The venture capital market in the Czech Republic is becoming more professional, according to the founder of a Czech fintech which has just appointed the country’s “biggest name in fintech” to its board. Startup Malcom Finance, which has rebranded from its previous name of 4Trans, has appointed Michal Šmída, the founder of Czech BNPL firm Twisto, to its board as a non-executive director.
Jaroslav Ton, founder and CEO of Malcom Finance, which provides capital and software solutions for logistics firms, said the Czech VC market is evolving, and that it was "getting more professional". He said: “It is not just about one or two funds anymore like it used to be 10 years ago. Right now, there are plenty of venture capital funds out there. I think that is great news."
On the pluses and minuses of being a Czech-headquartered startup, Ton said one positive was access to strong talent, such as engineers and technical talent. Ton also said that as the Czech Republic is a relatively small country, with a population of around 10 million, it is difficult for Czech startups to create a meaningful company solely domestically.
Ton said: “Being a Prague-headquartered company, from day one we thought about an international perspective. You cannot build a great fintech company just by being a Czech company.” He added that, like other Czech fintechs, the mindset of Malcom Finance, which has offices in Poland and Slovakia, was “to go abroad from day one".
In the negative column, he said in the past it was not that “super easy to get access to capital providers” in the country, given that European capital markets were not extremely integrated, but says this problem has been overcome.
On the appointment of Šmída, Ton said he is “probably the biggest name in the Czech fintech scene”. Founded in 2023, Twisto, dubbed the Czech Republic’s answer to Klarna, was sold to Turkish fintech Param in 2023, leading to Šmída's departure.
The appointment of Šmída comes amid the rebrand of 4Trans to Malcom Finance, the new company named after Malcom McLean, an American trucker who invented container shipping. Ton describes McLean as a “visionary” who “revolutionised” global trade.
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