Q&A, Q&A- Startups

Q&A with Sigita Kotlere, CEO of Nectaro

1. The Big Idea / your startup “in a Tweet”:

We believe that everyone deserves access to reliable investment opportunities that can help them build a brighter future. This is how we came up with Nectaro – an online investment platform that offers an easy, safe, and reliable way for savvy investors to back their futures with passive investments in financial instruments. Nectaro was developed by Dyninno Group of Companies – a technology conglomerate with almost twenty years of experience in fintech, travel, and entertainment technologies. The team of experienced professionals at Nectaro leverages their expertise to provide these solutions.

2. Tell us a bit about yourself, both at work and leisure.

I have quite extensive experience working in the finance and banking industry, and now I’m responsible for leading our company, implementing our strategic vision, and managing our financial and operational aspects. Experience in the banking industry has made it clear how rigid the process of change is; however, this now allows me to be more innovative and creative in my approach to solving financial problems. Fintech companies are more agile and can adapt to changes in the market faster than traditional banks, which makes the work more exciting and challenging. Additionally, fintech companies tend to have a stronger focus on customer experience, which aligns with my values as a professional.  

When I’m not working, you can often find me in the stables either taking care of horses or horse-riding and enjoying the outdoors. I tend to take up new hobbies every 1-2 years as I find the learning experience both interesting and valuable. For instance, last summer, I tried my hand at longboarding, whereas the year before that, I focused on learning archery.

3. Which product or service do you offer, and who are your competitors?

Our new product, Nectaro, is an alternative investment tool, designed to help tech-savvy investors to back up their futures through passive and easy financial instruments – Asset-Backed Securities (ABS).  In late March, Nectaro successfully obtained an investment brokerage company license (License number – Nr. 27-55/2023/3) from The Bank of Latvia, a regulatory body known for its rigorous compliance procedures. Securing this license attests to Nectaro’s adherence to all the necessary regulatory requirements in the jurisdiction.  

With the rise of the gig economy and remote work, many are pursuing a more flexible lifestyle, and this has created a desire for alternative sources of income that can be earned remotely. The younger generations are also more financially savvy and aware of the need to plan for their future, particularly given the economic uncertainties of recent years. With access to a wealth of information online, they are exploring new investment opportunities and seeking to diversify their income streams for greater financial security. This is exactly why an “aha” moment came – we realized we could offer a new product that would be backed by nearly 2 decades of experience with the Dyninno Group of Companies. A new product line seemed like a natural and logical solution that would add to its already-rich financial portfolio of Dyninno.

In terms of competition, there are quite a number of alternative investment platforms, however, our goal at Nectaro is to make the investment as seamless as possible – we are committed to continuously improving our platform that would make the investment process seamless, smooth, clear, and transparent.  

4. How did you get the business idea and take it from launch to the current stage, including fundraising?

The business idea was inspired by the rapid development of the fintech sector and the increasing interest in investing among younger generations.  

I believe that a good business always starts with two things – by building a top team and having a clear plan. As every business building book tells you, having the right people in place is the most critical part of any startup, and I am confident that we’ve settled that. When it comes to a business plan – this could include creating a to-do list for launch, using task management systems, tracking progress, planning sprints, and documenting decisions and steps made. While it might seem like a lot of work at first, taking a systematic approach will save you time and help prevent miscommunications in the long run. Luckily, we are also done with that.

To keep everyone focused on the end goal, we have implemented the OKR goal-setting system. We believe it keeps us going by having our eyes focused on the goal.

5. Any key lessons from your scaling and fundraising journey?

Developed by Dyninno Group, a leading technology conglomerate with nearly two decades of experience in fintech, travel, and entertainment technologies, Nectaro leverages the expertise of its team of experienced professionals to offer innovative investment solutions that can help investors achieve their financial goals. We are grateful for the opportunity to be part of the “bigger family”, and to be able to leverage the expertise of experienced professionals.

Our team is small but highly professional, with each colleague possessing extensive experience working with other licensed platforms. This enables us to work with ease, as we have a clear understanding of the best practices in such platforms and how to avoid common mistakes. Our experience is valuable to investors, as we are all highly skilled professionals and not novices developing a financial platform for the first time in a garage. Fortunately, we did not need to fundraise to establish our company, as we have a fantastic team of professionals and access to the know-how of the Dyninno Group of companies.

6. What are your plans for the next 6-12 months, and how can our network help?

We are on our way to launch the platform towards the end of this summer, and to finally be able to provide diversified investment opportunities for anyone in the European Economic Area. We aim to actively grow our customer base while also adding new features to our platform to meet the evolving needs of our clients.  

As an investment platform, we understand the value of building strong relationships with key stakeholders and partners, which is why we are open to exploring potential partnerships and/or collaborations.  

In addition to that, I would like to take this chance to invite everyone who is interested in alternative investment to sign up to become a part of our community by getting an early access to the platform. All you need to do is to sign up with your email and stay up to date with the news!

7. What’s on your bookshelf? Your favourite place for a coffee or a drink?

My affection for physical books runs deep, and I have a lot of books on the bookshelves. Although I’ve heard that collecting books and actually reading them can be two separate hobbies, I’m thrilled to engage in both. Two particular reads that I found captivating and informative about human behavior in business were “Thinking, Fast and Slow” by Daniel Kahneman and “Black Swan” by Nassim Taleb. If only I had more hours in a day, I would undoubtedly devote more time to reading. In fact, I’d love to revisit “Steppenwolf” by Hesse for the third time.

All places are great for coffee and drinks if you are with the right people. I have my friends, family and colleagues that I love to enjoy spending time with – not places 🙂