Wealtharc founder and CEO Krzysztof Gogol is pictured at the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce on 13 December 2018
Photo: LaLa La Photo
Three Polish fintech firms were recognised at a Luxembourg-Poland Chamber of Commerce business conference on Thursday.
The Luxembourg-Poland Chamber of Commerce fintech and regtech conference was hosted at the Chamber of Commerce in Kirchberg, 13 December 2018Prior to the conference, 12 Polish fintech companies had pitched their projects to a jury at LhoftThe 12 finalists had been shortlisted from around 100 entriesThe conference was organised to facilitate contacts between Polish fintech startups and the Luxembourg private marketLuxembourg ambassador to Poland Conrad Bruch (on left)Some 200 people attended the conferenceMinisters from Poland and Luxembourg, ambassadors and VIP guests were also invitedBarbara Nowakowska, of the Polish Private Equity and Venture Capital Association, pictured rightThe Luxembourg-Poland Chamber of Commerce was founded in 2012Luxembourg Poland Chamber of Commerce president Artur Sosna introduced the eventConference attendees learned that a special mission would be conducted by the economy ministry to Poland in 2019Jerzy Kwiecinski, of the ministry of investment and economic development in PolandSome 200 people attended the conferenceSome 200 people attended the conferenceEconomist and banking expert Slawomir Lachowski delivered a speechLuxembourg Chamber of Commerce director Carlo ThelenFinAI CEO Rafał Czernik, which placed third in the contestBillon Commercial and Sales chief Jacek Figula, which placed secondWealtharc founder and CEO Krzysztof Gogol, which won first prize13 December 2018A discussion panel featured Maciej Marszalek, Lukasz Lasek, Anna Nietyksza, Damien Cabadi, Laurent Marochini, Olivier Portenseigne and Owen ReynoldsSascha Bremer, market intelligence advisor at Luxembourg for FinanceBarbara Nowakowska, of the Polish Private Equity and Venture Capital AssociationLukasz Lasek, of Wardynski & CoSascha Bremer, Laurent Marochini, and Damien CabadiAnna Nietyksza, of Pekao Sa, left, and Olivier PortenseigneOlivier Portenseigne and Owen ReynoldsMaciej Marszalek and Anna NietykszaAnna Nietyksza and Olivier Portenseigne
Photo: LaLa La Photo
Wealtharc was selected as favourite out of 100 entries to the chamber contest, of which 12 pitched their products in front of a jury in the finals at the Luxembourg House of Financial Technology on the afternoon of 13 December.
The wealth management platform was created to respond to the problem facing wealth managers--the fact they must consult 21 data sources every day for their job and use Excel. “It’s used by 90% of wealth management firms worldwide. They are wasting a few hours to prepare for a simple meeting with a client. First theyre’s more and more data happening and second there’s a new generation of clients coming to wealth management banking,” company founder and CEO Krzysztof Gogol told attendees during the prizegiving at a later conference at the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce.
He added their job is further complicated by constant pressure from regulators. Gogol’s firm develops APIs for banks so that their high networth individual clients don’t have to use a series of different tools to monitor progress in each investment. The majority of Wealtharc’s customers (80%) are located in Switzerland where it has 5% in the market. In Luxembourg they have a 1% share, which Gogol said he hoped to grow to 30% in the future.
Second place went to Billon, a technology company, offering a proprietary blockchain/DLT protocol, and third to digital lending platform FinAi.
The conference was organised to encourage contacts between Polish finech and regtech startups and the Luxembourg private market. Jerzy Kwiecinski, of Poland’s ministry of investment and economic development, raised the issue of Europe’s startup drain as increasingly entrepeneurs migrate to the US because of the stringent regulatory framework in Europe and financial conditions. He said the creation of networks like those forged between Luxembourg and Poland could add an estimated 15% in value to economies. He further announced that Luxembourg plans to make an economic mission to Poland in 2019.
Luxembourg ambassador to Poland Conrad Bruch spoke on behalf of Etienne Schneider, who had an unforeseen urgent commitment, and the government by saying that Luxembourg has made a “firm commitment to the fintech and regtech sectors as a spearhead of the financial sector.”
