On this episode of Scouting for Growth, Sabine VdL interviews FinTech and Blockchain Advisor Efi Pylarinou about why sustainable investing is so important, her view on the state of FinTech (and what the insurance industry can learn from it), sustainability in the context of Digital Transformation, what the emerging risks are and more.

 

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Switzerland is one of the biggest hubs in Blockchain for Finance, which comes out of Crypto Valley. It’s an example of how an ecosystem works: You need the regulator, the private sector, the capital and an international outreach for the recipe to work, and that’s what has happened in the crypto sector but it hasn’t happened in FinTech. Having said that, the crypto sector in Switzerland is more in the RegTech sub-vertical, which is related to data analytics and so on. That’s the high level at which Switzerland stands.
• There’s something that worries me that’s an indicator that we’re early with the insurance industry being interested in climate, the carbon footprint and how companies and individuals can reduce their carbon footprint. But we’re seeing a lot of businesses and startups offering services to trade credits. We need to get over that. A company can get a high ESG ranking on the climate front, but that might be completely negated because they’re doing something on another front in terms of labour practices for example.
• The ball has started rolling in the public markets, Black Rock is leading and making big announcements. But in the public markets this has to start from the seed, when the company is born: Is the company thinking sustainably and what does it mean? How do you treat your team? Is your mission completely segregated from society and nature? No, it isn’t, but we don’t think like that yet.
• Going forward we’re going to see more incumbent banks partnering with sustainable FinTechs so they can integrate it in their lending practices, corporate finances and commercial business banking processes, for example.

 

BEST MOMENTS

‘Innovation gets adopted, but before that happens, there needs to be a shift in the narrative. This is what is currently happening with sustainability. Still, we’re early in the journey.’

‘In December 2020 ESG net inflows surpassed £ 1 billion, a record number.’

‘Corporates still operate and make decisions in silos. Think about your borrowing needs, they are still separate from your investing needs. We haven’t put the whole picture together. Yet, centralized financing has to be part of the new culture, which is why it needs to start from the startups.’

‘We’re seeing a trend where digital banking and finance apps take advantage of the lifestyle appeals, whether they’re giving rewards to people or gamifying their offerings due to the fact people care more about the environment.’

 

ABOUT THE GUEST

• No.1 independent Global Woman Influencer in Finance & Data, a seasoned Wall Street professional with a Ph.D. in Finance with over 200,000 followers across channels. 
• Work at the intersections of Business Development, Marketing, and PR for Brands involved in Digital transformation in various industries. Thought leadership campaigns through strategic collaboration, are one of my sweet spots as a B2B domain expert influencer with a passion for innovation. 
• Domain expertise in financial services; Blockchain and Artificial intelligence are two main disruptive technologies that I focus on.   
• Efi's global audience (c. 200,000 across all platforms) values her multimedia daily curation. I am a prolific writer, a host of weekly audio-video content, a creator of weekly visual content, and a passionate speaker.   
• Efi's passion is creating content that supports her clients in their strategic business goals. You can connect with Efi on the platforms below

 

• Medium: https://efipm.medium.com/ 
• YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/EfiPylarinou 
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/efipm 
• Website: https://efipylarinou.com/  

 

ABOUT THE HOST

Sabine is a corporate strategist turned entrepreneur. She is the CEO and Managing Partner of Alchemy Crew, a venture lab that accelerates the curation, validation, & commercialization of new tech business models. Sabine is renowned within the insurance sector for building some of the most renowned tech startup accelerators around the world working with over 30 corporate insurers & accelerating over 100 startup ventures. Sabine is the co-editor of the bestseller The INSURTECH Book, a top 50 Women in Tech, a FinTech and InsurTech Influencer, an investor & multi-award winner. 

Twitter: SabineVdL

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Website: www.sabinevdl.com