Are you looking to invest in companies in Asia but don’t know enough about the business fabric or investment opportunities available? Finquest has developed a unique platform linking institutional investors, M&A advisors and business leaders to help expand investment opportunities. We met with the startup’s co-founders, Tanguy Lesselin and Jérôme Pinneau, for more details.
Conquering the European market from Luxembourg
Headquartered in Luxembourg, Singapore and Hong Kong, Finquest intends to revolutionise the linkage between institutional investors and companies looking for funding. To achieve this, the company has developed a predictive search algorithm and built a unique database only accessible by its platform members. Relying on a strong technical team based at Technoport in Esch-Belval (Luxembourg), Finquest first launched its activities this summer in Asia with clients from Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan and Australia, and now intends to penetrate the market of European investors.
Finquest already references 650,000 organisations, 12,000 institutional investors, 2,500 advisors and 635,000 medium and large enterprises in its database.
Targeting the mid-market
Finquest has noted that investors increasingly want to make investments directly in companies rather than investing solely through funds. On one side, the company will address institutional investors such as investment funds and family offices. On the other, Finquest will target SMEs in all sectors that are achieving a turnover between 10 and 150 million euros and seeking to finance growth or to partially or completely sell their businesses. Within a few months, the company has established a database of more than 650,000 organisations, 12,000 institutional investors, 2,500 advisors and 635,000 enterprises. Among its first clients, Finquest counts private equity funds, family offices, private banks, investment banks, multinational companies and even a government, all eager to expand their activities beyond their natural networks.
Finquest receives financial compensation through annual subscriptions that range from 10,000 to 50,000 euros per year.
Linking via algorithms
From the very beginning, Finquest has bet on big data and data analysis to efficiently scan the market and come back as quickly as possible to customers according to their demands. “We expect the direct linking. Typically, our mission is to provide our clients with qualified contacts who are interested in getting in touch with them,” says Tanguy Lesselin. “The relationship is initiated on the platform, but continues outside the platform.” So, how is the company making money? Finquest receives financial compensation through annual subscriptions that range from 10,000 to 50,000 euros per year. Customers subscribe to a service that entitles them to a defined number of contacts and deals per year. The startup aims to be in line with the interests of its clients and does not take a commission on transactions and investments initiated via the platform.
Growing: internally and in Europe
Finquest now wishes to prepare itself to be in a position to fully achieve its ambitions. Entirely financed through its own funds and a group of private investors, the startup has already signed on its first European customers. It is currently looking at Luxembourg and the possible appetite of investors and businesses seeking to develop or strengthen their positions in Asia. To assist its European customer development, Finquest aims to strengthen its technical and sales teams, as well as increase its database and the volume of link making performed.
