Our project, called Tőkeportál, aims to establish crowdfunding in Hungary and has participated in FinTechShow, the first fintech themed event in Hungary. At the show, 15 local fintech projects were introduced that might raise Budapest to be the fintech capital city of the region within a few years. Tőkeportál, the first crowdfunding platform for shares and a project with capital market improvement goals, has won the special award of the Hungarian Investment Promotion Agency (HIPA), which was the only available award besides the grand prize of Fintechlab. Please read more about the event in our interview with Gergő Baján, CTO of Tőkeportál.
How did Tőkeportál get into the final 15 fintech teams, who had the opportunity to present their ideas?
One of FinTechShow’s goals was to provide an opportunity for local fintech teams with innovative ideas and encouraging first results to introduce themselves (in front of investors and professionals). We were lucky to join the event as we were invited as a member of the MKB Incubator Program. On the one hand, it is a great honor that we have caught the attention of HIPA at the event, which can induce further opportunities for us in the future. On the other hand, this pitch presentation was also a useful experience, because gaining new investors and users and spreading our knowledge will be based on similar pitches.
How was the event? What was the most interesting part for you?
The event took place on 11th April in Ankert, where internationally acknowledged, fintech professionals presented from all over the world besides the introduction of fintech teams during this one-day-long event. Among the presentation topics, we could learn about the fintech revolution’s phenomenon, strategies in bank sector, investment trends and about the current status of local fintech companies and their prospects.
Of course, the awarding ceremony was the most awaited part of the show because not only the winner of FinTechShow was selected, but also the special award of HIPA has been handed. Fortunately, the team of Tőkeportál could take the special award of HIPA.
The team of Tőkeportál has received the special award of HIPA. Please, tell me more about this prize!
The goal of HIPA is to help local innovative companies to gain foreign capital, however, the supported startups must have a positive impact on society as well. If a company has a properly mature and interesting idea, which is not only unique but also has an appropriate level of positive impact on the national economy and is a properly significant innovation, HIPA is going to embed the company in its own portfolio and recommend the startup to its investors. It is of high-priority for HIPA to support the local startup ecosystem and that’s why the agency decided to give an award on FinTechShow.
Knowing the activities of HIPA, it is a great honor to us that Tőkeportál has won this special award. I think that the support of our project is interesting for HIPA, because our site can be a new international and local communication platform for them too. In addition, this award can create new opportunities for us to reach the national strategic level, local media and users. Soon we can start to realize one of our primary goals: evangelizing crowdfunding, education and marketing activities.
