1. Tell us a bit about yourself and your focus area(s) within FinTech?
My name is Frank Seehaus  and I’m Managing Partner at Acton Capital, a European late-stage venture capital firm. We back internet-startups with the potential to become market leaders…Within fintech, my focus areas are lending (Iwoca – SME lending, Finanzcheck – Consumer lending marketplace), SaaS (Mambu – Core banking SaaS), and Insurtech (Getsafe).

2. What are your key takeaways from the last 3 years in the European FinTech space?
Mushrooming number of startups, lots of money deployed, lots of failures because it takes time to innovate in a market that is slowed down by regulatory requirements and customer inertia. It takes longer and more money to build sustainable winners, which is reflected by more grounded valuations today. Long term winners will be those that leverage data, for instance in credit scoring, and provide process excellence for seamless end user experience.

3. What trends or opportunities should we watch out for in the next 6-18 months?
Artificial intelligence and machine learning will allow to take data intelligence to the next level. PSD2 will drive API based banking, allowing for partnering across services, yet providing a seamless customer experience. Rebundling of single services under one umbrella and integrating financial… Blockchain technology will provide the backbone for trust and authenticity, allowing for secure large scale and high volume transactions at a friction of cost.