When he was only 27- years -old, Aly Khan Satchu was appointed director of Global Business at Sumitomo Bank in London.
That was the culmination of a combination of epic self-drive, guts and determination that had always been his philosophy from a tender age. Aly Khan Satchu, who owns Rich Management data firm, is a common fixture on Al Jazeera, CNBC, CNN and a host of other local and international media outlets where his incredible understanding of economics, investments and financial markets is highly sought.
The story behind his achievements is as unconventional as the man is today. After studying law at the University of Durham, Aly Khan Satchu suddenly decided he did not want to become a lawyer.
Instead, the man chose a field that had always fascinated him as a boy – investment banking. “It started as an innocent fascination for numbers which I loved to memorize. As I grew older, I developed a keen interest in the performance of the financial markets,” says Aly Khan Satchu.
After university, Aly was so desperate to get a foothold in the financial markets that he accepted the lowest job that he got.
“It was a clerical assistant’s job at Credit Suisse and it was an incredible challenge,” he says, adding that he nevertheless approached his new job with so much gusto that he was promoted within the year.
It was however too little for the ambitious Aly Khan Satchu who quickly realized it would take a long time for him to ascend to the high office that he so much craved. “I wanted to play with numbers and for that, I could have given anything,” he says.
He did get a chance and while most would have hesitated, he swooped for it eagerly. “I was asked by my immediate superior to take a certain document to the vice chairman for a signature. I could not even wait for the lift, I ran up the stairs and there was Mr Joan Becke.
This was a man so powerful within the investment banking circles that a small wag of his little finger could have got me fired in an instant. On the other hand, his high authority meant that he was just about the best chance I could ever get to the top.”
Aly Khan Satchu requested Mr Becke to allow him 10 minutes of his time. “He looked baffled and curious at the same time. He ushered me to a seat and I straight away hit him with the direct question of how much his brokers were making.
I already knew they were on crazy money but I could not believe they made such phenomenal figures,” says Aly of the $2 million a year salaries brokers were making then.
Aly then requested Mr Becke to give him the broker’s job for the same six dollar an hour he was making at the clerical section. He also asked to be fired if his performance was deemed unsatisfactory.
Aly did so well that in only three months, his job was confirmed with all the perks to boot. But Aly Khan Satchu could not stop.
“Brokers had the minimum annual target of one million dollars. In only my first full year, I had blown the Credit Suisse annual performance record straight off the water,” says Aly, who attributes his sterling performance in life to being brave and working hard.
“When you have a focused mind, when you have no frills about putting in a shift, nothing is impossible,” says Aly Khan Satchu. He is also an NSE licensed data vendor and has a website which gives real time trends as they happen at the exchange. His investments are expansive and varied.
“Primarily, I am a money market investor. Forex, when well mastered, is the best bet to make an investor a lot of money in this cyber age,” says. “I also buy gold, silver and some carefully selected stocks in all the main stock markets in the world.” Satchu believes that anybody who has a well-structured strategy can excel in the world of investing.
Have a master plan
“Warren Buffet was doing newspaper rounds as a boy. When he was only 11, he bought his first 3 shares in the City Service Corporation. Because he started small, was focused and he had no unrealistic expectations, he is now amongst the world’s richest men.
But you mostly see people come into the market without a strategy and with a crazy expectation of becoming overnight millionaires. Yes, I know a guy who sold a cow and is today a multi-millionaire. But he came in with a master plan and that is the ultimate basic,” he says.
Aly Khan Satchu could not reveal his fortune but industry sources claim he is playing in at least the hundreds of millions league. That, for a guy who was only a decade or so ago breaking his back as a clerical assistant is very impressive indeed. “If you look at the amount of money that is changing hands out there, you have to aim for billions to be a serious investor.”
His advice on what makes a successful investor; “Do your research well and ignore all the hype. If I were buying my first shares now, I would only consider new markets like Rwanda where the opportunities for future growth are massive. I would also look to invest in the forex markets where the opportunities for good returns are much better than stocks. Most of all, I would only spend less than I earn”.
