About this event

“Thought Economics” Insights that inform our view of the world

an interview with Vikas Shah

“I was lucky with work to meet interesting people, and I just thought how much fun would it be to get to know them a bit better. It was economists and bankers, but one day I thought there's a big wide world out there and why not just speak to different people about their experiences.”

Our guest is Vikas Shah MBE a very successful entrepreneur and a commited philanthopist. He founded ‘Thought Economics in 2007 which is now read in over 120 countries and recognised for its exclusive one to one interviews with the individuals who have shaped our world and are shaping our future. Thought Economics also features world-class opinion editorials on the issues that matter providing the forum for long conversations with the worlds influential people – a refreshing alternative to the “sound bites” that we typically get with the social media platforms.

Vikas Shah is CEO of Swiscot Group (a diversified international trading business), a venture investor in numerous technology start-ups and businesses internationally, and co-founder of 53 Degrees North (a feature film studio). He was awarded an MBE in The Queen’s 2018 New Year’s Honours List. He is an Honorary Professor of Business & Entrepreneurship at the University of Manchester Alliance Business School and Professor of Entrepreneurship on the MIT Sloan Lisbon MBA.Vikas is a member of the The UK Industrial Development Advisory Board (IDAB) which advises the UK Government on £billions of investment and support and a Board Advisor on Digital Strategy to the British Council . As a committed philanthropist, Vikas sits as Chairman of the Board at FutureEverything (one of the world’s most influential festivals and social enterprises, focussed on digital culture) and Chairman of the Board at In Place of War (international peace building and entrepreneurship NGO with 100 grassroots community organisations with a collective reach of over 60 million people in Africa, Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Latin America.). He is also a trustee at Mustard Tree (helping tens of thousands impacted by poverty and marginalisation across Greater Manchester), and sits on the board of TiE UK North (part of the world’s largest entrepreneurship network).

Vikas is a multi-award winning writer, and his journal, ‘Thought Economics” features his conversations with many world leaders, entrepreneurs, thinkers, artists, creatives and entertainers. The roster of individuals he has interviewed includes 20 Nobel Prize Winners and the Presidents and Prime Ministers of nations including Mexico, Portugal, Poland, Estonia, Belgium and the Maldives. His recently published book is a collection of some of those conversations. Thought Economics: Conversations with the Remarkable People Shaping Our Century

Unsurprisingly, he is frequently called-on to provide commentary and opinion, and has featured in: The Economist, Guardian, CNBC, BBC, Sky News, ITV News, the Telegraph, Bloomberg and the FT

Contact details

• Peter Kawalek
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