Meet our distinguished guests:

LHoFT welcomed an impressive lineup of distinguished guests from across the financial and fintech sectors. Among them were H.E. Gilles Roth – Luxembourg Minister of Finance, alongside industry leaders such as Craig Blair (Franklin Templeton), Jerome Benoit (EFG Bank), and Yves Nosbusch (BGL BNP Paribas). We were also joined by top executives:  Boika Deleva – Counsel – Banking, Finance and Capital Markets, Clifford Chance; Roger Kraemer and Jacques Putz from BCEE; Grégory Weber – Managing Director, PwC Luxembourg; Dieter Putzeys – Partner, KPMG; Giulia Pescatori – Senior Manager, Deloitte; Analia Clouet – Secretary General, Raiffesein.

We signed two MOUs: LHoFT + Plug and Play  | LHoFT + Fintech Center Korea

LHoFT officially signed these Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) marking the beginning of a strategic collaboration to drive innovation and digital transformation in Luxembourg’s financial sector. This partnership is a major milestone, aligning two organizations with a shared mission to scale impactful innovation, and foster strong connections across the global fintech ecosystem.

CEO Panel: The State of Luxembourg’s Financial Industry

The CEO Panel: The State of Luxembourg’s Financial Industry delivered sharp insights into the sector’s future, spotlighting innovation, digital transformation, and sustainability. Luxembourg is stepping up as a forward-thinking financial hub — agile, adaptive, and ready to lead. With our CEO, Nasir Zubairi; Yves Stein – CEO, ABBL; Claude Marx – General Director, CSSF; Thierry Flamand – President Exec. Committee, CAA; Marc Hengen – Managing Director, ACA Luxembourg; Stephane Pesch – CEO, LPEA and Serge Weyland – CEO, ALFI.

New Catapult Acceleration Program Announcement 

Our CEO, Nasir Zubairi, and Yves Stein, Chairman Board of Directors at ABBL, launched Catapult: BankTech – Depositary Banking Edition , a one-week program designed to help fintechs break into Luxembourg’s banking sector. Focused on growth, networking, and market access, this exclusive bootcamp offers early-stage fintechs a unique opportunity to connect with industry leaders and scale their impact. Applications are now open HERE.

Next-Gen Finance in Action: The AI Experience Centre Initiative

Our CEO, Nasir Zubairi, our AI Experience Center Manager, Esli Spahiu, and our Partners: Yves Cabanac – Managing Director France, BeNeLux and Africa, Plug and Play; Laurens Vanryckeghem – BeNeLux Lead, Plug and Play; Arthur Bessières – Principal, Plug and Play, introduced the upcoming AI Experience Centre initiative designed to inspire and showcase next-generation AI solutions in financial services. A living hub where AI solutions in financial services will be explored and demonstrated.

Panel: Fintech for Good

Annabelle Albert – Head of Acceleration Programs, LHoFT; Lisette Cipriano – Principal Digital Technology Specialist, Asian Development Bank (ADB); Begaim Sadyrova – Seed Capital Investment Manager, Triple Jump; Nic Balaceanu – Founder & CEO, Lenrise; Axel De Ville – Chairman, Financing Innovation Tool, FIT, came together to discuss how financial technology is transforming access to financial services for underserved populations. The conversation highlighted innovative solutions—from mobile banking and micro-loans to decentralized finance (DeFi) and digital insurance—that are bridging the gap left by traditional financial institutions.

Panel: Fintech Trends to Watch in 2025 & Beyond

Alex Panican – Deputy CEO, LHoFT; Sungkyun SON – General Manager, Fintech Center Korea; Alice Rettig – Managing Director, TechQuartier; Nikola Škorić – CEO, Electrocoin d.o.o; Takeshi Kito – Co-founder & CEO, GFTN Japan, offered valuable insights into the future of financial technology, spotlighting key innovations and shifts shaping the industry. They also discussed the growing role of AI and generative AI in personalization and risk management, the rise of embedded finance across non-financial platforms, and the expanding influence of decentralized finance.

Catapult: Financial Inclusion SE ASIA 2025

Our Catapult: SE ASIA cohort has had a packed schedule from deep-dive mentoring at the LHoFT to connecting with the Luxembourg’s financial industry at Nexus2025. Along the way, they’ve had the chance to engage with brilliants mentors, speakers and key ecosystem players committed to advancing inclusive finance.

Catapult: Future Foundation – Finalists Presentation

In a dynamic showcase at the Catapult: Future Foundation finale, our Program Manager, Anna Sobkow, guided the audience through the innovative solutions presented by three standout finalists, each redefining how collaboration and mutualization can drive impactful change: Henning Swabey –  CCO, Governance.com: Gerard Hoffmann – CEO, Proximus Luxembourg and Vincent Pignon, Ph.D – CEO, Wecan Group; Laurent Denayer – CEO, ume presented their solutions. Each finalist illustrated the transformative potential of mutualization in finance—proving that when innovation meets collaboration, the future becomes more inclusive, resilient, and shared.

Finale: Women in Finance & Technology Program

Led by our Head of Education & Talent Antony Martini, the Women in Finance & Technology finale was a powerful celebration of innovation, leadership, and vision. The event brought together an inspiring group of female entrepreneurs who took the stage to pitch their groundbreaking fintech startups to a panel of distinguished mentors and judges.

The winning team, ExploDORA, an AI powered DORA compliance co-pilot. It spots the gaps and suggests fixes and gives a remediation plan for getting aligned with Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA).

Second place went to Greenfi and Third place was awarded to Letzbank.