Jagannath Iyer
Partner, Capital Markets
Overview
Jagannath joined SBIA in 2020 after more than a decade working as a lawyer, structuring and financing cross-border investments across the EMEAI region. At SoftBank, Jagannath leads the Debt Capital Markets team, helping structure exits from the fund’s investments and return value to stakeholders.
Region
Q&A
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You started your career as a lawyer. What drew you to the profession?
I knew from a young age that I wanted to engage with a diverse array of people and keep my career horizons as broad as possible. Law seemed like a good way to do that. At university, I was particularly interested in corporate finance. So after graduating in law, I spent a year earning a master’s degree in law and economics and arrived bright-eyed and bushy-tailed as a trainee solicitor in London in 2008. I aimed for a breadth of experience, so I worked across leveraged finance, equity-linked financing, and emerging market financing with a particular focus on Asia. That’s a relatively uncommon mix. But I’m curious and like to be surrounded by intelligent people. That’s exactly what drew me to SBIA.
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What lessons did you learn from your experience in leveraged finance?
First, push back against the impulse to specialize, because you never know what can happen. Two weeks into my first job as a trainee solicitor in London, Lehman Brothers collapsed. My suitcases were barely unpacked, and our professional domain was imploding around us. I quickly learned that the financial industry is cyclical and that having different tools in the toolkit is important. During an economic upswing, the industry rewards specialization. But when things get tough, it’s important to have the skills and experience to find creative, non-cookie-cutter solutions. It’s the same in the tech industry. The downcycle fuels the next wave of interesting, innovative developments, but you have to be prepared so you don’t get stuck as a specialist in an area that’s become obsolete.
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Why did you move into venture capital?
I wanted to work somewhere future-oriented—on tech and AI—and never have to do the same thing every day. I knew that joining the Capital Markets team at SBIA gave me the platform to work with a huge range of companies in different industry verticals, and across the good and tough times alike. That really appealed to me.
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How does your legal background influence your work at SoftBank?
Most of our staff at SBIA come from an investment banking or VC background, which means that they are focused on finding the next big investment. My background in financing, managing large public positions and restructuring, is differentiated but is ultimately highly focused on realizing and returning value for investors. The analytical skills you develop as a lawyer are incredibly useful in this role.
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As interest rate cuts start to come into effect over the next few years, how do you think capital markets will respond?
We’re going to see a glide path as rates slowly come down and markets stabilize, but it won’t happen overnight. We’re at the end of an extraordinary period in financial history. As a rule of thumb, risk-free interest rates have averaged roughly 5% for the past century or so. But now we’ve experienced 15 years of ultra-low interest rates. That means we are in the middle of a reversion to the mean. In the long run, I believe it's going to be a good thing for the global economy. Having base rates higher than zero will drive efficiency and capital allocation because businesses will need to be less reliant on capital. The bar for the investment industry will be higher, too.
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What’s something you’ll always keep with you from your law career?
In many ways, the soft skills I picked up during my law career have been as useful as the hard skills. There’s a lot of overlap between law and VC when it comes to interpersonal and communication skills. Every lawyer will tell you that their goal is to be a trusted advisor with deep relationships. In VC, of course there's number crunching involved. But, at heart, it’s more of a qualitative relationship-driven investment process. Those core skills of working collaboratively with people, forming deep relationships, and giving thoughtful advice—they have been immensely useful in my work at SoftBank.
Every lawyer will tell you that their goal is to be a trusted advisor with deep relationships. In VC, of course there's number crunching involved. But, at heart, it’s more of a qualitative relationship-driven investment process.