In conversation with Paula Schumacher

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Paula Schumacher, Fintech Investor at Speedinvest, joined a Club Stage discussion titled “Founders unlocked: How Gen Z is rewriting fintech's rulebook”. Afterwards she stayed to answer a few more questions.

Paula, how would you describe a Gen Z founder and what are you looking for in a founder at Speedinvest?

Paula Schumacher: At Speedinvest, I invest in pre-seed and seed companies. For us, the founder is the most important part when deciding whether to invest. At later stages, you have metrics and data to evaluate, but at the pre-seed stage, it’s really about the founder and their vision. Sometimes there is already a product, but not always.

So, the founder is a huge part of the investment decision. And regardless of whether it’s a Gen Z founder, a millennial, or anyone else, what we want to see is proximity to the problem. Especially in fintech, you really need to live the problem or experience it yourself to be able to solve it.

They might build different companies than millennials would. Millennials might have 10 years of work experience, so they see different problems compared to someone just coming out of university. So, I’d say there are differences in the types of products.

In your panel “Founders Unlocked, How Gen Z is rewriting fintech’s rulebook” you said that Gen Z founders are more open to new tools and also less loyal. Can you elaborate on that?

Schumacher: Gen Z founders are super curious. They get influenced a lot by friends and social media. That curiosity leads to trying new tools.

But when they don’t like something, or when a newer tool comes in, they are not as sticky. They are more likely to switch. On the other hand, older generations tend to be more loyal. Millenial users for example are loyal to their bank, because they have a long-standing relationship, a good reputation, maybe even a physical branch. They are less likely to switch providers. That’s the difference.

Going back to founders, what do people get wrong about Gen Z founders?

Schumacher: Gen Z founders grew up with the internet, they are very tech-oriented, and they tend to think bigger from the start. That’s a great thing.

Sometimes it can also be a bit dangerous, but generally it’s positive. The world has become more connected and feels smaller, and Gen Z really thinks on a bigger scale than older founders might have. And if that turns into reality, it’s amazing to see for Europe.

In that context, would you say you focus more on potential rather than experience?

Schumacher: Yes, 100%. When we invest in a Gen Z founder, we know they don’t have 10 years of work experience. We evaluate their potential and whether we see a spark.

Coachability is also important. As a Gen Z founder, you can’t have all the experience, but there are people who do. If you are open to working with them and acknowledge gaps in your experience and knowledge, which is completely fine, then you can build with others around you.