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Fusion startups selection for year 2: behind the scene

by Amelie Janssens

In early April, Fusion opened applications for startups who wish to participate in the acceleration program for 2016-2017. “Fusion season 2” is coming up!

The startups selected for the 2015-2016 twelve months program will leave Fusion in September. Right onwards startups for the second batch will follow in early October for a very intensive first 3 months full-time onsite in Geneva.

After opening the applications in April, Sébastien Flury, the program director, and Guillaume Dubray, the founder of Fusion, went through a first scan of all the files received, making sure the candidates fulfilled the list of criteria required to apply. Among these, the applicants must:

  • be active in wealth management, asset management, insurance, commodities trading – Switzerland’s areas of expertise
  • focus on cyber security, data privacy, blockchain, asset, wealth management
  • present a clear execution plan
  • be incorporated in a safe jurisdiction
  • be hunger for success!

Applicants were offered the opportunity to attend a webinar in early June for a detailed Q&A on the program and the selection process.

The applicants who had passed this preliminary screening were invited to a first round of 15 minutes Skype interview with Sébastien and Guillaume. They were given 10 minutes to present their idea and team, followed by a 5 minutes Q&A. Over 50 startups have been interviewed!

The selected short list of finalists were then invited to a second round of interview with the corporate members, under the same format but in a more structured way (for example, following Guy Kawasaki’s “Art of Pitch” tips) – this is where we step in!

Last week, BNP Paribas (Kim Potvin and Benoît Ratier), Swisscard (Markus Feller), Temenos (Ben Robinson), Notz Stucki (Antonio Mira and Amélie Janssens) all met with Sébastien and Guillaume for this final round of (marathon) interviews. 23 startups over 2 afternoons, the agenda was tight – but Swiss timing was respected all over!

 

Fusion startups selection meeting room
Fusion startups selection meeting room

A week before, we had received the profiles of the startups, their decks and a one-pager on each. After each 15 minutes Skype interview, we had 5 minutes to individually complete a form to evaluate on a scale from 1 to 5 the team, the opportunity, the business model, the stage of development of the company and the fit with Fusion’s members.

A few days later, Sébastien sent us the combined scores obtained by each candidate based on the members’ evaluations.

We had a final meeting all together last week to finalize the list of the selected participants.

The consensus over the first 7 startups was almost a no-brainer, and after some discussions around the last 3 names to be selected, we rapidly came up with our final list of participants. We ended-up with a quick debriefing lunch altogether (startup-like: take away pizza at Fusion’s open space!).

Overall, we appreciated the high level of professionalism of the interviewed startups. The pitches were well prepared, the business models made clear and the quality of the teams quite impressive. There is a lot to learn here…

At Notz Stucki, we observed a few tendencies:

  • blockchain is becoming more concrete, through specific, targeted applications
  • the notion of robo-advisor is developing: we are now not just talking about algorithms but rather about how artificial intelligence as a whole can help improve business decisions
  • there are more startups in the field of data security – a hot topic for Switzerland
  • some innovative solutions are picking up in the areas of investment suitability, distribution, and smart KYC

At the time of writing this post, the final decisions have been communicated to the short listed participants.

Needless to say we are very much looking forward to welcoming the 2016-2017 selection at Fusion!

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Antonio Mira
CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER, MEMBER OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Antonio Mira joined NS Partners in 2006 as Group Chief Financial Officer. He heads the corporate functions and is involved in coordinating and implementing the decisions of the Executive Committee.
An experienced bank auditor, Antonio started his career in 1995 with Arthur Andersen, where he worked for some 7 years before joining Ernst & Young in 2002 as a Senior Manager.
Antonio is a Swiss chartered accountant and a Business graduate of Lausanne University (HEC).

Sébastien Poiret
DEPUTY HEAD OF WEALTH MANAGEMENT

Sébastien Poiret joined NS Partners in 2008 and manages funds of hedge funds and private client mandates. He also oversees the development of the Group’s offices in Mauritius.

Prior to joining NS Partners, he served as a Trader, Head of Manager research and Portfolio Manager in the USA and Switzerland for a single hedge fund (1998-2004) and for Optimal (2004-2008), Grupo Santander’s fund-of-hedge funds operations.

Sébastien holds a Bachelor’s degree in Corporate Finance from the ESPEME Business School (EDHEC Group) and an MBA in Finance and Economics from the Institute of Business Administration, both in Nice.

Abir Oreibi
BOARD DIRECTOR

Abir Oreibi joined the Board of the NS Partners Group in 2018, where she brings her truly international perspective and rich experience.
Among many other ventures, Abir set up Alibaba.com’s first European office. After living and working in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Bangkok and London, she now lives in Geneva, where she is CEO of Lift Events, an organization that identifies technology trends, their business and social impact through the organization of events and open innovation programs. Issues related to the challenges and opportunities created by new technologies as well as the strategic responses from organizations are at the heart of Lift’s activities.
Abir holds a BA in Political Sciences from the University of Geneva. She is an investor, and member of advisory and innovation boards.

Romain Pidoux, CAIA

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Romain Pidoux joined NS Partners in 2011 and heads the Group’s Risk Management.
He started his financial career in 2005 as Head of Quantitative Analysis for a Swiss Family Office, selecting funds and managing portfolio allocation. In 2008, he switched to the alternative world and joined Peak Partners as hedge funds analyst.
He is a Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) and holds a Master’s degree in international relations from the Graduate Institute of International Studies at Geneva University.

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