THE COALFACE
brokernews.com.au
19
The doctor is in Kiran Thapa may be one of the most qualified brokers in Australia, but that doesn’t mean his path has always been easy
W
e’re going to go out on a limb here and say that Sydney-based broker Kiran Thapa is probably more qualified than any other broker in Australia. With a Master’s degree in Engineering Science, a PhD in Finance, and a Diploma of Financial Services (Financial Planning), Thapa has done his fair share of hard work, but he says entering the mortgage industry has been one of the toughest roads yet. “I was working as a civil engineer for a local council in Melbourne in 2007 when we went through the GFC. Everyone was talking about the finance
industry, and media coverage was massive. This is when I realised that the finance industry is where I should be, because everyone is linked with it.” Thapa undertook a PhD in Finance at the University of Technology in Sydney and established his own company, CAPKON Investments. “By noticing the demographic changes happening as a result of skilled migration, mortgage broking drew my attention,” he says. “However, I didn’t have much information about the industry and, as a result, no one was willing to take me on board. It actually took me two years to find my way into the broking business. It was a very painful journey, but I never lost sight of it.” Thapa says finance has always been his passion, and that the two areas actually have more in common than you might think. “I was teaching Engineering Economics back in Nepal before migrating to Australia. I also did a lot of self-study about the finance industry – I used to spend around three hours every day reading financial news! Coming from engineering
definitely helped me, as numerical [knowledge] is the core of finance anyway.” While Thapa takes clients from all over Australia, he says the majority are members of Sydney’s growing Nepalese community, and that young people who are new to Australia make for some of his best clients. “Young migrants tend to have a higher level of risk appetite and are very confident about property investments… Our approach is to become the coordinator for clients’ property purchase projects. We help clients not only with their home loans but also with property research, bargaining, inspection and step-by-step guidance through the whole process for free. We liaise with all the stakeholders involved so that the clients get the best ever experience in such a big decision. I admit that this demands extra work, but at the same time this also makes sure that the deal is closed within a very short time. I have noticed that great relationships are built up with clients when you walk with them at every stage of their investment decisions.”