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Tradeplus 24 opens Asia Pacific Headquarters in Melbourne as part of its global expansion
(SWITZERLAND 2020)
Tradeplus 24 specialises in providing small and medium enterprises (SME’s) with finance to support their working capital needs. Its solution offers SMEs an automated credit line against their accounts receivable, and the ability to insure their global accounts receivables against default, enabling SME’s to grow their business in a financially sound way.
Switzerland based Tradeplus24 was created by a team of entrepreneurs from the banking and insurance industry and is now backed by Credit Suisse, SIX Group and Berliner Volksbank Ventures as major investors.
In 2018, Tradeplus24 was selected as a Top10 Swiss Fintech by Venturelab and has been awarded the Swiss Working Capital Management Award in the category Innovation by the University Sankt Gallen and Postfinance.
Its Melbourne headquarters will be its first operation outside of Zurich, Switzerland.
We were fortunate enough to catch up with Adam Lane, Managing Director to ask him about their Victorian investment journey.
- What attracted you/your company to invest in Victoria?
After receiving financial backing, we were able to start exploring our international expansion options. While arguably for the international observer, Sydney would be the logical choice, it was the research the team did from Zurich that led us to understand Melbourne was probably the rightful home for what will be our Asia Pacific headquarters. Basing ourselves in Melbourne allowed us to be closer to our clients and with 95% of Australian businesses being SME’s, it provides us with a great platform to grow our business over the next five years.
- What challenges did you face when you were exploring/entering/expanding into Victoria?
The tyranny of distance and time zones presented a logistical challenge but once the local leader had been appointed, it became much easier. Finding a leader who was familiar with the local Victorian market was something we did very early.
- How did working with Invest Victoria help with your investment journey?
Working with Austrade we sought information from other Australian jurisdictions, but the Victorian government was by far the most responsive. Invest Victoria's assistance ensured the Zurich team understood everything from setting up a bank account, to finding office space, and familiarising the founders with the city. The Australian MD Adam Lane commented on the responsiveness of the Victorian Government and acknowledged that the information provided assisted the team in choosing Melbourne. “They were very keen to try to understand what we were going to do and to extend their networks to us.”
- What advice do you have for other global businesses looking to invest in Victoria to improve their chance of success?
Connect with the team at InvestVic and Austrade early in the process. They can really help you navigate everything from the logistical to the strategic. They are natural connecters and have active networks right across metropolitan and regional Victoria.
