„Many startups dream about one day hitting the fabled €1bn valuation and being labeled a unicorn. However, very few openly announce their ambitions before closing their first funding round. Depowise belongs to the latter category,“ writes Silicon Luxembourg.

Launched in Estonia in 2021 and a member of the LHoFT since 2023, Depowise has rapidly emerged as an exciting player in Luxembourg’s fintech industry. To consolidate and expand its European presence, the fintech appointed former KPMG partner Melanie Moos as its Luxembourg country manager in April 2024. Melanie shares insights into the company’s ambitions to automate the asset servicing chain, expand its presence in Luxembourg, and achieve unicorn status within the next seven years.

Melanie Moos, the fintech’s newly appointed Luxembourg country manager, is unafraid to admit that joining this journey was part of the appeal for her to leave her partner position at KPMG.

“It’s not only marketing that we want to be a unicorn. So for me, it was very exciting to be part of the journey and see how we can go from 15 to 50 to 100 employees and multiply the top lines by more than the same,” explains Melanie.

The company aims to increase its current 5% market share tenfold in the domiciled funds market of Luxembourg, Ireland, and the UK, valued at more than €16.5tn. Over the next five years, Depowise plans to achieve a volume of assets on the platform of €8tn and become a market leader.

The Call of Entrepreneurship

Melanie’s leap into entrepreneurship was driven by her desire to engage more directly with the entrepreneurial side of the financial services industry. Having held leadership roles at KPMG and Clearstream, she is no stranger to leading ambitious projects and managing innovative products. However, the opportunity to lean more into her entrepreneurial side and lead the development and expansion of an industry-leading product was too big a draw to resist.

“I really wanted to be even more on the entrepreneurial side of things. It’s something that had been on my mind for quite some time already. In addition, I firmly believe that AI represents a monumental shift similar to the surge of the internet. Just as we had to adapt to the digital age, we must now learn to optimise the capabilities of artificial intelligence. I want to be an actor in this transformation,” Melanie explains.

From Estonia to Luxembourg

First established at the end of 2021 in Estonia by IT veterans Sven Peekmann (co-founder and co-CEO) and Mait Poska (co-founder and CTO), and ex-Bloomberg executive Artur Reiter (co-founder and co-CEO), Depowise was conceived to become a “one-stop solution” for asset servicers.

“Despite the significant pace of automation, a substantial portion of the industry continues to rely on manual processes for critical tasks. Our advanced technology is designed to enhance operational efficiency, mitigate risk, and improve the robustness of our customers’ services, ultimately unlocking scalable and viable efficiencies for their operations.,” explains Melanie. With its working product already up and running with 20 clients – including many Tier 1 players – on board, Depowise is showing all the signs of a leading fintech in the making.

“My role is to help the founders really go from a successful startup into something bigger and scalable,” Melanie explains.

This involves not only scaling the business but also accelerating customer outreach and making the business more visible in Luxembourg and the EMEA region.

Melanie has already made significant strides in expanding the company’s customer base since joining Depowise. “I’ve met a lot of prospects and existing customers. It’s very promising, as we see that all players (UCITS & Alternatives) are looking at ways to streamline their processes and use digital tools to deliver higher-quality services,” she notes.

Already at the LHoFT since 2023, Depowise has had Luxembourg on its roadmap since the beginning. Its broad range of potential customers, international scope, central location, and strong financial regulations, make it an undeniably attractive choice for the young fintech. “Being in Luxembourg is super important for us to catch the needs of our customers and ensure that our product remains relevant through regulatory updates and new market and tech trends,” says Melanie.

Although Melanie only just started in her capacity as managing director, she says that they’ve hit the ground running. Indeed, existing customers have extended their licenses to other locations, local fintechs are keen to collaborate, and Depowise are actively exploring other jurisdictions such as Asia. “The market demand is even higher than I thought,” confirms Melanie, who also hinted that the product has even garnered attention from other segments such as the insurance industry.

An AI-Driven Unicorn Project

While Depowise is adamant about its unicorn ambitions, the team is also keenly aware that this is a long-term project. A 7-year project to be precise, says Melanie, who wants to help Depowise achieve this goal “before 2031”. Two of the key aspects which support the fintech’s ambitions include the high demand and the large addressable market. The fintech’s confidence in having the right product-market fit is bolstered by a strong focus on keeping up with the latest technological and product developments.

Once Depowise is able to offer a full SaaS model – to be completed before the end of October – it will be able to scale its solution even faster. “We are focusing on delivering a robust SaaS solution that can scale with our customers’ needs. Our aim is to provide a flexible and scalable platform that can integrate seamlessly with existing systems,” she explains.

This strategy is designed to allow Depowise to remain at the forefront of technological and regulatory advances, all while maximizing the speed they can scale at. “We are always looking ahead, ensuring that our technology stack is up-to-date and that we are incorporating the latest adva ncements in the industry,” Melanie says.“One of our fears is becoming a legacy product that is hard to update and adapt.”

In line with these goals, Depowise is also expanding the integration of artificial intelligence to enhance its solution. “We are looking at how we can leverage AI even more to automate more complex tasks, provide deeper insights, and ultimately deliver more value to our customers. For example, AI can help in predictive analytics, identifying trends, and optimizing operations in ways that were not possible before,” explains Melanie.

“AI is not just a buzzword for us. We are committed to ensuring its practical and secure implementation to enhance our offerings. We’re also exploring partnerships with other fintechs and leading tech firms to broaden our scope.”

Depowise’s AI ambitions are not just about automation. They are also focused on improving customer experience and satisfaction. “Our goal is to use AI to deliver personalized services and proactive support to our clients. This can transform how they interact with our platform and significantly enhance their overall experience,” Melanie adds.

Fundraising and Expansion

Although Depowise is already profitable, the fintech is considering raising its first round by the end of the year. “We are at a cornerstone moment for Depowise and need to accelerate to maintain our momentum. Improving our product, expanding our geographical reach, and increasing the size of our tech teams are critical to achieving our ambitions,” says Melanie.

On top of this, Depowise aims to onboard between nine and twelve new clients in Luxembourg and hire a couple of new positions, including product managers and senior project leaders for the Luxembourg team. This strategic focus on Luxembourg is part of Depowise’s broader European goal. “Our target is to reach 50% of the depositories in terms of volume, so assets under custody, in Europe,” says Melanie.

Depowise may have a long way to go to reach its European and unicorn goals, but it is evident that the team behind the rising fintech is ready for the challenge.

“We already know that the product is a perfect fit for depositaries, now it’s about increasing our visibility and making sure our product meets our customers’ needs,” explains Melanie.

Moreover, Melanie emphasizes the importance of a strong team in achieving their ambitious goals. “We have an incredibly talented and dedicated team at Depowise with backgrounds in leading firms such as Blackrock, MSCI, and others. The team expertise and commitment are what drive our success, and we are always looking to bring in new talent that can contribute to our growth and innovation,” she says.

This blog post is adapted from the original Silicon Luxembourg article with minor edits.

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