Pratik Bajaj, CA, CFAFounder

India - Mumbai, Maharashtra

Build, scaled, and sold a startup 'Valuationary' in 2 years. Currently, I'm building Upsurge.club, a learning platform that simplifies finance through interactive courses, expert live sessions, bite-sized content and more.

Here's my story:

After 3 years of full-time internships at consulting firms and an investment bank, I became a Chartered Accountant in 2016 with an All-India-Rank 55. My first job experience was with the Bank of America Merrill Lynch where I was a part of 4 member Centre of excellence team taking care of Global Financial Crimes. Having presented my ideas on using blockchain for trade finance, I was also added to the ideation team responsible for conceptualizing automating solutions for Bank of America.

While I was making a positive impact, I always wanted to witness it first-hand & hence joined a boutique Investment firm- Niveshaay. I started as a senior associate and in a short while, got promoted to Portfolio Consultant designing Investment portfolios for HNI, family offices & corporate clients across the globe with an AUM of over INR 100 crores. Over the weekends, I practiced patience (:D) through teaching. I was an adjunct professor at the Auro University and CA institute.

Having years of diverse experience in the BFSI industry, I struggled with hiring the right candidates who have practical knowledge. I saw this huge gap between employers' expectations and employees' skillsets. To solve this big problem, I dropped off my high-paying job and started Valuationary.

Within 2 years, we reached 10,000 candidates across 8 countries. With growth came acquisition offers. We finally structured a deal with Raise, amongst the available 4. We are now a proud part of Raise, building Upsurge.club where finance is fun, exciting, and rewarding. Join the club now!