In a recent interview, Harshil Mathur, the CEO of Razorpay, shared insights from his conversation with Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, regarding effective strategies for negotiating with bankers. Altman advised Mathur to adopt a more professional appearance when meeting with financial institutions, suggesting that he should dress in suits to project a polished image. Mathur recounted Altman’s advice: “If the problem is you look young, why don’t you try looking old? Why are you going around in T-shirts? You should wear a suit, you should dress up. You should look like bankers if you want to interact with bankers.” This advice significantly influenced Mathur’s approach to business interactions.
The exchange took place during a meeting at Y Combinator, a prominent startup incubator in Silicon Valley. Following this encounter, Mathur and his co-founder, Shashank Kumar, decided to invest in their professional appearance by having their first suits tailored for formal meetings with banks. This strategic shift proved beneficial, as Razorpay subsequently secured a partnership with HDFC Bank, one of India’s largest private sector banks.
Mathur and Kumar, both alumni of IIT Roorkee, began developing Razorpay in 2013 while balancing their full-time jobs. Mathur, who holds a degree in mechanical engineering, was employed at Schlumberger in Dubai, focusing on technology and services for the oil and gas industry. Meanwhile, Kumar was working at Microsoft in the United States, specializing in computer science. As of 2021, Razorpay has achieved a valuation of $7.5 billion following its Series F funding round.