HD in HD – Details, episodes & analysis

Old-school banking leans on control and complacency. Revolut charted its own course—flourishing by bending conventions, outrunning oversight, and favoring execution over protocol. Nikolay Storonsky, Revolut’s co-founder and CEO, was forged by a mix of physics-driven upbringing and competitive swimming. This drilled in his mantra: systems can be cracked, and tenacity outshines flair. That drive transformed Revolut from a currency workaround to a global financial juggernaut, clashing with the establishment. In this episode, we dig into: • Why Nik fueled the start with trading earnings despite later raising $2 billion • How Revolut leapfrogged regulators and legacy players • Why breakneck expansion needs discipline when costs soar and margins tighten explore Nikolay's background other fintech innovators ABOUT US: We’re proudly sponsored by Brex—a brand I co-founded, now supporting over 30,000 businesses like Anthropic, DoorDash, and Scale AI, helping them make every dollar count. I’m grateful for their continued support as I bring you all conversations with some of the most exceptional founders of our generation. Onward and upward, together.  Connect with us:  1. Revolut - https://x.com/RevolutApp 2. Brex - https://x.com/brexHQ 3. Henrique Dubugras- https://x.com/hdubugras 00:00 Trailer 00:49 Introduction 01:52 Nik's Early Life and Education 11:50 Transition to Finance and Trading 14:19 The Collapse of Lehman Brothers 25:15 Starting Revolut 36:28 YC Combinator and Fundraising Challenges 41:24 Product Development and Market Fit 44:23 Company Culture and Hiring Philosophy 47:01 Management Style and Systems 59:52 Expansion and Systematizing Processes 01:06:30 Reflections on Success and Challenges 01:09:00 Closing Thoughts This episode was produced and distributed by our friends at Atomik Growth: https://atomikgrowth.com/

Justin Mateen set out to make dating simple—no lengthy profiles, no uncertainty—just a "yes" or "no" swipe. Today, Tinder’s user base has expanded to 75 million monthly active users. Justin Mateen has continued building on his success by investing early in promising startups such as Brex, Curative Health, Deel, Home Chef, Kalshi, Speak, Whop, and many others, becoming a billionaire along the way. In 2020 he launched JAM Fund, one of the largest Solo VC firms in the world, which has raised approximately $500 million, with $330 million dedicated to its second fund. Business Insider listed Justin Mateen as the number 1 ranked investor in the “Top 100 list of US seed investors” in both 2020 and 2021, with Forbes including Mateen on their list of the decade's top 10 tech entrepreneurs. In this episode, he and I sat down to discuss Tinder’s highs, struggles, and the lessons learned along the way. We also unpack: • the evolution of the 'swipe left/right' phenomenon • whether Facebook played to his subconscious while building Tinder, and why • putting all your eggs in one basket → asymmetric returns Justin’s investing firm, Jam Fund, raised about $300 million from investors for its second fund last year. ABOUT US: We’re proudly sponsored by Brex—a brand I co-founded, now supporting over 30,000 businesses like Anthropic, DoorDash, and Scale AI, helping them make every dollar count. I’m grateful for their continued support as I bring you all conversations with some of the most exceptional founders of our generation. Onward and upward, together. Connect with us here:  1. Justin Mateen- https://x.com/Justin_Mateen 2. Brex- https://x.com/brexHQ 3. Henrique Dubugras- https://x.com/hdubugras (00:00:00) Intro (00:01:37) Inquisitive childhood (00:05:07) Learning on both fronts (00:10:08) Bullied and trading stocks (00:12:36) Relationship with money (00:15:26) USC and the freshman experience (00:20:47) Lover boy (00:23:47) Financial stability and freedom (00:27:41) From riches to rags (00:31:20) Some things are best lived in your... (00:35:22) Brex (00:36:09) Pre-Tinder (00:40:44) Taylor Swift's website (00:43:43) Ask Me Out (00:50:04) Building trust (00:53:07) The numbers skyrocketed (00:58:20) Existential risk (01:01:04) 13 and a half Staple Centers (01:05:30) Marketing for the first million users (01:15:30) Becoming profitable (01:21:04) Interesting stats (01:23:01) Through a bad breakup (01:34:12) Post-Tinder, Peter Thiel, investing (01:40:26) Short-term options (01:44:48) Never say never (01:48:44) Outro

Bill McDermott bought his first business when he was in high school, and he never looked back. Now, he sits down with Henrique to talk about his early days as a teenage entrepreneur, coming home from his first job interview with his employee badge in his pocket, and what it takes to be the type of leader people still talk about decades later. This episode is brought to you by Brex—a brand I'm proud to have co-founded and one thats shaped by the same journey many of you are on. Brex has everything startups and fast growing companies need to make every dollar count, from modern corporate cards, banking, and treasury to accounting automation, travel, and expenses. Over 25,000 companies, including DoorDash, Scale AI, and Anthropic spend smarter on Brex. For more information, please go to: https://www.brex.com/?ref_code=bmk_audio_HDinHD

An early adopter of the Arpanet, Marcos Galperin went from Buenos Aires to Penn to establishing one of Latin America’s most successful companies, Mercado Libre. Marcos sits down for a candid conversation with Henrique where the two discuss the unique problems of building a South American company, the pivot away from the eBay model of online auctions and Marcos’s run as a champion rugby player. This episode is brought to you by Brex—a brand I'm proud to have co-founded and one thats shaped by the same journey many of you are on. Brex has everything startups and fast growing companies need to make every dollar count, from modern corporate cards, banking, and treasury to accounting automation, travel, and expenses. Over 25,000 companies, including DoorDash, Scale AI, and Anthropic spend smarter on Brex. For more information, please go to: https://www.brex.com/?ref_code=bmk_audio_HDinHD

Beginning in a small town in North Carolina, Zach Perret would eventually go on to form one of the most consequential fintech companies in all of Silicon Valley. Now, the Co-Founder and CEO of Plaid sits down with Henrique Dubugras to talk about being shaped ideologically by Occupy Wall Street, selling and then un-selling to Visa, and how a lead investor once pulled out of a round at the last minute, leading to Plaid being saved by three guys named "Justin".

Victor Lazarte took a flyer on his first company, leaving a prestigious job at JP Morgan to make mobile games. Now he sits on the board of one of the most prestigious Venture Capital firms in the world. Victor opens up to Henrique about his early attempts to grow his business, making money in the competitive world of online games, and making the transition from founder to VC. Plus, the two talk shop about growing up in Brazil and how Victor was able to talk his way out of being expelled from grade school.

Growing up, Vlad Tenev didn’t see himself as an entrepreneur. The son of immigrants in the suburbs of Washington, DC he saw himself going into law, research, math. But when he cracked the problem of providing low-latency trades for free, he knew he was onto something. Shortly after that came Robinhood, and the rest was history. Vlad sits down with Henrique to unpack the road so far: his childhood, his time at Stanford, and the genesis of what was at one point the number one app in the app store. He discusses growing the company and his vision for its future. Plus, he goes deep into the Gamestop controversy, providing the true story of what really happened inside Robinhood during one of the most chaotic episodes in recent stock market history. Tune in to hear the real unfiltered account of fighting online conspiracy theories, testifying before Congress and what it’s like to have an Avenger play you in a movie.

Henrique Dubugras, founder and chairman of Brex sits down with some of the brightest minds in business and fintech for real discussions that cut through the noise. Hear from luminaries like Robinhood’s Vlad Tenev, Plaid’s Zach Perret, and Mercado Libre’s Marcos Galperin as they share their insights and talk about what’s really going on behind the scenes. To hear all the unexpected, unfiltered insights be sure to subscribe to HD in HD - Unscripted Conversations with Henrique Dubugras, wherever you get your podcasts.

Jack Zhang landed in Melbourne at 15 with no money, no English, and no one to lean on. By 30, he was turning down a billion-dollar offer from Stripe. In this episode of HD in HD, I sit down with the co-founder and CEO of Airwallex to trace his zero-to-borderless journey—from small-town China to building one of the biggest tech stories ever to come out of Australia. We get into: • What Airwallex did differently that Stripe couldn’t in APAC • The $100,000 mistake that nearly derailed their first client • How Jack handled 2022’s valuation reset (and why he didn’t panic) • The AI opportunity he thinks everyone is sleeping on • how Airwallex hit $1B in volume before raising a proper Series A 00:00 Trailer 00:46 Introduction 01:18 Airwallex 04:58 No English from China to Australia 15:15 My first business, no financial support 23:06 All work, no fun 31:03 Development and coffee 36:26 Nothing is that hard 40:05 Startups 45:40 Brex 46:29 Starting Airwallex 53:27 The whole thing fell apart 57:20 Sequoia Capital and Tencent 1:05:41 Billion-dollar acquisition offer 1:11:59 Managing globally 1:16:20 Motivation and efficiency 1:23:26 Worth billions, hard to turn 1:24:58 Lessons from China 1:29:38 Outro

Everyone ignored this problem—until it became an opportunity. Alexander Rinke, co-founder of Celonis, turned a student project into a $13B+ process mining giant from Germany. Born and raised in Berlin, he went on to build a software empire that has saved companies like Pfizer $300M. This episode of HD in HD explores Alex’s path from student founder to CEO—and how he sees AI transforming the way companies run. Alex and I also unpack: • how 1,500 handwritten letters helped him land Siemens • why AI’s next wave hinges on process overhaul • how a $50K project outgrew his McKinsey dreams ABOUT US: We’re proudly sponsored by Brex—a brand I co-founded, now supporting over 30,000 businesses like Anthropic, DoorDash, and Scale AI, helping them make every dollar count. Connect with us: 1. Alex - https://x.com/alexanderrinke 2. Henrique Dubugras- https://x.com/hdubugras This episode was produced and distributed by our friends at Atomik Growth: https://atomikgrowth.com/ 00:00:00 Trailer 00:01:20 Introduction 00:02:40 Process Mining 00:03:59 Real-World Applications 00:06:46 Early Life 00:09:48 Education and Early Career 00:24:32 The Birth of Celonis 00:42:36 Initial Funding Challenges 00:49:45 Scaling and Venture Capital 01:01:15 Mentorship and Role Models 01:05:39 The Future of Celonis and AI 01:13:28 Reflections on Success and Upbringing 01:24:24 Closing Thoughts