What is Trustly’s mission statement?
Trustly’s mission is to make payments simple, safe and super convenient by enabling payments directly from the bank account in e-commerce. With a digital log-in that is simple and safe for the user, the bank account has truly become digital and relevant for the modern consumer. If you think about it, the bank account is really the heart of all e-commerce today that all payment methods depend on.
Where are you headquartered?
We are based in Stockholm, and have offices in Barcelona and Malta. The benefit of being based in Stockholm is the ease of finding highly qualified professionals that live here or are happy to relocate. Another pro is that Stockholm is the centre of the Nordics, and this region is great to use as a test market for new innovations. A downside is the long, dark and cold winters… though there are a lot of fun outdoor activities to do in the snow like skiing and skating.
Who do you think will be the most influential figures (or companies) in FinTech, in 2015?
An area which is close to my heart is payments in e-commerce. I think many will watch the giants of e-commerce carefully and see how they will choose their portfolio of payment solutions. I’m talking about companies like Zalando or Amazon for example. They are in a fantastic position to influence millions of consumers with what they offer in their checkout process. Many merchants, big and small will follow these companies. There will definitely be ripple effects.
What kind of year do you foresee for your company, and the industry as a whole?
2015 will be a fantastic year for Trustly with new owners on board. Bridgepoint Development Capital recently entered Trustly with a minority stake worth USD30 million. The industry is flourishing as there are many fantastic FinTech businesses with a vision to make life simpler for people by combining finance and tech, and investors see this too.
What are your key targets for 2015?
Growth in market distribution is a key target. We will expand from 9 to 15 markets in 2015 and grow our business in e-commerce, financial services and marketplaces. New partners in the sharing economy sector are hot on our radar. It’s such an exciting business.
What will be the most important opportunities for FinTech in 2015?
A recent study shows that 50% of the U.S. population (300 million people) have used a sharing site the past month. What is really cool with this is that it is a global movement as well. The important thing I want to point out is the sustainability aspect of trading goods and services with between each other. And it’s truly social as well! FinTech is the engine that will make the sharing economy between private persons tick. This is the most important opportunity no doubt.
What are the key hurdles for growing your business this year?
Because the nature of FinTech is innovative, the current blunt legislation is based on how the world used to look. It might be quite challenging for new innovations to translate to the next level because of this.
