Flumserberg, Switzerland

In case you missed out on the January episodes of the Voice of FinTech podcast, here is the monthly summary! You can listen to all the episodes on the Episodes pages of this website or when you subscribe to your favorite podcast apps under Subscribe.

Getting board experience with Board Owl's Daniel Aghdami

Daniel Aghdami, the founder of Board Owl, talks about Board Owl matching senior executives to companies, especially start-ups and SMEs to form boards and advisory boards with an impact with Rudolf Falat, founder of the Voice of FinTech podcast.

Below are some insights shared that would interest you:

• Daniel's backstory and entrepreneurial journey

• Reasons behind why he started Board Owl back in March 2020

• How Board Owl matches remarkable people with exceptional organizations for board positions to empower growth and make an impact as well as the current issues Board Owl is currently working on

• Resources provided for first-time board members

• Insights on what constitutes a good board member

• Leveraging a powerful board, and individuals looking to share their expertise and develop through holding board positions help someone in their career.

• Types of companies for boards that Board Owl focuses on

• Differences of board members from these types of companies mentioned

• Lessons learned from board members engagement to clients

• The liability exposure for board members in Switzerland and insurance coverage

• Milestones achieved since the company started that Daniel is proud of

• Knowing the best way to reach out and find out more about Board Owl

Thank you Swiss Finance + Technology Association (SFTA) for making it happen!

Bringing crowdsourcing to the Gulf with OurCrowd Arabia's Partner, Sabah al-Binali

Sabah al-Binali, Partner of OurCrowd Arabia, shared his perspectives on the benefits of investing in start-ups alongside VC and the background on the first Israeli VC expanding to the Middle East with Rudolf Falat, founder of the Voice of FinTech podcast.

They also covered:

• Sabah discussed his investing background and experience

• Sabah explained how OurCrowd operates and how he joined forces with OurCrowd's founder and CEO, Jon Medved

• Sabah and Rudolf further discussed the reasons for the company setting up an arm in ADGM

• How much money OurCrowd raised, their geographic focus (Israel and abroad), and success stories

• VC and crowdsourcing - unique appeal of OurCrowd

• OurCrowd's approach to working with start-ups: operational help and advice in addition to money

• Views on FinTech's growth in the Middle East and most promising verticals

• What's the best way to reach out if you are interested to learn more about OurCrowd

Artificial Intelligence and fraud prevention with Netguardians' CTO, Jérôme Kehrli

Jérôme Kehrli, CTO at Netguardians spoke to Rudolf Falat, founder of the Voice of FinTech podcast about leveraging AI in anti-fraud prevention and cybersecurity.

Here is what they talked about:

• Jerome's backstory

• Why has Jerome decided to join a start-up (or a scale-up) like Netguardians

• When will we finally have truly intelligent AI working on fraud prevention in banking?

• How good is anti-fraud AI today? What kind of AI are we talking about?

• Who are Netguardians' target customers?

• How do you make money?

• Where are you on your journey in terms of product development, geographic reach, funding, hiring?

• What are the next steps for you next year and beyond? Customers, incumbents as partners, investors?

• Where can interested parties reach you?

Thank you the Swiss Finance + Technology Association (SFTA) for making it happen!

Americas Series with David Yakobovitch: Why every company should be a FinTech company with Toby Russell, co-CEO of Shift Technologies

In this episode of the Americas Series, David Yakobovitch speaks to Toby Russell, co-CEO of Shift Technologies about disrupting the used car market!

Specifically, they cover:

• In the digital era, convenience is key. Consumers want to browse, shop, and pay for items like coffee, clothes without friction. Toby discusses how Embedded FinTech allows customers to finance their cars, get prequalified for a loan, select and purchase an auto loan, and even buy vehicle protection plans and gap insurance without leaving their app. He'll also dive into how embedded fintech will transform industries and why more brands should take the Embedded FinTech approach.

• One of the largest areas of the consumer sector is a haggle system that actively discriminates. Toby speaks about how incorporating ML and a financial stack into an eCommerce platform is standardizing industry pricing, allowing more people to access real-time crediting decisions, and how embedded payments open up auto purchases to more people.

• As payments become more digital both online and offline, Embedded Finance will become a new business model for sellers. This will accelerate in a Web3 environment.

Conclusion:

As a retailer - evaluate your business model. As a finance company- evaluate your Tech. As a consumer - expect better.

PropTech meets FinTech with Lars Sommerer, MD of Swiss PropTech and Julien Schillewaert, CEO of PriceHubble

Lars Sommerer, Managing Director of the Swiss PropTech, and Julien Schillewaert, CEO of PriceHubble, spoke to Rudolf Falat, the Voice of FinTech podcast founder, about the Swiss PropTech scene and cross-over with FinTech.

Here is what they talked about:

• Lars, what brought you from traditional real estate to PropTech?

• What are the Swiss PropTech, its goals, and activities?

• Swiss PropTech scene - overview, the most developed verticals

• Julien, you are CEO at PriceHubble. How did you get to do what you do today?

• What is PriceHubble and the problem you are solving?

• Many people make only a handful of real estate investments in their lives. So what’s PriceHubble's competitive edge?

• The most significant opportunities for growth within the real estate industry in Switzerland in the near future

• How has the adoption of PropTech solutions changed during the pandemic? How receptive is Swiss real estate to PropTech vs. before the pandemic? Check out the annual Swiss PropTech study here.

• The best way to reach out

Thank you, the Swiss Finance + Technology Association (SFTA), for making it happen!

The first FinTech 2022 success stories chat! A critical view by the hosts of Voice of FinTech, David Yakobovitch and Rudolf Falat - recording of our latest LIVE show on FISHBOWL

David Yakobovitch, our New York-based host, teamed up with Rudolf Falat, founder of the Voice of FinTech podcast, to discuss what's been shaking in the FinTech world and adjacent sectors in early 2022 live on Fishbowl. Here is the recording if you missed it!

David and Rudolf focused on these key topics:

• Gaming and FinTech: Microsoft's announced acquisition of Activision. Check also news coverage on the FT, Variety,
Microsoft. More broadly, check out these great reports on gaming and Fintech here, including the Goldman Sachs report on gaming and metaverse. See more on the consolidation in the gaming sector.
• X-AI or Explainable AI: What it is and why do we need an explainable approach to AI? See also Nvidia's article on the same here.
• Crypto crash: Why do crypto crashes happen? Check out this great explainer here. How does it impact Coinbase? Should you be worried?
• End of the InsurTech revolution? What happened to Lemonade and its fellow darlings of the InsurTech scene? What happened to InsurTech?

Have a great start to 2022! If you have suggestions for topics or guests on the show or have ideas about how to make this podcast better for you, please e-mail us at info@voiceoffintech.com. Alternatively, you can also leave a voicemail here.

Keep safe!

Sincerely,

Rudolf Falat