Swiss financial technology house Avaloq is setting up a venture fund to invest in and support startups and fast-growing fintech businesses
The new unit, Avaloq Ventures will will be led by Minho Roth, a former executive at FiveT Capital AG and Baader Bank, with first-hand experience of capital raising for startup businesses.
Chaired by Avaloq founder Francisco Fernandez, other high-profile board members include Lex Fenwick, previously CEO of Bloomberg and Dow Jones; Professor Dr. Philipp Sandner, head of the Frankfurt School Blockchain Center; and James Stickland, previously director of innovation & investments at HSBC and part of JPMorgan Chase’s CIO office.
In April this year, Avaloq acquired a 10% stake in Metaco, a Lausanne-based blockchain and crypto-currency specialist. The firm says that in the future, it will continue to identify potential M&A deals at a group level while facilitating fintech funding through Zurich-headquartered Avaloq Ventures.
The company says it will look to partner with third-party investors such as banks, wealth and asset managers, and established fintech companies in providing capital. The size of funding will be decided on a case-by-case basis.
Selected startups will be supported through the Avaloq ecosystem, which plays host to more than 1300 developers and a marketplace comprising over 90 third-party fintech modules.
Ceo Roth says: "We will look to identify, fund and support the most innovative start-ups and companies with the greatest growth potential. They will be able to leverage their access to Avaloq’s client community of more than 150 banks and wealth managers worldwide.”