An Active and Resourceful Mind
With more than twenty years of experience in Indian real estate investment banking and capital markets, Pawan Swamy is a trailblazer. Founding member of Credberg Advisors, he serves as the Chairman and Joint Managing Partner of the firm, directing actions with his far-sighted vision. After having worked with global institutions and multiple cultures and people, he saw a unique opportunity in the market to devise and deliver advice and solutions that were grounded, practical, implementable, and what the clients actually needed.
The idea behind Credberg was to create a credible platform where there are investment professionals who match deep-rooted knowledge of real estate with the capital market to derive executable solutions. Pawan and the other founding members identified this gap and decided to address it. Now, they are already servicing a whole bunch of global financial institutions dealing in Indian real estate capital markets.
Since the concept of Pawan’s company erupted out of uniqueness and research, he and the other senior members found it challenging to keep their employees empowered. Every person working for an organization must understand the company’s motto. Keeping a tab on that with newer members joining the team is something that keeps the management on their toes.
Of course, the financial crisis that hit with the onset of the pandemic in 2020 wasn’t easy to deal with either. But Pawan, like every time else, found a way to deal with this too. “What we did was to focus on the tactical plan without losing sight of the long-term strategy. We’ve kept listening to the market’s heartbeat and acted accordingly – we merged short and medium-term goals really well, we made flexible plans, and we also moved fast. That has helped us succeed.”
Crediting his valuable learnings like discipline and honesty to his humble background, Pawan Swamy believes in focusing on the things that matter. According to him, every person is a masterpiece, and so one should never stumble by underestimating themselves. He rebukes arrogance and overconfidence. “Striking the balance is the key,” he advises when it comes to living a fulfilling professional and personal life.
Confidence and conviction drive Pawan’s goals in life. Being a passionate and honest businessman, he doesn’t agree with being a risk-taker at all times. Whenever he comes across something interesting, he makes sure to brainstorm it with a couple of his business partners before giving it a go-ahead. He loves real estate, he loves people, and he loves numbers- all these together add up as Pawan’s passion.
Pawan finds his fortes in being flexible and focused. He’s also a master at applying at work what he learns from life, which makes his mind an active and resourceful one. While he is beyond delighted with his contributions to the business’s growth, he also isn’t shy to accept his downsides. Sometimes, Pawan ended up making some decisions without complete inputs. He learned from that experience that if something isn’t urgent, it doesn’t deserve a hasty resolution. “Sequencing business growth is an area I can work at,” he confirms.
An MBA by degree, Pawan worked for several other firms before launching his venture. He was a Managing Partner at Brookfield Financial, leading their India operations. Prior to that, he was a Managing Director at Jones Lang Lasalle, where he set up one of the largest real estate capital markets and investment brokerage platforms in the country. His experience also includes working on the real estate mortgage lending side as a senior executive with Standard Chartered Bank.
Throughout his professional journey, Pawan remained an award-winner for his resourceful contributions to the business’s growth. But he speaks about his most noteworthy achievement with much grace, “When I set up shop, there was a tremendous welcome from the market. I am humbled and grateful to have won the trust and faith of clients, employees, and stakeholders to visualize and create complex structures and drive growth.”
Filled with enthusiasm for his passion, Pawan Swamy’s spirit for life is electrifying. “A positive and humourous mindset is our best friend till we become successful; then it is performance,” he expresses with regard for life’s learnings. He thinks highly of those who live with a positive mindset and is forever a cheerer for optimism.
The man who outlines his success as a collection of lifelong learnings has a prized message for the world, “I truly believe that time and the ability to take risks are the most precious things we have. Lost money can come back, but time can’t, and the ability can’t.”
