The David Rubenstein Show
00:05:42 · Nik Storonsky, David Rubenstein
[00:05:42] S1: So as a business, we have a pretty large crypto currency business. I think we are the largest. We have the largest crypto business in Europe with our volumes personally, I don't speculate crypto, but I use it sometimes, you know, for transfers. [00:05:59] S0: So in the United States, what do you hope to be able to do with your banking license if you get it? What is the market gap that you think you can feel that maybe others aren't doing. [00:06:09] S1: So basically I mentioned a radioh retail business. So it's one simple up where you can do everything what you need for your financial life. And then second direction, well also provide the revolute business accounts for businesses. And again it's end to end services that you need to run your business. So payments, banking, credit will come as well, wealth management or treasury, well call it treasury, then acquiring as well. So for example, right now, if I'm an American company, I'll need to stop say Stripe for acquiring, then JPMorgan for my business banking. Then you know, something else for payouts, something else for payroll. So we provide all these services in one product. [00:06:49] S0: Well, if you conquer the US the way you've conquered the UK and Europe, is China next, or you're not going to focus on that?
00:06:49 · David Rubenstein, Nik Storonsky
[00:06:49] S0: Well, if you conquer the US the way you've conquered the UK and Europe, is China next, or you're not going to focus on that? [00:06:57] S1: Eis your way Definitely focusing, So spending a lot of time studying Asia and then as a sarch. So we applied it for multiple banking licenses in Asia as well, and then some of them but we got already. And then China is on the least as well. You know, one day I hope we can set up a business there. [00:07:12] S0: Now, some people have written that your bank revelute is worth seventy five billion dollars? Have you ever thought of taking your organization public? [00:07:21] S1: But the way I think about it will be ready to probably in two year's time. But then again depends on how good the market is. [00:07:31] S0: Bench you don't have an IPO, how do people who work for you make some money? You make a market for people to sell their shares internally? [00:07:38] S1: Yeah, so we do secondaries every one or two years when people can sell certain portion of their stocks to excel investors. [00:07:47] S0: So you've done secondary sales for your employees, so employees can then get some liquidity. Do you expect before you go public you'll do any more of those or you're just going to wait to you go public before you liquefy any more stock. [00:07:59] S1: Yeah, I think so we might do secondaries as well before we do IPO, because we do it every one or two years. So we might do a second results.
00:07:59 · Nik Storonsky, David Rubenstein
[00:07:59] S1: Yeah, I think so we might do secondaries as well before we do IPO, because we do it every one or two years. So we might do a second results. [00:08:07] S0: All right, Well, if anybody wants to sell their shares to me, let me know. And have any investment bankers told you why they're the best to do the IPO for you? [00:08:14] S1: Yeah, obviously every single one is the best. [00:08:16] S0: Everyone is the best. You're not in a rush to do it. [00:08:18] S1: You don't need the money, so we a bank. And then for the bank, it's super important to have trust. And then public companies are trusted and more compared to private companies. So there's the reason. [00:08:30] S0: What are you most proud of having done so far and what do you most enjoy? [00:08:34] S1: Well, it's basically designing something, designing solution to solve a problem that I see it are being realized, and then are using it. That's what I enjoy when I see some elegant solution. [00:08:44] S0: Many people think that companies like yours, which are often called fin tech companies financial technology companies are changing the world dramatically, but they could be changed dramatically. So for example, artificial intelligence is coming along. You worried about ourtificial intelligence? Or do you use artificial intelligence to help grow your company?
00:08:44 · David Rubenstein, Nik Storonsky
[00:08:44] S0: Many people think that companies like yours, which are often called fin tech companies financial technology companies are changing the world dramatically, but they could be changed dramatically. So for example, artificial intelligence is coming along. You worried about ourtificial intelligence? Or do you use artificial intelligence to help grow your company? [00:09:04] S1: An additional tool that we obviously use and I think with LLM chatbots, so it's another surface on top of the infrastructure that we build, because banking is not a simple UP right under UP you have a lot of back end, a lot of systems, and a lot of regulatory systems and so on. And then UP is effective interface to all this back end logic. And then LLM can be something on top of the UP or directly interacting with our back end logic. So call it another interface. That's what we're building as well and allowing people to interact with all our products through Childbot. [00:09:42] S0: Let's talk about how you came to start the company. So you are doesn't sound like you're a native of England from your. [00:09:50] S1: Accent, originally from Russia. So it came to u K first in two thousand and six for the internship, then in two thousand and seven I came for another internship afterwards our estate to be employed by Lehman Brothers as a trader. [00:10:05] S0: And at what age did you leave Russia? [00:10:07] S1: Twenty years old? And then as soon as I finished my university I moved to London to work full time for Lehman Brothers.
00:10:07 · Nik Storonsky, David Rubenstein
[00:10:07] S1: Twenty years old? And then as soon as I finished my university I moved to London to work full time for Lehman Brothers. [00:10:15] S0: And were your parents educated? Are they math specialists or they have computer training or not? [00:10:21] S1: So my father he is a physicist by training. My mother, she's a teacher. [00:10:26] S0: I assume you're a pretty good math student or a physics student or something because you have technology background. [00:10:30] S1: I assume yeah, I was always trained in mass physics as well. [00:10:35] S0: Right, So you go to England and did you have a job lined up before you got there? [00:10:39] S1: So Lehman Brothers came to my university and then they tried to recruit some people for the internship. So they recruited me for internship. I came there in summer two thousand and six, and then they invited miss for second internship in the spring two thousand and seven, and they also gave me a job for a full time when I graduated from my university. So when I graduated in July, I think it was July two thousand and seven, I came to London to rock full time for Lehman Brothers. [00:11:12] S0: Didn't Lehman go under at some point. [00:11:14] S1: Two thousand and eight, Yes, I wasn't Are you there then? [00:11:17] S0: Yeah?
00:11:17 · David Rubenstein, Nik Storonsky
[00:11:17] S0: Yeah? [00:11:18] S1: I was there. I was one of probably two hundred people on the trading floor. It all happened. I still remember. There was Sunday evening announcement and then I was wondering I could do I need to come on Monday morning to my kind of job? So I came and then we had all these two hundred traders locked at one trading floor. Everything, all the systems were locked, and we're all playing the same game. I think it was a game shooting helicopters or something, all all two hurrying people because there was nothing to do. [00:11:48] S0: So did you think capitalism wasn't such a great system at that point when you go to Lehman Brothers and they go bankrupt and you're out of work. [00:11:56] S1: Yeah, I was full of confidence right about myself. I was not afraid to lose the job because I knew I can always find any one. [00:12:02] S0: So did you have a hard time finding another job? No? [00:12:06] S1: I got kind of a job from the Nomura and then from Credit. [00:12:11] S0: Swiss as well. All right, and so where did you go? [00:12:14] S1: I went to Credit Suisse, I went to Credit Suisse. [00:12:17] S0: They've had their problems too. Actually, did you leave Credit Suisse before they had their problems?