Founded 2013 in Frankfurt am Main, and named one of the 40 Innovators Shaping the Future of Finance by WSJ/ FN FinTech40, FinTech Forum offers award-winning insights and connections to the founders building “what’s next in finance”, and the investors and financial institutions partnering with them.
Our 22 events in Frankfurt, London, Berlin and Vienna have brought together 360+ startups and 1800+ participants from investment firms and financial institutions.
To join our network of over 20k subscribers and followers, sign up to our weekly publication Venture Insights here, follow us on LinkedIn and X . For more information, or to discuss sponsorship opportunities, reach out to contact@fintechforum.de
Team
Frank Schwab
- Co-Founder, FinTechForum.de, Frankfurt am Main
Currently, Frank is also a member of the board of directors at Gulf International Bank, Bahrain, member of the risk advisory board at PayU, Amsterdam and a managing director at Inacu Solutions GmbH.
Prior to this, he was CEO of Fidor Solutions (Fidor.com), CEO of GIZS GmbH (paydirekt/Sparkasse), Chairman of Hufsy, Copenhagen, and a member of the Technology Advisory Board of Sberbank Technology, Moscow.
Before that, he was 20 years with Deutsche Bank. Amongst others he was chief architect for retail banking, head of Online Banking, and chief innovation officer. He also set up of the first German laboratory for Banking IT.
Frank is a pioneer of Online Banking, Mobile Banking and Touch Point Banking and a winner of three European Awards for the New Online Banking, Mobile Banking and Touch Banking at Q110 – The Deutsche Bank of the Future.
He lectured „Creativity and Innovation Management“ at Mannheim Business School and “Information Management in Finance & Insurance” at Wiesbaden Business School.
E-Mail: Frank.Schwab@FinTechForum.de
Samarth Shekhar
- Co-Founder, FinTech Forum; Founder, TechFluence
- Regional Manager EMEA, SixThirty Ventures
Samarth is the co-founder of FinTech Forum (Frankfurt, 2013), offering award-winning insights and connections into the investors backing “What’s next in European Finance”, and the founder of TechFluence (2012), an advisory firm at the intersection of Finance, Tech and VC. He was recognised by the WSJ / FN FinTech40 “40 Innovators Shaping the Future of Finance”.
He heads the EMEA presence of SixThirty Ventures, a US-based venture fund investing in pre-Seed to Series A+ startups across FinTech, InsurTech, HealthTech & InfoSec, and helping them scale in partnership with their networking of LPs, comprising category-leading banks and insurers.
Prior to this, Samarth held Sales & Business Development roles at DSL/ HCL- a Deutsche Bank JV, Capgemini Germany, OrbiTech/ Citigroup and PwC. He holds a degree in engineering (BIT Mesra) and an MBA (IIM Calcutta) and is fluent in English and German. He is based in Amsterdam and Frankfurt.
E-Mail: Samarth.Shekhar@FinTechForum.de
Advisors
Chris Berger
- MD of Finnoconsult
- Senior Advisor to FinTech Forum
Christian is Senior Consultant for digital innovation and transformation in banks and insurances.
As Senior Advisor at FinTech Forum he screens and consults and FinTech Start-Ups in the DACH region.
Christian is co-founder of Finnoconsult.eu, he has worked in banks for 25 years and brings many years of management experience in retail sales, product management, cooperation agreements and IT.
Before co-founding Finnoconsult, Chris was CEO at George Labs at Erste Group until 2015.
The pioneer in the fintech and insurtech scene is valued as a prudent strategist, constructive sparring partner and rigorous implementation expert.
LinkedIn: at.linkedin.com/pub/chris-berger/63/9b6/887/
Johannes Weidelener
- Lawyer / Partner at Heussen Law
- Senior Advisor to FinTech Forum
Over 15 years of advising tech companies in the financial service industry with deep experience in internet banking and corporate financing
Core focus in corporate and corporate finance issues and banking, e.g. IPOs, VC/PE investments, management participation, mezzanine finance, banking/financial services licence, international joint ventures, M&A
Approach: Focus on customer needs, combine different competences and find straightforward solutions
E-Mail: Johannes.Weidelener@Heussen-Law.de
Dr. Aline Vedder
- VC Investment Manager at Ananda Ventures
- Senior Advisor to FinTech Forum
Aline has always been drawn to technological innovation and entrepreneurial challenges. Prior to joining Ananda Ventures she formed part of the investment team of Munich based growth fund Acton Capital Partners and developed expertise in the fields of digital health, direct-to-consumer brands and fintech.
She started her career at Rocket Internet in Berlin where she gained operational experience and consulted founders across Rocket’s core geographies in marketing and communications. She also headed the global PR team of a fintech portfolio company.
Aline holds a Master’s degree from the London School of Economics (LSE) and a PhD degree in Medical Psychology and Sociology from LMU Munich.
Email: aline.vedder@gmx.de
Nadja Schlössel
- COO @RIP Global, New Zealand
- Senior Advisor to FinTech Forum
COO @ New Zealand based FinTech RIP Global. As the minister of internal affairs, she is responsible for scaling up RIP – setting up lean structures and forming a team that’s going to revolutionize the Business Expenses Market by getting rid of paper receipts, fraud and administrative hassle – entirely.
As former Head of Product Strategy @figo she was helping to move the startup from tiny to 65 employees and a trusted partner of banks and FintTechs alike. She has a background in consulting and is experienced in advising banks e.g. in customer-centric innovation management and digitization of business models.
As a Senior Advisor at FinTech-Forum, she consults FinTechs in building scalable structures and processes, business and marketing strategies, leadership, innovation management, communication, pitching and presentation skills.
Nadja finished her Master’s degree in Industrial Sales and Innovation Management as best in class and has a Bachelor in Business Administration specializing in marketing at Hochschule für Technik und Wirtschaft (HTW) in Berlin.
E-Mail: nadja.schloessel@gmail.com
Tel: +64 27 590 3864
Dr. Michael Rundshagen
- Vice President, Head of CBC DACH & BFS Germany
- Senior Advisor to FinTech Forum
Michael has 20 years of experience in Management Consulting and Financial Services.
Prior to his current role he co-founded the award-winning B2B dynamic payments company Traxpay. At Traxpay he gained first-hand experience how Digitalization can change an entire industry.
Before starting Traxpay Michael spend 14 years at Accenture where he led the Strategy Consulting Practice for Financial Services in Continental Europe as well as the Banking Industry team in DACH.
Michael holds a PHD from University of Mannheim, where he led a research program on object oriented software engineering. He graduated in Business Administration and Industrial Engineering at University of Karlsruhe.
E-Mail: Michael.Rundshagen@cognizant.com
Spiros Margaris
- Founder of advisory boutique Margaris Advisory
- Senior Advisor and Investor at moneymeets.com and kapilendo.de
- Senior Advisor to FinTech Forum
Spiros ranks as the world’s No. 1 Fintech Influencer by Onalytica (July 2016). Furthermore, he is ranked No. 9 on the InsurTech 50 Influencers by InsurTech News (July 2016).
More than 20 years of national and international experience in investment management/research for family offices, UHNWIs, HNWIs, institutional clients and innovation and technology management.
Some of my innovation proposals: FinTech Supermarket, FinTech Agent, Win-Win Fee Model and My 3 Choices.
I have been chosen as an author of @TheFINTECHBook (2016, Wiley), which will explore the future of FinTech.
I also participate in the Fred Alger Management creative program called “Think Further.” In this program, Alger connects some of the best thinkers in the world to discuss disruptive technologies that will impact a multitude of fields in the next 5 to 10 years.
Investment committee member of one of the leading multi-family office fund advisory firms in Switzerland and Europe. Its 10-year return placed the firm within the top 5 percent among its peers.
Co-founder of an innovative financial software company based in New York.
Founder of one of the first expert websites (innovative search engine) based in New York.
MBA Toronto University & EMBA Universität St. Gallen (HSG), Switzerland.
Sotheby’s ‘Styles In Art’ Course, London.
Website: www.MargarisAdvisory.com
Linkedin Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/pub/spiros-margaris/b/735/57b
E-Mail: contact@margarisadvisory.com
Ufuk S. Ergün
- Senior Advisor to FinTech Forum
- Advisory VP EMEA, Datomia – Cloud Crowding Corp.
- Executive Partner, OST Operation Systems Technologie GmbH
Ufuk has more than 25+ year’s experiences in senior positions with startups and software technology companies such as EDS, VMware, Citrix, Novell, NetMotion Wireless.
He developed and managed strategic alliances, partner sales, enterprise sales and global accounts in Central EMEA with a strong focus on software technologies and solutions for the verticals financial services and telecommunications.
Some of his most strategic enterprise clients are Deutsche Bank, Postbank, Commerzbank, German Federal Bank, Deutsche Telekom, Vodafone, HP and IBM.
Prior to his current role, he held the position as Country Manager Germany, End-User Computing Business at VMware and led the -desktop, mobile, cloud- business with sales partners and enterprise customers.
Before VMware, Ufuk founded OST Operation Systems Technologie GmbH in 2013 – a German sales and technology advisory company with focus on investors, startups and software technology vendors. OST assists his clients to establish their business and to develop new markets.
He began his career as an IT outsourcing consultant and software systems engineer at Electronic Data Systems.
Ufuk has an advanced degree in communications engineering from the University of Applied Sciences in Wiesbaden, Germany and a postgraduate degree in software systems engineering from EDS in Detroit, Michigan, USA.
E-Mail: mail@operationsystemstechnologie.de
FinTech Forum in the news
40 Innovators Shaping the Future of Finance (Wall Street Journal)
There’s a new dawn breaking in finance. That’s the hope that’s fueling the groundswell of interest in financial technology, with companies being founded almost daily that aim to overhaul the way financial institutions and their clients operate.
Financial News 40 Leaders in FinTech (Financial News)
… “The FinTech Forum’s first event, in Frankfurt in 2013, involved 20 start-ups – including Open Bank Project, an open-source APi and app store for banks – presenting to investors and potential buyers such as Credit Suisse. It has since hosted an event in Frankfurt and is planning a third.”
Financial News Publishes Inaugural List Of The Best And Brightest In Fintech With Fintech 40 (Dow Jones)
Financial News, the leading publication for the European investment banking and securities industry, has published its first ever FinTech 40; a list of the top 40 people in Europe’s burgeoning fintech industry.
The time is ripe to change the banking system (Financial Services Club Blog)
There are plenty of innovations taking place in the world of finance and technology, and yet most appear to be London-based after the creation of the London fintech City…In fact Germany, Austria and Switzerland are a relative hotbed of fintech innovation too, as the FinTechForum.de demonstrates.
Fintechs: Die jungen Wilden (Bankmagazin)
Die Wettbewerb in der Finanzbranche verschärft sich weiter. Neben der etablierten Internetunternehmen entstehen immer mehr hochinnovativ Start-ups, die sich auf einen Teilbereich des Bankings spezializieren.
FinTechs erobern Nischen in der Bankenbranche (Bankmagazin)
Wenn sich junge Start-ups aus der Bank-IT zum Austausch treffen, kann das nur eines bedeuten: Hier geht es um Innovation kurz vor der Marktreife. Was das für etablierte Banken bedeutet.
Gefangen in Altsystemen (Bankmagazin)
Banken modernisieren derzeit ihre Infrastruktur. Doch oft entscheiden sie sich für teure Lösungen, die nur wenig flexibler sind als die bisherigen Systeme, mahnt IT-Experte Frank Schwab.
FinTech Startups liegen im Trend (Der Bank Blog)
… Vor kurzem hatte ich die Gelegenheit, an einer Tagung teilzunehmen, bei der sich 20 Startups mit Innovationen aus dem Bereich Finanzdienstleistungen einem professionellen Publikum aus Banken und Venture Capital Unternehmen vorstellten. Besonders bemerkenswert war, dass die Veranstaltung nicht in London, Singapur, San Franzisco oder New York stattfand, sondern in Frankfurt. Veranstalter war das FinTech Forum DACH, gegründet von Frank Schwab und Samarth Shekhar.
Bericht über das 2. FinTech Forum DACH (Finance ZweiNull)
…Die Veranstaltung war sehr kurzweilig und durchweg gelungen. Über den Veranstaltungsort könnte man vielleicht nochmal nachdenken. Er symbolisierte eher „old school banking“ statt moderner „startup Kultur“ Ich werde also wieder kommen, wenn ich darf.
Fintech Forum DACH – klein und anders (Next Finance Blog)
…fand jedoch mit wesentlich weniger Teilnehmern in einer privat-exklusiven Atmosphäre des Frankfurt Airportclub statt – das übrigens bereits zum zweiten Mal, insofern war man mit dieser Art des Start-up-Casting der Vorreiter in Deutschland.
Bericht vom zweiten FinTech Forum D-A-CH (Bankstil)
Wie wichtig Veranstaltungen wie das FinTech Forum D-A-CH für ein Land wie Deutschland sind, wird deutlich, wenn man sich volkswirtschaftliche Bedeutung von (FinTech-) Startups in Ländern wie den USA, Großbritannien sowie in Skandinavien vor Augen führt. Dank an die Ausrichter und mehr davon!
“FinTech” steht für Revolution im 20. Jahrhundert: Beispiel Online Banking (FastBill Blog)
Zwar merkte Samarth Shekhar von Finextral letztes Jahr in seinem viel beachteten Artikel über die FinTech-StartUps richtigerweise an, dass in Deutschland in diesem Bereich im Vergleich mit Großbritannien oder den USA noch viel Entwicklungsbedarf besteht: Deutschlands Anteil betrug damals gerade mal 0,6% (im Vergleich: Großbritannien 30%, USA 70%).
Digtal Finance: Noch geringes Investitionsvolumen in die Finanzdienstleister der nächsten Generation
In einem Post auf FinExtra wies Samarth Shekhar vom FinTech Forum deutschsprachiger Länder DACH gestern darauf hin, dass derzeit weniger als 2% des globalen Investitionsvolumen für neue Finanzunternehmen in den DACH-Staaten verwendet werden…Immerhin konnte Shekhar zusammen mit Frank Schwab, Vorstandssprecher der Fidor Tecs AG, 100 Startups mit Bezug zum Banking identifizieren. Eine Zusammenfassung der Studie ist hier zu finden.
Der Venture Capital-Markt in Deutschland aus Sicht der FinTech – Startups (BankStil)
Der Markt für Wagniskapital in Deutschland hinkt nach allgemeiner Auffassung dem vergleichbarer Länder hinterher. Das gilt vor allem für den Bereich der FinTech-Startups, wie Samarth Shekhar vor einigen Wochen herausgearbeitet hat. Inzwischen mehren sich jedoch die Zeichen, dass sich daran etwas ändert. So hat der bereits erwähnte Shekhar zusammen mit Frank Schwab das FinTech Forum DACH ins Leben gerufen.
FinTech Forum sucht „neue Hasen“, die die Finanzwelt verändern wollen (Rhein-Main-Startups)
Das FinTech Forum DACH ist die erste Initiative, die FinTech Startups und KMUs im deutschsprachigen Raum mit interessierten Investoren, Mentoren, Banken und Partnern zusammen bringt.
Events Diary 18 – 24 November – Our pick of the hottest startup events this week (VentureVillage)
FinTech firms use innovative technology (e.g. social media, mobile, big data) to transform traditional banking services such as lending, payments or trading. The FinTech Forum is the first conference for FinTech startups, investors and banks in the German-speaking region. The event brings more than 20 innovators together with high-profile investors and banks.
Ein Potpourri von Events quer durch alle Themenbereiche (Gründerszene)
FinTech Firmen benutzen Technologien wie Social Media, Mobile und Big Data mit dem Ziel das traditionelle Bankgeschäft zu revolutionieren. Das FinTech Forum ist der erste Hub für FinTech Startups, Investoren und Banken in der DACH-Region. Die erste Veranstaltung dieser Art in Deutschland bringt mehr als 20 Innovatoren mit hochkarätigen Investoren und Banken zusammen.
Samarth Shekhar from FinTech Forum: “4th FinTech Forum event sold out a month in advance” (Crowdbiz)
Samarth Shekhar is Co-Founder of the FinTech Forum and one of the “40 Innovators Shaping the Future of Finance”. FinTech Forum is the first and largest Fintech-community in Continental Europe. As a hub for Fintech-Start-ups/SMEs, investors and banks in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Central Europe they scout innovators, disruptors and “hidden champions” in the D-A-CH financial services sector and connect them with investors and banks.
“FinTech Forum – Seit 2013 Nukleus eines FinTech-Ökosystems in Frankfurt” (FMF Jahrbuch)