1.  Who are you?

We are Andreas Dubrow and Philipp Kalwies founders of Decimo GmbH the first factoring service especially for freelancers.

2.  Which services do you sell and who are your competitors?

Our service is factoring for freelancers. Until now it was very difficult for freelancers and small companies to use the tool of factoring for their business. We changed that and give all freelancers the opportunity to use factoring as a tool to simplify their business, enjoy a constant and reliable cash flow and benefit from the easiest and fastest way of financing.

Our competitors are the big banks that already offer factoring for bigger companies.

3.  How did you get your startup idea and how did you finance your startup?

The idea was born when we worked as regional managers for a promotion marketing company and heard many times the problem of delayed and unreliable payments to the freelancers. There was obviously a huge demand which nobody satisfied.

So the idea of a factoring service especially for freelancers was born.

We started with our own savings and are searching for investors now.

4.  What were the biggest challenges in starting?

Definitely getting the license from the banking authorities. This can take up to years and more and is a very difficult process.

5.  What areas within FinTech do you personally find most interesting and why?

Crowd Funding and digital payments. As they offer a great opportunity for new financial businesses and a great value for the customer.

6.  What opportunities do you see for FinTech startups in the DACH region, and how can we help to accelerate it?

The biggest opportunity in DACH is, that people are still used to the old banking system, that was established long before the internet and IT appeared. People are still used to the fact that payments need many hours sometimes even several days.

At the same time, there is a big demand for new services and solutions the old banking world doesn’t offer.

7. What tip would you like to give FinTech entrepreneurs?

Listen to your customers, they will tell you, what they need.