Throughout our internship we have applied knowledge gained from our studies to carry out our assignments and overcome challenges. We have also gained experiences and insights that have challenged our academic understanding of clusters, innovation processes and the fintech industry. Several tasks were new to us both, such as interviewing board- and cluster members, assisting startups with funding applications, and in-depth research on fintech and sustainability. Moreover, we were tasked with arranging a breakfast-meeting about green financing in the real estate industry with PropTech Innovation which got us to test out some new boundaries. We are so happy that the Finance Innovation–team entrusted us with these tasks.

We now understand that the term ‘fintech’ holds so much more than digitization in the banking and finance industry. The technology is part of the solution rather than just being a driving force. This was a real eye-opener to us and helped us grasp the fintech-industry at another level. Finance Innovation possesses a diverse and knowledgeable network, and we feel fortunate for the encounters and discussions we have had with colleagues and cluster members. Their insights towards the fintech-industry and their enthusiasm in developing opportunities has truly been an inspiration. Additionally, we got to experience what it is like to be a part of a thriving cluster ecosystem and the synergies that can come out of it.

As the saying goes – all good things must come to an end, and our time as interns in Finance Innovation went by a little too quickly.
We are honoured to have had the opportunity to be a part of the team and to be included as “one of their own”. Without you we would not have gotten the chance to gain such deep insight into this fast-growing industry. We would like to extend the biggest thanks to the Finance Innovation-team, and especially to our mentor Rea Parashar who has welcomed, entrusted and guided us through this experience. We would also like to extend our appreciation to the cluster for welcoming us. We have been inspired to explore more of what this field has to offer.

- Sigrid & Astrid -