LuxUnplugged Podcast

Thierry welcomes Oliver Schimek, CEO and Founder at CrossLend, to the show. As the CEO of a leading FinTech company in Europe, Oliver provides further clarifications on the company's Luxembourg branch after misreports in the media. They discuss the impact of covid-19 on working from home and the likely effects that are going to be felt in the coming months and years. Oliver then dives into the imp...

Thierry welcomes Kevin Muller, Founder and CEO at Passbolt, to LuxUnplugged. They discuss the genesis of Kevin's idea back in India when he kicked off his career after university. Then they talk about how a free open-source platform for password management turned into a monetisable concept over time with an element of serendipity. Finally, Kevin passionately describes his experience within the Lux...

Adrien welcomes back Marc Serres, CEO at the Luxembourg Space Agency. They look back at the major events that have further shaped Luxembourg's mission to establish the space sector as the next key pillar of the local economy. More importantly, Marc discusses the importance of the Artemis Accords that the grand duchy has recently signed with other major international players in the space industry a...

Adrien welcomes Georges Berscheid, CTO at Finologee, to LuxUnplugged. They discuss the role of RegTech firms in a context of increasing regulations and how this pans out for Luxembourg more specifically. Also, Georges shares his view on the importance of automating processes, such as digital on-boarding, in a seamless and reliable way. Finally, he extensively talks about the benefits the Luxembour...

Adrien welcomes Serge Krancenblum, Executive Chairman at IQ-EQ, to LuxUnplugged. They discuss how IQ-EQ has become one of the leading investor services companies in the world. Serge also explains how the local ecosystem has evolved over the past decades and how his group has shaped the economy all along the way. Finally, they talk about the key institutions ensuring Luxembourg stays ahead of the g...

Thierry welcomes Alexander Tkachenko, Founder and Managing Partner at 2be.lu, to LuxUnplugged. They discuss how Alexander carved out his niche when setting up his venture capital firm. He also provides his insights into the early stage investment space and how the pandemic is likely to shape the world and its related trends. Finally, they talk about the merits of the Luxembourg ecosystem and the g...

Thierry and Adrien welcome Marie Louise Ashworth, President at The Network, to LuxUnplugged. They discuss the importance of having women-only clubs and how such environments can greatly enhance professional opportunities and promote better values. An impassioned feminist, Marie Louise walks them through the principles underpinning The Network and how her association supports its members throughout...

Thierry and Adrien welcome back Kim Schumacher, Lecturer at the Tokyo Institute of Technology, to the LuxUnplugged Podcast. In the final episode of Season 1, they look back at the numerous changes in the ESG space that he's contributed to since appearing on the podcast more than a year ago. Also, Kim highlights how the latest covid-19 pandemic has accelerated a number of opportunities and what the...

Thierry and Adrien welcome Gérard Hoffmann, CEO at Proximus Luxembourg. They discuss how Luxembourg, like many other countries around the globe, rapidly adopted teleworking in the wake of the covid-19 pandemic. After talking about the opportunities that arose from this radical shift, Gérard also highlights the unexpected demand for certain crucial services that his company has had to deliver. Fina...

Thierry and Adrien welcome Patrick Kersten, founder and CEO at Doctena. They discuss medical online bookings in the context of the covid-19 crisis and the opportunities that have arisen as a result. Also, Patrick talks about his previous ventures and outlines the fundamental changes that the Luxembourg business ecosystem has undergone since he kick-started his entrepreneurial career in the early 2...

Thierry welcomes Mike Reiffers, Managing Director and co-founder of Skeeled. They discuss the genesis of Mike's company that he co-founded with his business partner straight after university. Then they dive into how this Luxembourg-based business leverages artificial intelligence, allowing his clients to make better hiring decisions whilst promoting their brand. Finally, Mike shares his tips for e...

Thierry welcomes Bert Boerman, CEO at Governance.com. They discuss how Bert and his brother, Rob, successfully built their RegTech business in the early days of the company despite strong resistance from the market. After exchanging on the outlook for the Luxembourg investment fund industry, they highlight the perks that Luxembourg offers to start up a company in the FinTech space.

Thierry and Adrien welcome Denise Voss, Chairwoman at the LuxFLAG agency. They first discuss how Luxembourg's role in the investment fund industry has evolved over the past decades. Then they dive into the agency's fundamental role to promote the Luxembourg ESG label worldwide on the back of the country's strong reputation in that field.

Adrien welcomes Françoise Thoma, CEO at Spuerkeess (BCEE). They discuss the strategy that the bank has adopted over the years to enhance its offering and adapt to a rapidly changing environment. Furthermore, they dive into Spuerkeess' ambitions to champion the importance of corporate social responsibility and how this translates into the projects this leading bank financially supports.

Thierry welcomes Satellite Executive of the year for 2019, Steve Collar, CEO at SES. They discuss SES’ business model change since its inception in the 80’ and how it has become a leading satellite operator worldwide. After talking about fascinating projects that Steve particularly cares about, they further dive into the space ecosystem and Luxembourg’s perks.

Thierry and Adrien welcome Márton Fülöp, Chief Innovation Officer at Docler Holding. They discuss how this forward-looking business has come up with a very diverse and creative product line throughout its history. They also address the question of recruiting top tech talent, which has been a challenge for Luxembourg, before highlighting the numerous attributes that the Grand Duchy has offered to M...

Thierry welcomes Charles-Louis Machuron, founder at Silicon Luxembourg. They discuss the context in which Silicon Luxembourg has grown, this in tandem with the start-up scene in Luxembourg. Also, they talk about the entire ecosystem that the Grand Duchy offers to entrepreneurs and how they can leverage it.

Thierry welcomes Charlotte Pedersen, CEO at Luxaviation Helicopters. They discuss the company's helicopter charter service specifically tailored to "VVIP" clients. They also talk about how Luxaviation Helicopters has gone global whilst operating from Luxembourg.

Adrien welcomes Jacques Pütz, CEO of LUXHUB. They discuss the essential role of Luxhub in the context of banking and payments innovation as a result of further competition in the sector. They exchange on the benefits that European customers will enjoy thanks to greater disruption brought by service providers such as financial technology firms.

Adrien welcomes René Steinhaus, CEO at lux-Airport. They discuss the intricate links between Luxembourg's growth and the airport's development in recent years. They also touch on lux-Airport's initiatives in the environmental space and how the organisation intends to curb its carbon footprint.

Adrien welcomes Nicolas Mackel, CEO at Luxembourg for Finance. They discuss Luxembourg in the context of global finance and its role in the various niches the country has operated in for several decades. They also talk about the outlook for the Luxembourg financial services industry.

This is our end of 2019 recap episode. Thank you for listening.

Thierry and Adrien welcome HMA John Marshall, UK Ambassador to Luxembourg. They discuss the opportunities for the UK and Luxembourg in a Brexit context, as well as his views on the Grand Duchy. Recorded on 20 September 2019. Note: we apologise for the background noise which is due to road works by the Ambassador's residence.

Thierry and Adrien welcome Alex Lawrence, Managing Director at CrossLend, Sàrl. They discuss CrossLend's mission and its ambition to disrupt the European debt market thanks to digitalisation. They also talk about how this start-up has benefited from Luxembourg's supportive framework and how the country has attracted more talent from abroad.

Thierry and Adrien welcome Marc Serres, CEO of the Luxembourg Space Agency. They discuss Luxembourg's ambition to promote the next key pillar of the country's economy. They also talk about the opportunities that the newly created framework offers to participants in the space ecosystem.