As part of our ongoing quest to get you meaningful stories and insights from the startup ecosystem, we invited yet another seasoned entrepreneur – Abhishek Bajaj, for an exclusive interview with BrilliantRead Media. He is an Investor, Trader and Co-Founder at AlphaBots and AB Nexus. Let’s learn more about his impressive journey and his advice for our growing community!
Excerpts from our exclusive interview with Abhishek:
Talk us through your background and your journey as an entrepreneur, please;
I did my primary schooling in Valley School and then moved to BGS International in Bangalore. I was a pretty average student at academics but was more inclined towards athletics and cricket !! Thereafter I joined SBMJC for my 11th and 12th and pursued my B Com from there. This was where I first heard of the financial markets.
Post my graduation I worked for my family business, but somehow I was not satisfied, my dream was to have my own fund, and this is where my quest and struggle to make money off the markets began!!!”
Like any other young aspirant, I also believed my dreams would be achieved very easily, and I would be a millionaire in no time, and of course, this was not the reality.
I was a retail trader at the time and based all my trades on intuition, though my instincts would be right at many instances, I did not have the patience and discipline that is required to be a good trader. I did have a few good months, but I would always end up blowing up my account, after which my capital kept depleting.”
At this time I was married and had responsibilities, but with the incredible support of my parents and wife, I never gave up!!
I then had my big break in late 2016, when my younger brother Akshay (co-founder of AB Nexus) told me about public blockchain platforms. My personal financial status was hitting rock bottom. But in order to experiment with this, I took a leap of faith and went all in. I guess I was in the right place at the right time. This was a turning point and things began to work in my favour. They had a boom cycle!!
Through all this I was always connected to trading, there were many tough times and that almost compelled me to quit trading but my destiny had planned otherwise.
During this phase is when I met Parth, the co-founder of Alphabots, and over interactions we realised that our goals were aligned.
This was the start of our systematic and algorithmic trading and the inception of our company Alphabots.
Why did you choose entrepreneurship over your family business?
I did work at my family office for a while but I realised that my drive was not in that field. I was always inclined towards the financial markets. Even my time spent there, I would be battling between work and the markets.
I always wanted to start out on my own and achieve my dreams. I have had good support from my parents throughout, but being self-made was very important to me.
What is your business Mantra?
I would say my business mantra is being wholehearted and extremely focused.
I do have a lot more to achieve and in doing so I hope to always remain as honest and compassionate to my work as I am today.
I have come to believe if you really want to achieve something from your heart and work towards it passionately, success will follow.
What does success mean to you?
Success can mean different things to different people.
Monetary growth is important, but for me, true success is having a good balance between professional and personal life.
For Example – when I see the love and happiness on the face of my 3-year-old Daughter when I come home every day, it gives me a sense of true happiness and success and in turn, I wish to fulfil all her dreams.
How do you handle pressure and manage the stress?
Failure, excitement and nervousness are all a very integral part for an entrepreneur.
My wife’s role has been pivotal in helping me deal with stress and pressure. Our Mantra has been to only look forward and face the challenges by finding solutions, rather than focus on the problems.
Also bearing a positive attitude is required. Sometimes When the going gets tough it is necessary to count your blessings, this definitely boosts my morale and helps me move forward.
Playing a sport can also be very helpful in calming your mind, so I enjoy playing badminton as it helps me refocus, improve my temperament and stay calm.
How is your product at Alphabots different from traditional products?
Our products remove the entire element of Human Emotions in Trading.
All of our strategies are based on Algorithms and Data analysis.
We aim to deliver absolute returns irrespective of the direction of the market.
Given the rapid pace at which the world is changing, what are the leadership traits that are necessary for success?
Every day is still a learning process and I am forever looking for new avenues to explore.
I keep a lookout for strategies and like-minded people to work with.
Being kind and compassionate to my colleagues is very important to me as it gives me a whole lot of peace and satisfaction.”
This helps me to have a clearer thought process that propels me forward.
I like to make relationships that are long-lasting and in order to sustain this, mutual respect and understanding is the key.
So how have your strategies performed during this global crisis and what is the future for Alphabots?
Even during this global pandemic and market crash, our strategies have been able to deliver a good percentage return to all our investors.
We are trying to create an ecosystem for a new type of product in the financial markets which can eventually compete with conventional products already available for retail investors.
Any Final thoughts for the reader’s today?
Never GIVE UP. Always follow your dreams and work hard towards it. Everything else will follow.
On an investment front, I would recommend diversification of capital into different asset classes and AlphaBots being one of them.
Would also recommend a 5 % allocation of your portfolio towards the blockchain sector like Ethereum etc.
BrilliantRead is committed to bringing stories from the startup ecosystem, stories that reshape our perspective, add value to our community and be a constant source of motivation not just for our community but also for the whole ecosystem of entrepreneurs and aspiring individuals.
Note: If you have a similar story to share with our audience and would like to be featured on our online magazine, then please write to us at [email protected], we will review your story and extend an invitation to feature if it is worth publishing.
