RBI publishes CEE Fintech Atlas
Vienna. 25th of April.
• Detailed insights into fintech ecosystems in CEE
• Overview of the most important fintechs and the largest investors
• Free download at www.fintechatlas.com
Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI) today published its CEE Fintech Atlas. For the first time, the publication provides detailed insights into 19 fintech ecosystems in Central and Eastern Europe. The atlas provides an overview of the size of the ecosystems and identifies the largest fintech companies in the region and their most important investors. In addition, country-specific features are presented in expert articles. The atlas can be downloaded free of charge at www.fintechatlas.com.
At the presentation of the atlas, Maximilian Schausberger, Head of Fintech Partnerships at RBI, underlined the potential of Central and Eastern Europe for fintechs: "It is a market with 200 million classic bank customers and 150 million digital customers. In just a few years, it will already have 170 million digital customers. RBI has always seen itself as a bridge builder between Western Europe and CEE and would like to play this role in the digital transformation of the banking business in CEE as well.”
With its Fintech Partnership Program "Elevator Lab", RBI is an important promoter of Fintech ecosystems in CEE. "In recent years, we have built up a great deal of knowledge through Elevator Lab, which has been incorporated into the atlas," said Schausberger.
There are currently around 1,100 fintechs in CEE. These account for around five per cent of all European funding for fintechs. The average annual growth rate of accumulated equity funding over the past two years has been around 13 per cent. The share of series A and series B financing rounds has increased significantly, which speaks for the growing maturity of fintechs in Central and Eastern Europe. In 2017, series A and series B financing accounted for 45 per cent of total equity financing. In 2018, the share rose to 75 per cent. The three largest fintech hubs in terms of cumulative equity funding are Russia, the Czech Republic and Poland.
"There are already nine innovation hubs and five regulatory sandboxes in Central and Eastern Europe, significantly more than in Western Europe. Numerous governments and regulators have taken extensive measures to promote their fintech ecosystems, which will bear fruit in the coming years," explained Schausberger.
RBI regards Austria, where it is a leading corporate and investment bank, as well as Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) as its home market. 13 markets of the region are covered by subsidiary banks. Additionally, the RBI Group comprises numerous other financial service providers, for instance in leasing, asset management or M&A.
Around 47,000 employees service 16.1 million customers through more than 2,100 business outlets, the by far largest part thereof in CEE. RBI's shares are listed on the Vienna Stock Exchange. The Austrian Regional Raiffeisen Banks own around 58.8 per cent of the shares, the remainder is in free float. Within the Austrian Raiffeisen Banking Group, RBI is the central institute of the Regional Raiffeisen Banks and other affiliated credit institutions.
For further information please contact:
Ingrid Krenn-Ditz (+43-1-71 707-6055, [email protected]) or
Christof Danz (+43-1-71 707-1930, [email protected])
