2020 Summer Reading List

When we look back on 2020, I hope that we will remember it as the year when we collectively began to address the structural inequities that have created unequal and unjust societies for so many people around the world. In this book, Kendi focuses on the harmful policies that have helped foster racism and invites readers to think about what an antiracist society might look like. Using data, history, and morality, he provides us with a guide for how we can all do better.

In short, it is not enough for us to be passive allies. We must act now.

Vanessa Colella

Chief Innovation Officer, Citi

Head of Citi Ventures & Citi Productivity

In today’s fast-paced world, it’s often easier for me to listen and learn while on the go. Fintech Insider is one of my weekly go-tos, as it features news analysis and in-depth interviews with the people I want to hear from in this constantly evolving space. The podcast stays ahead of the trends that I am watching and delivers insightful commentary on some of the toughest challenges that banks face today.

Alex Sion

Director & D10X Co-Head,

Global Consumer Bank

This story revolves around Jim Simons, a mathematician and former code-breaker for the U.S. government who founded Renaissance Technologies and helped to pioneer quantitative investing. He proved that relying on computer programs instead of human judgment can be just as effective in making trading decisions, as demonstrated by his average 39% gains over three decades. In this portrait, you get a behind-the-scenes look at a normally very private person and a deeper understanding of the forces that shaped his life and way of thinking.

Arvind Purushotham

Managing Director & Global Head

of Venture Investing

In this poignant book, author Isabel Wilkerson takes a deep look at one of America’s lesser-known stories: the half-century-long migration of Black Americans from the South to northern cities looking for greater economic opportunity. While it is now a few years old, the book feels timely as it highlights many of the lingering effects of the systemic racism and classism that have plagued the U.S. for far too long. Often, the first step towards progress is understanding and acknowledging the past.

Lisa Davis

Managing Director & D10X Co-Head,

Institutional Clients Group

2020 has been an unprecedented year. While many of us are focused on the future and how our world is changing, there is much we can learn from past leaders as well. In this book, Doris Kearns Goodwin explores the leadership qualities of four U.S. presidents—Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Lyndon B. Johnson—and how they masterfully navigated the financial, social, and political issues of their generations. She shares how each leader persevered despite numerous setbacks, highlighting their morality and resiliency. This is a fantastic read for anyone grappling with how to forge ahead through a crisis.

Steve Lipponer

Director of Finance,

Operations & Strategy

In Technological Revolutions and Financial Capital Carlota Perez introduces a repeatable pattern for understanding how innovation unfolds and spreads across an economy and society. Investors and inventors use the “Perez Framework” to identify the turning point when an innovation moves from the early “installation” phase of technology adoption to widespread deployment across the economy and society. The framework is particularly compelling today, as we stand at the potential turning point for technologies that can enable a more sustainable economy and society. Everything by Carlota is worth reading and practicing, and it all starts here.

Valla Vakili

Managing Director

& Head of Studio