Couchonomics with Arjun

189 Episodes

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How Alan Built an €840 Million Health Insurance Business From Scratch

2026-09-0146:06

Health insurance is one of the few products people pay for while hoping they never have to use it. Alan is trying to change that. In this episode, Jean-Charles Samuelian, Co-founder and CEO of Alan, shares how the company built a full-stack health insurance platform designed around prevention, personalization, and everyday engagement rather than simply paying claims when something goes wrong. They discuss why Alan chose to become a regulated insurer instead of a broker or technology provide...

How Creditas Built a $3.3 Billion Fintech by Taking on the Hard Loans

2026-08-2541:36

Latin America has a massive consumer credit market, but high interest rates and short loan maturities continue to put pressure on borrowers. In this episode, Sergio Furio, Founder and CEO of Creditas, shares how the company built an asset-backed lending model around cars and homes, giving customers access to longer-term credit at better rates. They discuss why Creditas moved away from partnering with banks, how securitization became central to the business, why complexity created a stronger...

Why Islamic Fintech Is Still Being Underestimated

2026-08-1852:55

Islamic finance is growing globally, but the companies pushing it forward are not always the ones talking about it the loudest. In this episode of Couchonomics with Arjun, Abdullo Kurbanov, CEO and Co-founder of Ayan Capital, shares how he helped build Alif from a $200,000 start in Tajikistan into a profitable fintech processing $1.2 billion in transactions every month, and why he is now building again from scratch in the UK. They unpack what Islamic finance actually changes for customers, ...

The $80 Billion SME Lending Opportunity Banks Keep Missing

2026-08-1151:44

SMEs are central to the UAE economy, yet access to credit remains one of their biggest challenges. In this episode of Couchonomics with Arjun, Hassan Reda, Co-Founder & CPO of CredibleX, and Anand Nagaraj, Co-Founder & CEO of CredibleX, unpack why SME lending has remained difficult for banks and fintechs, and what needs to change to close the financing gap. They explain how embedded lending can solve the distribution problem, why working-capital finance requires a different approach...

Why Most Digital Banks Will Never Make Money

2026-07-2855:50

Digital banks have spent years chasing customer growth. But scale alone does not create profitability. In this episode of Couchonomics with Arjun, Simon Loong, Founder and Group CEO of WeLab, explains what it takes to build a successful digital bank across Asia. He shares why lending remains central to profitability, why standalone fintechs face a harder path, and how banking licences, AI, stablecoins and regional expansion are shaping the next phase of digital banking. 🎙️ In this episode:...

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