Meet the former Latin dance teacher who became one of NZ’s top advisers

This extrovert attributes his successes to several key moments in his life

Meet the former Latin dance teacher who became one of NZ’s top advisers

Dev Dhingra, founder and managing director of The Fundmaster in Auckland, has continued to grow and raise the profile of his company since its launch in late 2012. He settled just under $205,000,000 in residential loans from 1 April 2018 to 31 March 2019.

Although he started the business on his own, Dhingra now has a team of 17 people to help support his passion for “giving clients all the information and solutions they need to make the best possible decision regarding their financial future.” 

Read more: Why this successful broker focuses on property investors and referral partners

Dhingra attributes his current successes to several key moments in his life.

“I was always considered an extrovert when I was doing my bachelors in pharmacy in India,” he said. “I was constantly involved in events, I was networking, and I was teaching Latin dancing too. I was told countless times that I was in the wrong profession and should go do something in business instead.”

Words of encouragement from his friends and acquaintances eventually drove Dhingra to further his education in business management after he moved to New Zealand to be with his now wife.

After working a couple of odd jobs, Dhingra joined ASB Bank. He moved up the ranks in the six years he was there – from customer service officer to becoming a business development manager.

“After 11 months of joining the bank, I knew I wanted to add more value to my role – I didn’t want merely follow the herd,” said Dhingra. “I proposed initiating the first Indian segment at ASB, and although the idea was initially rejected, I remained driven and was given the go ahead after a couple of attempts.”

The next few years at ASB Bank (until 2012) saw Dhingra work in business development to get clients from India and the Indian migrant community in New Zealand. He furthered his training at the Asian Broker Centre and learned the ins and outs of lending. This particular experience enabled him to start his own business.

Besides work, Dhingra is involved in an initiative he founded with a team member called Walkittude, a movement “encouraging you to become the better version of yourself by doing the simplest thing… walking.” 

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