Venture Leaders Fintech roadshow 2024: A report from London

The Venture Leaders—the Swiss National Startup Team members—have a clear objective: They envision themselves as global players and aim for international expansion. The Venture Leaders Fintech roadshow 2024 brought 10 handpicked Swiss entrepreneurs to London—one of the world's leading financial hubs—to increase their presence on the international stage. The Swiss National Startup Team members benefited from market exposure, pitch sessions with investors and experts, and hands-on business development. The roadshow is organized by Venturelab in partnership with Swissnex, and supported by EPFL, ETH Zürich, and Walder Wyss.

Venturelab has been organizing international investor and business development roadshows for the Swiss National Startup Teams since 2006. The ambitious entrepreneurs and their promising startups are introduced to high-class investors and potential customers in leading technology hubs such as Silicon Valley, Boston, Asia, Barcelona, Munich, and London.

The Venture Leaders Fintech roadshow offers a one-week deep dive into the London financial ecosystem. This year's Venture Leaders Fintech entrepreneurs join an impressive group of Fintech alumni including high-flying startups such as Crypto Finance (acquired by Deutsche Börse), eCollect (acquired by Intrum), Imburse (acquired by Duck Creek Technologies), Qumram (acquired by Dynatrace), Lend, Sonect, TP24, Wyden, and many more.

Selected from 50 applications, the 10 Swiss National Startup Team members engaged in sessions focusing on business establishment, funding strategies, and operational challenges in the UK. Activities included a roundtable at the Embassy of Switzerland in the UK, hosted by Lutz-Peter Berg, Head of Science and Innovation, and Charlotte Chenu, Science Innovation Officer, and Mathilde Reyes, Science and Innovation Support. While on the roadshow, the Venture Leaders were supported by legal advisors Ramona Wyss and Thomas Müller of Walder Wyss. The group also explored the UK fintech sector with workshops run by Katie Ramsey, Head of Fintech at the Department for Business and Trade, and experts Yanki Kizilates of SeedLegals, Kevin Rutter and Saga Palmer of Goodwille. 



The startups also participated in a session with experts from Lloyd's, focusing on funding opportunities and insights into the UK financial ecosystem. Ara Yeromian, Managing Director of Teachers Venture Growth (TVG), invited the group for a private Swiss raclette dinner at his house, allowing exclusive introductions to hand-picked investors from the UK fintech ecosystem. 

"The Venture Leaders Fintech program was an amazing experience, offering invaluable insights, feedback, and connections. A must for any fintech founder aiming to scale from Switzerland!" highlighted Olga Miler, Co-Founder of SmartPurse.

"Venture Leaders Fintech is an incredible platform to connect with like-minded innovators and industry leaders, offering unparalleled opportunities for growth and collaboration. It’s a must for anyone looking to make a mark in the fintech space," added Leroy Bächtold, CEO of CrowdTransfer.

At Fintech Connect's Startup Launchpad pitching stand—a dedicated networking and demo space tailored for early-stage startups to present their latest technologies and solutions—the Venture Leaders had the chance to introduce their startups to a broad audience and engage with investors and corporates following their presentations.



The day after, the Venture Leaders participated in the Swissnex Entrepreneurs' Fondue for Swiss and local fintech entrepreneurs, a dinner combining networking opportunities with a taste of Swiss tradition.
 

When the top shots of Swiss and London fintech want to enjoy a night together... then it's fondue time! Great thanks to the team of the Switzerland Embassy for hosting an unforgettable fare-well dinner for the Venture Leaders Roadshow 2024!

Meet the Swiss National Startup Team:… pic.twitter.com/LVKyYaOQnW

— Venturelab (@venturelab_ch) December 8, 2024

The roadshow concluded with a visit to Level 39, the well-knonw fintech incubator located in the London's Financial District of Canary Wharf.



"London ranks first globally for fintech VC investments. The quality of Swiss startups made a strong impression, as measured by the high number of appointments the Venture Leaders secured with investors. We are very optimistic to see Venture Leaders closing many deals in the forthcoming months," shared Raffael Kellner, program manager and delegation lead at Venturelab, about the very positive outcome of the roadshow.

Venture Leaders Fintech 2024 is organized by Venturelab in partnership with Swissnex, and supported by EPFL, ETH Zürich, and Walder Wyss.

Learn more about the Venture Leaders Fintech 2024: