After Hurricane Katrina, I wanted to go back to New Orleans to help musicians return to the city. But Andrew Young advised me, "If you want to help people, go work at an investment bank." His contrarian advice opened my eyes to the importance of capital. "Learn how to make some money before you give it away." I learned that you can bring about good in the world especially if you have a paycheck.
Kabir SehgalResearchers have found that identical twins who have been separated for long periods of time actually invest in a similar manner. Biology really does affect how we spend money.
Kabir SehgalOn a biological level, the brain registers money as something valuable - even a dollar bill which has no intrinsic value, it's just paper.
Kabir SehgalMoney is becoming increasingly plastic and digital. If there is a major disaster, let's say an asteroid strike, we'll go back to trading meats and furs. We won't need an abstraction, a dollar bill, but real tangible goods to survive.
Kabir SehgalI think the money for the solutions for global poverty is on Wall Street. Wall Street allocates capital. And we need to get capital to the ideas that are successful, whether it's microfinance, whether it's through financial literacy programs, Wall Street can be the engine that makes capital get to the people who need it.
Kabir Sehgal