Akhand’s area of expertise includes the application of design thinking and behavioral economics in the financial services domain. He has worked on microfinance, digital financial services (DFS), SME finance, customer research and customer segmentation, user experience. His experience in program design covers areas, such as financial capability, marketing, and communication. Akhand has worked with diverse financial service providers including MFIs, insurance companies, banks, agent network managers, telecom companies offering DFS, the Government of India, and central banks.

Before joining MSC, Akhand worked with the Centre for Micro Finance at IFMR, Chennai, India. Akhand was part of two major research studies: an impact evaluation of MFI’s financial program, including health education and awareness of loan contracts amongst its clients. He also conceptualized short-term studies on microfinance dropouts; the state of financial inclusion in the states of Madhya Pradesh; profiling microfinance clients; and understanding cattle markets in Uttar Pradesh. He holds a Post Graduate Diploma in Forest Management from the Indian Institute of Forest Management (IIFM) in Bhopal. Akhand is fluent in Hindi and English and has a working knowledge of French.