Manish Kumar Raj

Manish Kumar Raj

Co-founder

Manish brings over 15 years of experience in the financial services industry. He has grown Micro-lending Business and led the Liabilities Business and Personal Loan business during his tenure at Ujjivan Small Finance Bank. He is a postgraduate from XIM-Bhuvaneshwar.

Manish brings over 15 years of experience in the financial services industry, having built, grown, and managed both sides of the balance sheet – liabilities and assets at scale. He has held various leadership roles at Ujjivan, including Chief Operation Officer for the North region, Head of Microfinance for the North and East region, Head of Branch Banking, and Head of Personal Loans. In these roles, Manish has been responsible for building and expanding various business lines, as a branch banking head- he was entrusted with building retail deposit grounds up which accounted for 90% of Ujjivan’s deposit book. He has also been a member of various key decision-making committees at Ujjivan, including the Asset Liability Committee, product and process approval committee, and customer service committee.

Manish holds a Post Graduate Diploma in Rural Management from XIM Bhubaneswar, and his professional pursuits are driven by a deep-seated desire to scale and make a meaningful impact, particularly in addressing the issues of access, affordability, and convenience at the base level. He is also deeply concerned about the negative impacts of climate change on the lives of those at the base, including health, livelihood, and productivity. Despite the challenges that these issues present, Manish remains optimistic due to his unwavering belief in human ingenuity.

In his leisure time, Manish indulges in his various interests, including reading, listening to podcasts and music. He has a keen interest in national and international politics, and enjoys spending quality time with his son.