Meet our Accidental Banker

It was a much-awaited holiday season and the beginning of the new year. Without any surprise, the entire M2P team was geared up and raring to go! As we started interacting with our colleagues to know more about them and their teams, here’s what we got, an impromptu interview with our Accidental Banker, Vivek.

Engineer by education and Banker by profession Vivek Prashanth has deep expertise in branch banking, managing alternate payment channels, liaising with program partners, and working with card networks. With an innate flair for constant learning and as a curious person by nature, he made a pivotal shift to Fintech just to experience the best.

As he treks his program management career, he realized the technological facets of modern financial organizations. He sees what it is to be in the world of API-led banking or payments and to be in a new role of program frontrunner. So, let’s see how he describes his journey with M2P and how it helped him discover his hidden expertise and celebrate his realm of interests.

Before that, a small gold pick for your read! Vivek is a dedicated family man and an avid cricket fan who gets up early in the morning just to see a perfect square cut or a jet-speed Yorker.

So, what brought you to M2P?

As a client, I partnered with M2P for a QR payment project. During those interactions, I got to experience the work-culture prevailing at M2P and got inspired by the same. It was also a happening start-up, which offered loads of cross-functional learning opportunities and more choices than banks and other traditional roles do. And again, I was quite interested in working in a fast-paced start-up environment, and M2P was a perfect fit.

I heard that you’re the one behind every program that runs on the M2P platform. So, what’s your role at M2P, and what’re some of your key responsibilities?

Here at M2P, I lead the operations from banking, card ops to finance operations. Managing BAU (Business As Usual) and providing post live support to banks and partners are some of my primary responsibilities. For instance, once a program goes live, it comes to my radar. From then on, I manage the E2E (End-to-End) lifecycle from accounting, reconciliation, and settlement to customer service.

Any favorite project at M2P, and why?

In fact, my first assignment happens to be my favorite project. We were building a Forex product with YBL, and I was the go-to person for new products like cross-border payments at that time. And I am happy and fortunate for the chance to lead the same!

Is there any difference between working in a bank and working at a fintech?

Yes, absolutely. Firstly, you get more insights into the Fintech industry. Secondly, there are umpteen and unique learning choices that traditional positions might not or cannot offer. Banking by itself has a lot of restrictions that limit your latitude widely. Thirdly, when you are in this space, you understand how technology, business, and other back-end banking systems work. It is not only about being in a program partner role; actually, you are on the other side of the hustle, interacting with clients and business executives. Not only could you receive requirements, but also see how the product shapes up from scratch and through its lifecycle.

Having said that, what’s the most exciting thing about working in the banking and payments sector?

The evolution of banking and payments is something that fascinates me. New product development and different use cases in the payment sector that solve niche challenges make it even more enjoyable. By working in this domain, we could make an impact.

If you want to highlight what M2P means to you, what would it be?

M2P is like a must-be-cherished soundboard for me. Indeed, it has taught me flexibility, role diversity, and growth. Agility, quick turn-around, and instant product roll-out are three phrases that accurately capture the essence of M2P. Significantly, the pace at which a solution gets formulated, designed, and delivered is quite impressive.

What’s your preferred working style or culture?

As I said earlier, in an environment like M2P, agility and dynamics are inevitable elements. To nourish the same, I prefer not to confine myself to a fixed routine but often set or reset priorities keeping flexibility in the nearshore and schedule workdays around projects!!

And usually, I don’t opt for rigid timelines. Instead, I would list the tasks at hand, approach folks to plan a timeline for the project, and motivate the team to commit to the deadline. This approach, indeed, builds accountability within the group. By pushing them to explore and pursue new projects, I allow them to learn something new and implement something incredible beyond their comfortable palette.

What skills have you best mastered over the years?

As a banker, I have been working with and managing large teams for a while. So, without a twist, team management is one of my strengths. Other competencies include developing professional rapport, effectively communicating and negotiating with cross-functional groups, engaging customers, and rendering them quality service. At M2P — I have fortunately had the full vicinity of how a back-end banking system works.

What fascinates you about payments and the work you do?

It’s an evolving industry. The business, products, and everything in the company is changing. It might be a regulatory change or a newly coming out company or a product that brings something new to the ecosystem. It is happening and fast-moving. These developments motivate me to learn more than whatever we know now, as we might get outdated in a month or two.

Tell us anything about you that we don’t know?

I don’t usually sugarcoat anything! Sometimes I may not sound like a soft-spoken person since I’m a reality checker. I was a zonal level runner-up for volleyball and badminton. I listen to music a lot, especially lyrical melody music.

How do you keep yourself updated about payments and card transactions?

I talk to people, especially in M2P. When you talk to people, you get to know about current affairs. When you talk to clients, you get to know about the industry and how it works. I do read, but maybe not that much. I get more information from people than paper.

How do you motivate your team?

Firstly, Learning is one thing that I always look for. So, I insist my team members to keep learning and rise above themselves on every possible occasion.

Secondly, you have to talk to them, empathize with what they’re going through. Regarding their career and growth, you have to push them by saying, ‘You can do it!’. I will let them figure it out themselves, revert to me for any show-stopper, guide them in the right direction, and provide resources.

How have influences like Bill Gates influenced you as a banker?

To be frank, I got influenced by our company founders rather than thought leaders. This is because they have achieved great heights, starting from a humble background and always value family and culture.

One favorite memory after joining M2P?

One was the elevation in my career last year. Second is when we go out to meet clients or to a bank, people recognize me. Those moments are my cherished memories!

Three words to describe Vivek

Organized, shrewd, and bankable

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