As AI and automation reshape financial services, trust is becoming the ultimate competitive advantage. Yet, for many banks and insurers, word-of-mouth — the most authentic growth driver — remains a black box. Enter hypt, a Swiss startup redefining how financial institutions measure and manage customer advocacy. Co-founded by Pascal Sollberger and Tobias Wegmüller, hypt is bringing structure, data and accountability to the one channel that has long resisted both: human recommendation.
In this Q&A, Pascal shares how hypt is helping regulated financial players turn customer love into measurable growth, why “hope is not a strategy,” and what’s next as the company crosses the $1M ARR milestone and sets its sights on global expansion.
1. Firstly, congratulations on your financing round! Tell us a bit about yourself, and how you got the idea for hypt.
Thanks! We’re Tobias and Pascal — two founders with a background in sales and marketing. Over the years, working across agencies and corporates, we kept running into the same frustration: everyone describes word-of-mouth as their most powerful growth driver, but nobody is actually able to manage or use it strategically. It is left to chance. No playbooks. No tools. No accountability. So we decided to change that. That’s how hypt was born, to turn customer love into measurable values that lead to actual growth.
2. What problem/ opportunity do you address, and for which customers?
We work with banks and insurance companies that have one major problem: they build great products and deliver strong customer service and then hope their customers will spread the word. But hope is not a strategy. It can’t be measured, scaled, or monetized. These companies invest millions in acquiring new customers, while ignoring the massive potential of the happy customers they already have. hypt fixes that by turning every positive customer moment into a growth opportunity.
3. What is your solution/ USP, and who do you compete with?
hypt is the Word-of-Mouth Manager for financial services. We replace “hope” with a software-driven system. Our platform captures real-time feedback from happy customers and turns it into personal recommendations (via WhatsApp, iMessage, or any other personal Messenger) and authentic online reviews. At the same time, it intercepts unhappy customers and routes them back to your service teams, reducing public complaints and preventing churn.
What sets us apart from competitors in the referral and customer insight space is how seamlessly we connect real-time feedback, word-of-mouth, and reputation management, all in one flow, optimized for regulated industries like banking and insurance.
4. What are the industry trends or market shifts in your space, and can you point us to any relevant research?
We’re seeing a massive shift in how trust is built. As AI-generated content floods the web and data privacy limits ad targeting, authenticity has become the new currency. And nothing is more authentic than the trustworthy word-of-mouth from a real customer – specially when shared within their personal network. In fact, customers acquired via recommendations convert faster, churn less and have a higher lifetime value. Financial brands that recognize this shift are moving from paid acquisition to trusted amplification and hypt is helping them lead the way.
5. What is your company’s current stage and traction?
Earlier this year we’ve crossed the $ 1M ARR milestone and are growing fast. hypt is used by some of the most trusted names in finance and insurance, including UBS, Generali, CONCORDIA, and PostFinance.
6. Your plans for the next 6-18 months, and how can our network help?
We’re doubling down on Europe but our vision is global. We’ve already kicked off early conversations with banks and insurers in the US to explore product-market fit. Our goal for the next 12–18 months is to validate these opportunities, land lighthouse customers, and build strong local partnerships. If you know innovation-forward leaders in US banking or insurance we’d love to meet and “hypt” them.
7. What’s on your bookshelf or podcast app? Your favourite place for a coffee or a drink?
We’re big fans of Swisspreneur, it’s the go-to podcast for Swiss startup builders. And with offices in Bern, Zurich, and Valencia, we’re spoiled for choice when it comes to great coffee spots (and even better bars). Happy to show your network around if they’re ever in town.
As customer acquisition costs continue to rise and digital channels face diminishing returns, hypt’s approach signals a broader shift in financial marketing — from paid reach to earned trust. For incumbents willing to rethink how they engage their happiest customers, word-of-mouth may finally become the most measurable channel in the playbook.