkedin.com/in/nassabuba/

NMB is at https://www.nmbbank.co.tz/ and on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/nmb-plc/ and on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram

The Finscope Report mentioned can be accessed here: https://www.afi-global.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Finscope-Tanzania-2023-Report-Insights-that-Drive-Innovation.pdf

Caleb Maru's TechSafari is at https://www.techsafari.io/ or jump straight to the M-Pesa story at https://techsafari.beehiiv.com/p/company-changed-kenya-forever

I'm on LinkedIn and always open to new genuine connections - https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendanlegrange - please do reach out, and follow the show's page, too

Meanwhile, my action-adventure novels are on Amazon, some versions even for free, and my work with ConfirmU and our gamified psychometric scores is discussed at https://confirmu.com/ and on episode 24 of this show https://www.howtolendmoneytostrangers.show/episodes/episode-24

If you have any feedback or questions, or if you would like to participate in the show, please feel free to reach out to me via the contact page on this site.


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