Denes Ban, at The Blogs

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Jan 21, 2021, 5:16 PM

An entrepreneur is just a synonym for unemployed

Years ago, when I told my mother that I am leaving my high powered, well paid, and respectful executive job to become an entrepreneur, she looked at me and said: “An entrepreneur is just a synonym for unemployed.” Maybe that’s what...

Apr 7, 2020, 1:47 PM

The Talmud Was Ready for 2020

This year it sure won’t be hard to answer the question of “why is this night different from all other nights”. While we may be used to elaborate and long Seder tables filled with family and friends, this year,...

Sep 29, 2019, 2:05 PM

What’s Wrong with Rosh Hashana (in 1min)?

If you have ever observed the two days of Rosh Hashana carefully, you should actually feel confused. Although Rosh Hashanah is called the first two of the “ten days of Teshuvah”, throughout the entire two days there is no...

Sep 27, 2019, 2:20 AM

The “Triple Bottom Line” and what I learned from impact investing

As I am writing this, I am in the great city of Tokyo where I just spoke at the G1 Globis conference on the topic of impact investments. For those who are new to this definition: impact investments are...

Sep 20, 2019, 3:33 AM

The Human-Divine equilibrium (Warning: no political content)

Sammie makes Aliyah and a few years later he dies (naturally). At the gates of heaven, he is asked: “Sammie you were a good fellow all your life and you even chose to make Aliyah, so I offer you...

Sep 13, 2019, 12:27 PM

The Paradox of Death

As you may have guessed from the title...it’s Elul! That most serious of Jewish months that marks the season of introspection and accountability. The sermons heard at this time of the year in synagogue (or on podcasts) are most...

Sep 5, 2019, 11:28 PM

The 5 Jews who disrupted the world

The word “disruptor” might have had a negative connotation in the past, but, If you look at the largest companies in the world - by market cap (i.e. valuation), all of the top companies are actually referred to as...

Aug 30, 2019, 9:03 AM

Kosher: Blessing or Curse?

During my travels -- especially, these past five years in Asia -- by far one of my biggest challenges has been keeping kosher. Those of you who are working in the finance sector know only too well that wining...

Aug 9, 2019, 2:42 PM

The Tisha B’Av Festival???

Working with many clients and companies, one can often hear “No”, be rejected, and face failure. No one works in a bubble and it is easy to blame these rejections on all kinds of other things: the market dips,...

Jul 26, 2019, 1:15 PM

Not your name, not your socks

There is a tale told about the late billionaire Edward Reichman’s funeral. He left two wills directing that one be opened immediately after his death and that the other one was to be opened 30 days after his funeral....

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About Me

Denes Ban is the Managing Partner of OurCrowd, Israel’s leading venture capital fund. A serial entrepreneur turned serial investor, he founded and sold an HR company and co-founded PocketGuide, one of the world’s leading travel apps. Denes has lectured at Harvard, Kellogg, and INSEAD and trained thousands of CEOs and entrepreneurs around the world. After growing up without knowing he was Jewish, Denes found his way to a Yeshiva in Jerusalem and learned Torah for two consecutive years before returning to the business world. Now he uses his experiences representing Israel in Asia to share examples of what it can mean to be a Jew in the 21st c and writes a weekly blog that has spread to countless subscribers, combining the world of business, technology, philosophy, and psychology with his insights into Judaism and Zionism.

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