From 11 to 13 April 2016, HRH the Hereditary Grand Duke, the Minister of Finance and a Luxembourg delegation were in the US State of California to promote Luxembourg as a European reference hub in the field of Fintech and to learn about the latest trends and technological developments.

To kick off the visit, HRH the Hereditary Grand Duke and Minister of Finance, Pierre Gramegna, visited the Plug and Play Tech Center in Sunnyvale, which has become one of the leading incubators/accelerators in Silicon Valley since it was founded in 2006. The Plug and Play Tech Center represents a source of inspiration for the Luxembourg House of Financial Technology (LHoFT) and the Luxembourg delegation used the opportunity to speak with startups and encourage them to consider the Grand Duchy as the headquarters for their future European activities.

The following day, Minister Gramegna was received as a guest at the Baypay Forum as part of the BayPay Forum Thought Leadership Series. In meeting with Daniel Chatelain, founder of the BayPay Forum, before an audience of industry professionals, the Minister gave his views on the anticipated developments of the financial sector, highlighting Luxembourg as a region of openness, dynamism and reliability, as well as its long tradition of financial innovation.

HRH the Hereditary Grand Duke and Pierre Gramegna also held meetings with the boards of PayPal and Ebay affiliate Stubhub! to discuss their respective development strategies and Luxembourg's posiiton in this context. The delegation also visited a number of other Fintech companies interested in establishing or enhancing their presence in Luxembourg.

The visit also enabled a follow-up with Wells Fargo Asset Management following the mission of the Minister of Finance in San Francisco in March 2014. Subsequently, Wells Fargo was established in December 2014 in the Grand Duchy with a management company. The bank now plans to further strengthen its presence in the country.

"The mission showed that the diversification strategy pursued by the government is working," stated Pierre Gramegna. "We anticipate therefore, in the coming months, new electronic money license applications, as well as the location of new activities in Luxembourg".

 

Photo by MFIN (L-R): HRH the Grand Duke; Daniel Chatelain, founder of the BayPay Forum; Pierre Gramegna