March summary!

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in
 

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If you missed out on the Voice of FinTech podcast in March, here is your roundup! You can listen to all the episodes on the Episodes pages of this website or when you subscribe to your favorite podcast apps under Subscribe.

Crypto and crypto derivatives trends with Salama Belghali from Bitmex (Switzerland)

Salama Belghali, Global Head of Business Development and Partnerships at BitMEX, spoke to Rudolf Falat, founder of the Voice of FinTech podcast, about trading crypto and its derivatives and the outlook for the crypto markets.

Here is what they covered in more detail:

  • Salama' background and why she joined Bitmex

  • What problem is Bitmex solving, and why is it worth solving? What’s their focus?

  • Who are Bitmex's key clients?

  • What’s your technology angle, or do you have more brilliant engineers than other players?

  • How secure is trading at Bitmex?

  • Nowadays, trading securities, including crypto, effectively requires leverage and derivatives. How does the market for crypto derivates work?

  • How big is the crypto derivatives market vs underlying? What are the key products already available?

  • Who are the key crypto derivates players? 

  • What's the outlook for the crypto markets this year? 

  • Recommended reading: Crypto Trader Digest

  • What’s the best way to reach out (and what kind of parties would be most relevant for you)? BitMEX website and Salama's profile on LinkedIn 

AI-driven corporate information for your B2B sales with Martin Ondas, CEO of BizMachine (Czech Republic)

Martin Ondas, founder and CEO at Bizmachine, spoke to Rudolf Falat, founder of the Voice of FinTech podcast, about using AI to provide better insights and prospecting for B2B sales. 

  • Martin – tell us, how did you get to what you do these days?

  • What problem is BizMachine solving, and why is it worth solving?

  • Key clients?

  • Unique selling points of BizMachine vs other B2B business intelligence services

  • Many people talk about leveraging Big Data. One of the five Vs of big data, veracity refers to the data quality. What are BizMachine's data sources, and how do they verify their accuracy

  • Privacy and confidentiality matters

  • Is the information updated in real-time?

  • Interoperability of BizMachine solution - how easy is it to plug into CRM or other enterprise systems

  • Successful stories in e-commerce

  • Expansion plans

  • Recommended further resources: Ray Dalio's Principles and Patrick Bet-David's Youtube channel

  • The best way to reach out: LinkedIn - Martin Ondas or the company website - Bizmachine. 

Investing in FinTech in challenging times with Itamar Novick, founder of Recursive Ventures (USA)

Itamar Novick, Solo Venture Capitalist at Recursive Ventures, spoke to Rudolf Falat, founder of the Voice of FinTech podcast, about lessons learned from his years of investing in FinTech, especially in challenging times.

Here is what they talked about:

  • Itamar's background

  • Recursive Ventures - what does it do? Where are you based?

  • Are you US-focused or global? How much money have you raised since inception, and for how many start-ups? How many investors?

  • What kind of start-ups have you invested in, and what kind of FinTechs have you invested in? 

  • What’s your investment approach? 

  • What are your best tips for aspiring founders to start and grow their companies?

  • What is your view on the immediate and long-term outlook for FinTechs? Where do you see the most promising opportunities?

  • Can you share success stories of the start-ups for which you raised funds (exited)? 

  • Any lessons learned? What would you have done differently as an investor?

  • How do you find them? How do scouting and due diligence work? What are your selection criteria?

  • Favorite business book: The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers by Ben Horowitz

  • The best way to connect

AI-powered speech recognition for proactive compliance with Nigel Cannings, CTO of Intelligent Voice (UK)

Nigel Cannings, CTO at Intelligent Voice, spoke to Rudolf Falat, founder of the Voice of FinTech podcast, about leveraging AI to ensure banks and others trade responsibly and in line with regulations.

Here is what they talked about:

  • Nigel's backstory

  • What problem is Intelligent Voice solving and why is it worth solving?

  • Key clients

  • Tech angle? How does Intelligent Voice (IV) keep improving? Is human monitoring needed?

  • Why is this solution better than the competition or incumbent solutions? 

  • How IV addresses the privacy concerns of individuals and companies

  • How do they ensure their AI is ethical and responsible

  • Interoperability of Intelligent Voice - how easy is it to plug into the client´s enterprise systems

  • Success stories in Financial Services: e.g., Daiwa

  • What are your plans for the rest of the year? Hint: international expansion?

  • Recommend info channels: 1. Medium

  • What’s the best way to reach out? LinkedIn and website: Nigel Cannings and Intelligent Voice.  

If you have suggestions for topics or guests on the show or have ideas about how to make this podcast better for you, please e-mail us at info@voiceoffintech.com. Alternatively, you can also leave a voicemail here.

Keep safe!

Sincerely,

Rudolf Falat