Meet the FinLeap-Team: Nikolai Skatchkov, Head of Business Development

Nikolai Skatchkov is Head of Business Development at FinLeap. He joined the company builder in October 2014.

Nikolai Skatchkov strikes as a driven, dedicated, and extremely intelligent person with experience in consulting, banking and has been working in E-commerce and FinTech for the last years. Born in Moscow, Nikolai grew up in Germany and went on to study in Cologne and New York. After his studies Nikolai moved to Malaysia, where he has set up the operations of Asia’s leading financial comparison platform. Back in Berlin, Nikolai was working for a leading media house in a cross-functional role before joining FinLeap in late 2014.

Nikolai joined the company builder in the very beginning – October 2014. He found out about the opportunity to work at FinLeap in an unusual way: While being in talks about starting a P2P-payment business in Spain, the VC introduced Nikolai to the HitFox Group as a potential EiR for FinLeap. He joined the portfolio company FinReach, where he was responsible for the general business development. Now, Nikolai holds the position of Head of Business Development with an objective to leverage partnerships and establish new business opportunities for FinLeap and its ventures. Today, I interviewed him about his job and his experience at FinLeap.

FinLeap.com: You’ve been with FinLeap for a while now. What’s the most interesting part of your job?

Nikolai: I have the opportunity to look into different business models and support the various existing and new ventures. I play the role of matchmaker between the capabilities of FinLeap and the ventures. I also enjoy interacting with different parties-both internal and external. Apart from supporting the ventures directly, I am also involved in various strategic projects of the company builder itself.

FinLeap.com: What is something you think you’ll have to do in the future to keep up with the fintech trends in your position?

Nikolai: In order to be able to support FinLeap and the growing ventures, I need to expand the company’s network to reach new strategic partners. I also, need to to study the trends and opportunities within the financial services industry as well as the chances which arise from technologies and changes in the market landscape.

FinLeap.com: How does FinLeap differ from your past experiences?

Nikolai: FinLeap cares about its employees and gives them the opportunity to grow. It has successfully established an organization that combines the spirit of entrepreneurs, technologists as well as financial industry experts.

FinLeap.com: Finally, what’s your favorite part about working at FinLeap?

Nikolai: The pace at which we are moving as well as the industry – financial services and within financial services FinTechs have a serious chance of creating value to customers / consumers in Germany, Europe and beyond that. Being part of an industry focused company builder represents a unique view and an very exciting movement.

Nikolai not only explores strategic relationships to collaborate with companies, but also provides a foundation and structure through potential client introductions, investor discovering, and joint venturing to support our ventures in their growth. In his free time, he enjoys learning new things, traveling, and good food (his favorite being Tiramisu).