Introduction 0:01
Welcome to the connector podcast, an ongoing conversation connecting fintechs banks and regulators worldwide. Join CEO and founder toe and Vander Heiden as you learn more about the latest available trends and solutions in the markets.
Koen Vanderhoydonk 0:23
Welcome, everyone, and we're back for another episode of our podcast and still streaming out of Latvia. And now I have a different guest in front of me. He was also pitching today, artists, you are a part of the contest. So can you tell me a bit about yourself about your company? What we're doing here?
Arturs Piliksers 0:45
Yes, my name is outdoors. And the company bonus card was just the idea of mine. And actually, I would say, idea came about 14 years ago,
Koen Vanderhoydonk 1:00
so long back,
Arturs Piliksers 1:01
but it was just the first seed of how it grown up. Because at the beginning, it was one type of business, but further on it developed and about five years ago, it started to focus on on the bonus card, and the bonus card as an instrument because I've been in financial sector for 23 years, I have had very, very many meetings with HR managers, with CFO with those companies, etc. And I, I just felt that there is something missing. There is one difficulty. And as I have been myself a few years budgeting for next year, as HR part, and I've been contacting with CFOs and getting the clients and so on and so forth. I just feel that there's something what should help both and make both parties happy, including hrs and CFOs. And here we go bonus cards is
Koen Vanderhoydonk 2:16
are you not forgetting the employees?
Arturs Piliksers 2:20
Of course, employees as well, because employees is actually a thank you. But employees are the most important part of all this story because everything is about employees, because all the discussions are about employees. And this is actually one of also focuses in our product. Because we have made it too easy to use for everyone, including employees, because when I was developing the product, I just did it as I would use it myself as an if I would like it or not.
Koen Vanderhoydonk 3:01
And what would you say that your product does? You were on stage? And you showed us all a black credit card? Yes. So what does it do what makes it so special
Arturs Piliksers 3:14
is not the color makes it special is the technical filtering what we do makes it special because, for example, in Latvia, their their tax benefits for catering and healthcare expenses, the amount is not so big, like those are 40 euros per month.
Koen Vanderhoydonk 3:35
And that's an amount that has been granted by the employer to the employee. And that
Arturs Piliksers 3:41
is not applicable. And those are 40 years per months or two years per working day. But still, if we count for 50 100 250 employee companies, this is a very, very big money because Euro plus euro is two and so on. And here we are talking about savings of an offshore company people company in Latvia, those are still 30,000 euros tax advantages, according to the law, very transparent and simple.
Koen Vanderhoydonk 4:18
I come from Belgium, and we also have the notion of meal vouchers. So we also get that paid by our employer. And there's obviously tax advantages for both sides because you get a nice net net outcome due to the meal vouchers. So we pretty much use that. But then we have guards which we can only use in Belgium. And I think that for me was really speaking was like wow, yeah, you get you can have like a normal bank card almost. But suddenly the bank art has two different meanings. It has the there is an monthly income on that and you can use it internationally. So that's that's something I really liked. I did get that I know
Arturs Piliksers 5:00
absolutely and actually speaking about Belgium, not only Belgium, but many countries in Europe are having these meal vouchers. And especially for example, in Italy, paper meal vouchers are for four years per month, electronic ones are for eight years per month. Meaning that there's even difference how you use it. Yes. But another interesting story is, like one part of how ideas about the bonus cards came to my mind. I'm quite often in UK, well, just due to different reasons, but the fact is that in very many cafeterias, bars etc, etc, there is sign LV, what means like, Latvia by by country abbreviation, because LTS was saying, Latvia ESD Estonia, but lbs for Latvia. And this is funny thing to see LV on each and every second window. But actually this, of course, for launch vouchers. And as you're saying, the same Belgium or many other countries, what I have realized is that these vouchers can or cars, whatever they can use, they can be used only domestically. And this is what we want to bring into the market. Because our companies in Latvia who are using bonus cards for them, employees are more and more reputable, recognizable employers. And, for example, one of them is giving bonus cards as a Christmas time as a gift for the next year. And they are depositing 480 euros already on the January. And therefore the employees of these companies are calling this as a vacation cards, because they go with this vacation card to have perfect Mediterranean Sea lunch, in Italy, or in Spain or whatever, as a country. Because wherever you go, you just pay and as far as I know, and as far as I have seen, there have been made also payments in Australia, America and some other far countries, because it works around. So
Koen Vanderhoydonk 7:37
would you say that in your offering. One thing is the uniqueness that you can use it everywhere in the world. It's the fact that you can identify what type of yes things that are bought with the cart. That's the second part of the uniqueness of your product, is that correct?
Arturs Piliksers 7:52
Yes. Absolutely. And and why is the reason is simple, because of accountancy purposes, because according to law of Latvia, if you are having any expenses as whatever employee buys, it buys funds, which are given by employer, you shall have to take receipt, on your name and on your personal coach. What is in Latvia, okay, fine, we can ask and you will get it you will get it but as soon as you are outside of Latvia, like like you can forget to get such a receipt. So in any other country, in cafeteria, for example. And that's why this I would call it you are limited but at the same time free to go as the cards are working only as a category category of places which are tax not applicable, for example for Latvia, and the same level Belgium, Italy, Germany, wherever you name it,
Koen Vanderhoydonk 9:08
how does your growth path look like? What have you already established? And what are the next plans for the next two, three years?
Arturs Piliksers 9:17
We are established. We are working in the market about two years. So the last 12 months or like rapid increase. Our number of cars have tripled from 1000 Actually more than tripled from 1000. Last August to three and a half 1000. Today well actually not today but August. And we do know now is that from the first of January, the cards will be about 7000 meanings that they will double in next three months. And this is exponential exponential growth and really syncs to the easiness of product to be used. But, of course, Latvia is quite small markets. And we're not willing to stop here. And my very big dream is to reach 1 million cards in four years time by the end of 2027. Sir, your big
Koen Vanderhoydonk 10:21
hairy goal? Yes. Well, we're almost at the end of our conversation. And I was wondering, how can people help you on that journey? How can people be part of it?
Arturs Piliksers 10:35
Okay. Very simple. We are looking for the first round, the first seed round is 400,000. Investment. This evaluation is actually, of course, not on on a basis of million cards, but much smaller amount, but for the next 18 months, the evolution is to reach 10 Actually, 11 14 million euros. So 14 foot 400,000 versus 14 million euros, it's peanuts. But, of course, we're looking for bigger expansion and for the bigger funds, and to answer the question how you can help or how, how other people can help, like each very good contacts in each country. The same Belgium might help because we even do not know ourselves or we can help with sometimes other people
Koen Vanderhoydonk 11:39
on the streets. Alright, artists, many thanks for joining me in this podcast. Thank you. Thank you.
Arturs Piliksers 11:46
And I think this this meeting has a purpose. Everything has a purpose and everything. Everything has a purpose.
Koen Vanderhoydonk 11:54
Thank you very much again, all. Thank you. Thank you very much to the audience. And stay tuned for more FinTech news. Thank you very much.
Arturs Piliksers 12:00
Thank you. See you in Belgium.
Koen Vanderhoydonk 12:02
Bye bye. Bye.
Introduction 12:04
Thanks for listening to another episode of the connected podcast to connect and keep up to date with all the latest, head over to www dot join. They're connected.com Or hit subscribe via your podcast streaming platform.
Transcribed by https://otter.ai
