[#49] The Painted Stork: 2024 Wrapped & onwards to 2025!
A year of writing, learning, and committing to the process
This year I started a newsletter, which has gradually evolved to a blog that focuses on current & future themes in fintech, and the finternet, with a smattering of sports, investment related pieces, and my own personal brush with my first career as a professional athlete woven in.
Some of the pieces I’ve written this year are below:
1. A personal note & learnings from my journey as a professional athlete. ![[#32] You're not a former anything, but a future something](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!9hFG!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb4b5afa0-3913-48d5-9578-265469471970_1104x648.png)
2. General investment themes: ![[#19] Celebrities & start-up investment - what’s the trend?](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!HrgO!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff38c7fa3-53b7-4c37-8454-24095707fc24_1652x1050.png)
![[#23] IPOs: A chance for extraordinary returns, or a scam for the retail investor?](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!_gD-!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe4633c8e-daef-4d12-ad68-fe84783a64e1_688x346.png)
2. Sports focused![[#16] Netflix and its sports strategy](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!5vBk!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1e580906-23e0-4ddf-ad97-486a081cc553_1388x856.png)
![[#20]The Economics of Sports Leagues in India](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!6Woq!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe1861bfe-8af7-45aa-8ef0-58125afe6cdb_1146x788.png)
![[#43] The Pickleball Mania: Are there no other investment opportunities in sports?](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Y7QX!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8fb9ffc1-9a80-4dbb-bc61-bdbc8b594295_1792x1002.png)
3. Fintech & Payments focused: ![[#21] If everyone is a payment aggregator, what do the original payment aggregators do?](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!FB5s!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4ef7086b-0737-4048-86da-aba372de0d52_1472x1066.png)
![[#22] How is the world (not just India) innovating on real time payments?](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!nEQS!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F0e6071c4-b476-4df6-9b4e-22a826404046_1016x1158.png)
![[#24] Decoding Fintech IPOs - what does the market say about fintechs?](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!4SqL!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdef88b7a-0b57-4956-a0fc-053252eaa333_1790x1006.png)
![[#37] Do all roads in fintech lead to license aggregation: Part 2](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!0EZL!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2cc9aa1e-f79a-469c-9887-52c189f6637f_1634x918.png)
![[#40] The case for neobanks in India: what can we learn from global successes such as Nubank?](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!G8yT!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F3d81c4d2-68c0-4341-8025-90f2bcf45e1e_1600x896.png)
![[#38] Is the battle for the ubiquitous UPI app over? : What do the next few years look like for UPI Apps?](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!R6jp!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F698a0f5a-e30f-47a6-8be3-e000b9a13819_1600x892.png)
![[#41] From Free to Fee: Why does UPI need pricing to sustain innovation and growth?](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!mIxr!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fa50c5cdb-8fb0-48a5-bf3a-f6ab93a29d0f_1754x986.png)
![[#42] The Klarna IPO & LazyPay pause: What does the future of BNPL look like?](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!LIzr!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F58fadd95-7f95-4cda-a743-b6996f8f0979_1752x984.png)
![[#44] Open Banking: What's missing in India's Account Aggregator framework?](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!GClQ!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fab5b2adf-3720-45b7-9453-e2cd2dc6933e_1750x978.png)
![[#48] The New Payment Orchestration Playbook: Merchant Effort Needed & a Crossborder focus](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!fqer!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F55e0cd57-3e32-4500-b796-d6099a4fd127_1682x946.png)
4. Blockchain / Finternet Focused ![[#39] Is the future of payments in the "Finternet" era powered by blockchain?](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!6Kv_!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff2116cbd-f4a6-4bff-8a28-ca3a4c49a85f_1644x922.png)
![[#45] What is needed for the Finternet to scale? Hint: It's Tokenization & Encryption Protocols](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!vjKN!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F38bfb172-b207-4d6a-b9a9-3afe97d1828f_1764x990.png)
Looking ahead to 2025:
As 2025 starts, continuing with the theme of taking process / theme goals, for this newsletter, I plan to go deeper into the fintech space, the future of fintech, borderless payments, and the intersection of fintech & AI. I’ll also be expanding beyond fintech, into related themes.
If there are any topics you’d like me to deep dive or collaborate on, or even meet in person / set up a online chat, DM me and we can figure something out!