Part 2 · 14 modules · Updated November 2026
Money,
up close.
Zoom from the planet to one ₹100 note. Then learn to own, grow and spend it. Then meet the currencies money can't buy.
← → to move · N for teacher notes · New here? Start with Part 1
The journey
Three acts. Fourteen modules.
World, country, bank, your account, one ₹100 note.
Assets, small starts, investing, growing, spending, distractions.
Time, attention, health, power, fame, mobility and more.
Act A
Zoom in.
From $518 trillion of world wealth, down to the ₹100 in your pocket. Same money, five scales.
Module 1 · Money on Earth
People on Earth own about $518 trillion.
More than half of it sits in two places: the United States and Greater China.
UBS Global Wealth Report 2026, total personal wealth, 56 markets. Bubble areas to scale.
Module 1 · Money on Earth
The world's $150 trillion of spendable money.
Global broad money, June 2026. China's deposits are the largest pool of money on Earth.
Module 1 · Money on Earth
Three rivers carry money between countries.
in FY25, the most received by any country (RBI)
the plumbing behind trade and investment (BIS)
the savings countries keep for shocks (IMF)
Module 2 · Money in a country
India's money map.
RBI data, July to October 2026; Union Budget 2026 to 27; RBI remittances FY25.
Module 2 · Money in a country
India earns about ₹393 lakh crore a year.
That's GDP: everything produced in a year. Here's how the big money pools compare to it.
GDP: Budget estimate for 2026 to 27. Others: RBI and AMFI, 2026.
Module 2 · Money in a country
Households lend to the system, and borrow from it.
of all bank loans, March 2026. Individuals alone: 47.8%.
Accounts up to ₹5 lakh hold just 17.8%.
year on year, June 2026. Credit is expanding fast.
RBI Basic Statistical Returns FY26; RBI sectoral credit, June 2026.
Module 3 · Money in a bank
Every ₹100 in a bank. Here's where it goes.
About ₹89 of every ₹100 a bank uses comes from depositors like you. The rest is owners' capital and money the bank borrows.
Indian scheduled banks, July 2026 (RBI): loans ₹221L cr, investments ₹73L cr, balances at RBI ₹8L cr, cash ₹0.8L cr.
Module 3 · Try it
What happens when loans go bad?
A simple bank: ₹100 of assets, funded by ₹90 of deposits and borrowings and ₹10 of owners' capital.
Illustrative bank: 70% loans, 25% bonds, 5% cash.
Module 3 · Money in a bank
Per ₹100 of loans, a year in a bank's life.
Illustrative round numbers for a typical lender.
Module 4 · Money in your account
Your salary, line by line.
Food 15%, transport 7% and bills 8% held fixed.
Module 4 · Money in your account
Invest on day 2, not day 30.
What's left at the end of the month is usually zero. Set the SIP, EMI and rent to leave on autopay right after salary lands. Spend what remains.
Your balance is your bank's promise to you, insured up to ₹5 lakh per bank (DICGC).
Module 5 · The life of ₹100
Follow one ₹100 through seven lives.
Module 5 · The life of ₹100
₹100, left alone for 20 years.
Approximate 20 year CAGRs to 2026: Nifty 50 with dividends ~12.4%, gold in rupees ~15%, FDs ~7%, inflation ~5.5%. Past returns, not forecasts.
Act B
Use it well.
Own things that pay you. Start small. Let time compound it. Spend on purpose. Ignore the noise.
Module 6 · How to think about assets
Ask five questions before you buy anything.
Does it pay me?
Rent, interest, dividends, profit.
Is it scarce?
Can more be made easily?
Can I sell it fast?
Days, months, or never?
Is it bought with debt?
Debt magnifies both ways.
Will it last?
Or lose value every year?
Module 6 · Try it
Score any asset on the five questions.
Scores are rough judgments for discussion, 0 to 5.
Module 6 · How to think about assets
Does it put money in, or take money out?
An index fund. A rented flat. A bond. A business. A skill that raises your income.
A car. A phone on EMI. Most gadgets. A second home that sits empty.
The home you live in is both: it costs EMI and upkeep, and it saves rent. Judge it on both.
Module 7 · Owning assets with small amounts
You can own a slice of India with ₹100.
Module 7 · Try it
Small and steady adds up.
Module 8 · How to invest
Climb in this order.
Module 8 · Try it
Split your money by age and nerve.
Rule of thumb: equity ≈ 100 minus your age, adjusted for comfort; about 10% in gold; the rest in debt.
Module 8 · How to invest
A small fee becomes a big bill.
₹10,000 a month for 25 years, at an illustrative 12% before fees.
Module 8 · How to invest
Twenty bets wobble less than one.
The same average return, with far smaller swings. That's diversification: the only free lunch in finance.
Module 9 · How to grow investments
Compounding saves its best for last.
₹10,000 a month for 30 years at an illustrative 12%.
Module 9 · How to grow investments
Raise your SIP when your salary rises.
Module 9 · How to grow investments
Markets fall hard. Then, so far, they've recovered.
Nifty 50 from its January 2008 peak to October 2008. Back to the peak by late 2010.
Nifty 50 from January to 24 March 2020. Back to the peak by the end of 2020.
Rebalance once a year, use the ₹1.25 lakh yearly tax free equity gains limit, and don't sell in a panic.
Module 10 · How to spend money
Every rupee goes into one of three buckets.
A common starting split: 50% needs, 30% wants, 20% future you. Protect the third bucket first.
Module 10 · Try it
Judge price by cost per use.
Module 10 · How to spend money
Save half of every raise.
Income grows 10% a year here. If spending grows just as fast, savings stay stuck. Save half of each raise and the gap opens up.
Spend on time, health and experiences. Studies find buying back time lifts happiness more than buying things.
Module 11 · Avoiding distractions
Your phone is a shop that never closes.
One tap pay. Buy now, pay later. Countdown timers. Push alerts at payday. Each one is designed to shorten the gap between wanting and buying.
Fix: a 48 hour rule for anything over ₹2,000, notifications off for shopping apps, saved cards removed.
Module 11 · Avoiding distractions
Nine in ten F&O traders lose money.
SEBI found 91% of individual traders in equity futures and options lost money in FY25. Net losses: ₹1.06 lakh crore, up 41% in a year.
SEBI studies, July 2025 and August 2026. The later study covering FY25 to FY26 found 87.7% lost.
Module 11 · Avoiding distractions
"5% a month, guaranteed" means 80% a year. Run.
Guaranteed high returns
Real investments carry risk. Guarantees above FD rates are a warning.
Pressure and secrecy
"Only today", "don't tell your bank", WhatsApp tips, fake screenshots.
Paid from new money
Early payouts come from new joiners, not profits. It always collapses.
Check SEBI and RBI registration before investing. If you can't explain how it earns money, don't buy it.
Act C
The real currencies.
Money is one currency. Life runs on nine more.
Module 12 · The real currencies
Ten currencies every life runs on.
Time
The only one you can't earn back.
Attention
What you notice becomes your life.
Health
Energy to spend all the others.
Skills
Turn time into money and meaning.
Money
Stores and moves value.
Trust
Your reputation. Slow to build, fast to lose.
Relationships
People who open doors and stay.
Power
Ability to direct people and resources.
Fame
Attention from strangers, at scale.
Mobility
Freedom to move, change, or leave.
Module 12 · Try it
An 80 year life is about 4,160 weeks.
Money can be earned again. Weeks can't. Spend money to buy back weeks, never the other way round.
Module 12 · The real currencies
Power, fame and mobility follow deeper currencies.
People follow those who deliver repeatedly. Money can rent power; trust owns it.
Converts to money quickly, but is fragile. Fame without trust collapses.
A cash runway plus portable skills lets you leave a bad job, city or deal.
Module 13 · Exchange rates
Everyone trades one currency for another.
A job trades time for money. Hiring help trades money for time. Learning trades time for skills. A reputation turns skills into trust, then into opportunities.
Module 13 · Try it
Price things in hours of your life.
Module 13 · Exchange rates
The trades people regret.
Health for money, then money for health
Years of overwork, then savings spent on repairs.
Attention for likes
Hours of scrolling traded for nothing that lasts.
Trust for a quick gain
One broken promise can cost a decade of reputation.
Time for status
Working longer to buy things meant to impress people you don't know.
Module 14 · Try it
Score your ten currencies.
Module 14 · Your personal balance sheet
Write down three trades for the next six months.
Which low currency will I grow?
Example: health, by trading 5 hours of scrolling a week for exercise.
Which strong currency will I spend?
Example: skills into money, through one side project.
What will I stop trading away?
Example: no F&O, no new card debt, no meetings after 8 pm.
Revisit every six months. Wealth is the whole radar, not one spike.
Check yourself · 42 questions
The quiz.
Recap
Twelve things to remember.
1. Half the world's wealth sits in two countries.
2. India's diaspora sends home more than any other.
3. Your deposit is mostly lent out, not stored.
4. Capital is what protects depositors.
5. You pay tax inside prices, not just on salary.
6. Invest on day 2, not day 30.
7. Cash loses about two thirds in 20 years.
8. Ask five questions before buying any asset.
9. Start with ₹100; raise it yearly.
10. Fees and panic selling are the silent killers.
11. Nine in ten F&O traders lose.
12. Use money to buy back time, never the reverse.
Reference
Glossary.
Reference · Last updated 7 November 2026
Sources.
Illustrative models (café, company, bank margins, asset scores, returns used in calculators) are teaching approximations, labelled on each slide. Salary tax uses the new regime for tax year 2026 to 27, without surcharge. Crash figures are approximate Nifty 50 moves. General education, not financial advice.