Venture Leader Fintech offers an international payment platform that serves small and medium-sized businesses – Venturelab

The Swiss National Startup Team welcomes new members after an expert jury selected ten startups for the Venture Leaders Fintech 2022 program. In anticipation of the roadshow in London at the end of November, we would like to introduce our community to each of the Venture leaders. Meet Michael Wuest, CEO of amnis.

Name: Michael Wuest
Placement: Zurich
Nationality: Swiss
Graduated from: FH St. Gallen in 2005 with a Bachelor and in 2008 as a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA)
Job title: CEO
Number of employees: 35
Money raised: CHF 9.3 million
First point of contact with Venturelab: 2004, at an innovation and entrepreneurship workshop

What does your startup do and why?
amnis’ payment platform allows small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to overcome the usual barriers to global trade by offering local IBAN accounts, competitive exchange rates and local payment options in more than 50 currencies.

How and where did you come up with the idea for your startup?
My co-founders and I worked in treasury departments of large companies, where we recognized that subsidiaries and affiliates of large companies have a major advantage over SMEs: they have access to sophisticated services and competitive rates provided by the in-house bank. This motivated us to build a digital platform that serves small and medium-sized businesses.

What do you expect from the Venture Leaders roadshow and how do you think it will help you achieve your vision?
I expect to connect with interesting people and find sparring partners to challenge us on our journey. Expanding our network of potential investors will help drive our mission forward.

Who does your solution help, and how?
Our solution helps SMEs with international business activities save money and time and automate workflows. We offer a free starter plan, which enables SMEs to save up to 2% on currency exchange and already includes free payments and IBAN accounts in different currencies.

What are you most looking forward to at work right now?
Creating an exciting product that helps SMEs become more competitive, together with an amazing team. We are currently working on offering businesses a free debit card with the easiest handling ever. It is really exciting to rethink the functionality of a debit card if you have all the technical capabilities.

How did you build your team?
I worked with one of my co-founders and studied with the other. For several team members, we hired talent and passion to ensure we can truly redefine how international banking works.

Which market are you targeting and what is the potential of your startup?
The global market for wholesale transactions has a revenue potential of more than USD 500 billion according to BCG. While we focus on businesses with less than EUR 5 million in turnover with our product-led growth strategy, we also serve companies with up to EUR 100 million in turnover. The market is dominated by traditional banks. While large companies work with High Street banks, SMEs are severely underserved and rely on regional banks with limited offerings.

What are your most important achievements so far?
While we started bootstrapping, we now serve more than 2,000 SMEs and grew by more than 100% in 2022. The Financial Market Authority granted amnis the EEA-Payment Institution license, which allowed us to expand to another 8 countries.

What is one thing not many people know about you?
I guess I’m one of the last users of teletext. I even have an app on my phone to access anytime. In addition to this, I am a proud father of two children aged 3 and 5.

What is your favorite podcast and why?
I often listen to product-led growth podcasts. On a road trip this summer I listened to a 10 hour PLG podcast. Why? Because I truly believe that PLG is the key to scaling, and I’m always eager to learn from others’ experiences.

What is your favorite book and why?
The art of thinking opposite by Humphrey B. Neill. Although it was published in 1954, it is an inspiring book and many of its theses still hold up. Maybe the crowd is wrong sometimes, and contrarian thinking can help find another way.

 

“I always enjoy talking to customers to learn more about how they use our products and learn what can be done better.”

How did you come up with the name of your startup?
Amnis is a Latin word meaning “flow”. We took it as an abbreviation for cash flow.

Who inspires you and why?
Elon Musk with his storytelling skills, Pichai Sundararajanor with his leadership style, and Steve Jobs with his product thinking.

Which startup do you wish you had founded and why?
Climeworks, because I like how big they think and what they contribute to a better future.

What is the most challenging thing about being an entrepreneur?
To keep the startup spirit while the team grows. It is still extremely important to adapt quickly to market needs and try things to stay ahead of the market.

What is the most rewarding thing about being a founder?
Acknowledging that what you’ve built is being used by thousands of companies. I always enjoy talking to customers to learn more about how they use our products and learn what can be done better.

What is something you wish you had known about being an entrepreneur?
How long it takes to succeed and how tough it is to raise money in Switzerland.

What is the most important lesson you have learned as an entrepreneur?
Stick to your mission and go deep rather than broad in product development.

What is the best advice you ever received and from whom?
Don Draper, the protagonist of Mad mensaid, “If you don’t like what’s being said, change the conversation.”

What is your biggest professional failure and what did you learn from it?
I built a dairy trading platform with a friend before I started amnis. Unfortunately, we stopped the venture after a couple of minutes. The most important lesson I took away was that the market never waits for you or your solution.

How do you stay on top of industry trends?
I read several hours per week and I’m always interested in learning from other startups.

How do you foster creative thinking among your team members?
We have growth team sessions to brainstorm inspiring ideas. In addition, our OKR approach makes everyone contribute, which also promotes creative thinking.

Who do you look to for guidance and mentorship?
Our board members, board advisors and investors are always good sparring partners. When it comes to product development, I often talk to customers.

Amniskontorene and the startup’s product: a payment platform for SMEs

The Venture Leaders Fintech roadshow in London is organized by Venturelab in collaboration with Swissnex and supported by EPFL, ETH Zurich and Walder Wyss.

 

The easiest, fastest and most affordable international banking platform for small and medium-sized businesses. Ever. An all-in-one platform that allows you to plan and execute your international payments, collect your money… Read more