The Recursive Podcast

The Recursive Media
The Recursive Podcast

The Recursive podcast is your weekly wander inside the minds of innovation leaders across SouthEast Europe. Each week our hosts cozy up with a digital economy champion and dive deep into their life philosophy, values, leadership style, and personal development. Join us for inspirational stories on how to grow, learn and think big.

  1. 2024/11/05

    Being Close to Death Brought Me Closer to My Mission - Cosmin Curticapean #TheRecursivePodcast E106

    How can extreme sports change your view on life & business? In this episode of The Recursive Podcast, Cosmin Curticapean takes us through his entrepreneurial journey that began in 1995, spanning industries from telecommunications to fintech. In 2016, he founded LENDOX, a tech startup focused on alternative financing solutions for small and medium-sized enterprises. Since then, LENDOX has secured around €3.5M in investment, fueling its growth in this innovative sector. Beyond building companies, Cosmin actively supports the startup ecosystem. He co-founded the Romanian Fintech Association, mentors aspiring entrepreneurs, and acts as an angel investor through Techangels Romania. In this conversation with Elena Vrabie, he discusses: - The lessons his father taught him that shaped his entrepreneurial mindset - How meeting his wife helped him embrace authenticity - The future of fintech in Romania and beyond Timestamps 0:00 Trailer 2:30 Building the first business in 1995 and Cosmin’s entrepreneurial journey 14:46 Cosmin’s leadership style and why authenticity is important 21:22 How LENDOX helps SMEs with alternative financing by leveraging AI 33:04 Building a fintech company in a highly regulated market 39:39 The culture & standouts members of LENDOX 45:11 The current state of fintech of Romania vs globally 50:37 Cosmin’s take on angel investing in CEE 55:54 What the future holds for LENDOX

    59 分鐘
  2. 2024/10/18

    There are people who work and those who think ft. Bogdan Iordache #TheRecursivePodcast E105

    What was it like to study AI back in 2003, and how does it pay off today? In this episode of The Recursive Podcast, Bogdan Iordache shares his journey from becoming a CTO at just 21 years old to his evolution as a successful investor. Bogdan is a prominent person not only in Romania’s startup ecosystem, but in CEE. Over the years, he has worn many hats—founder, advisor, event organizer—and today, he plays a leading role as an investor. Just a year ago, he announced the first close of Underline Ventures with $20M in funding. Bogdan is also the founder of How to Web, one of the region’s most prominent tech conferences. In his conversation with Irina Obushtarova, he discusses: - Why he didn’t enjoy being a founder, but loves being an investor - Passing the reins of How to Web to Alex Agatinei and Monica Zara - Underline VC's approach to identifying excellent founders ______________ Timestamps 0:00 Trailer 1:33 Reflections on How To Web Conference & how it started 7:36 Doing business as a teenager and how selling sunglasses paid off 16:18 Getting a degree in AI in 2003 and what was it about 11 year ago 19:21 Becoming a CTO at 21 y/o in 2000 and challenging your superiors 26:56 Leaving for France, but finding the way back to Romania 31:08 Founder life vs investor and what is Bogdan better at 43:12 Underline VC’s checklist for finding investable founders 51:38 Bogdan’s daily routine and non-negotiables ______________ If you would like to find out more about these topics… CHECK OUT 🟣 https://therecursive.com/ OR SUBSCRIBE to our NEWSLETTER 🟣 https://join.therecursive.com/signup 🎆Get in line for our 2024 AI report!🎆 https://therecursive.com/future-of-ai...

    1 小時
  3. 2024/09/20

    "Perfect Marriage" Between Founders and Investors ft. Pedja Predin | #TheRecursivePodcast E103

    What makes a “perfect marriage” between founders and investors? In this episode of The Recursive podcast we explore investor’s dilemma and founder’s mindset with Pedja Predin. He is General Partner at Fifth Quarter Ventures, a new early-stage venture capital fund creating global success stories from Southeast Europe. Pedja has over 12 years of experience in venture capital, corporate strategy, business development, and global expansion. Before establishing his own fund, he was a venture capital investor at South Central Ventures. In his conversation with Irina Obushtarova, he talks about: - The importance of the diaspora bringing in new perspectives - The challenge of cultural and historical attitudes towards feedback - Chemistry and collaboration between investors and founders ______________ 0:00 Trailer 1:25 The stepping stone to venture capital 8:35 Scaling to the US and other major markets 12:22 The founder’s mindset that scores higher 20:19 Achieving a level of maturity as an investor 27:06 Region’s potential in AI 30:00 The importance of the talent pool 32:42 VCs community involvement in future innovation 36:38 The “dating” process between founders and investors 38:41 Staying on top of the game 45:07 The symptoms of a good investor 51:23 Outro ______________ Follow Pedja and Fifth Quarter Ventures:   / pedjapredin1986    / fifthquarterventures   Follow The Recursive (Team)!   / the-recursive   Irina Obushtarova -   / irina-obushtarova   If you would like to find out more about these topics… CHECK OUT 🟣 https://therecursive.com/ OR SUBSCRIBE to our NEWSLETTERS 🟣 https://join.therecursive.com/signup 🎆Get in line for our 2024 AI report!🎆 https://therecursive.com/future-of-ai...

    52 分鐘
  4. How a Cup of Coffee Can Turn You Into a VC Investor with Karol Szubstarski from OTB Ventures Ep.100

    2024/07/10

    How a Cup of Coffee Can Turn You Into a VC Investor with Karol Szubstarski from OTB Ventures Ep.100

    For today’s episode, we talked with Karol Szubstarski, a venture investor at OTB Ventures. With over a decade of experience in the realm of venture capital, Karol brings a blend of traditional and corporate VC expertise to the table. He spent five years as an Associate and Investment Analyst at Intel Capital, identifying opportunities across Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, to name a few. In his current role at OTB Ventures, Karol spearheads investments in Series A opportunities, focusing on deep tech. In this episodes, he shares about: How personal experiences fuels his professional career His transition to the VC world under the guidance of Marcin Hejka The advantages and disadvantages of the Polish startup ecosystem 0:00 Trailer 1:33 Intro 2:25 Backpacking through Asia with two broken arms & other challenges 5:19 Karol’s adventure with the VC world and DeepTech 10:41 What are the skills a DeepTech investor should have? 12:09 Karol’s skills and learnings from Intel Capital and OTB Ventures 15:52 Perspective on the DeepTech ecosystem in CEE 21:27 Strengths of the Polish startup ecosystem 24:23 Challenges of European tech startups for scaling globally 27:42 How OTB Ventures assesses the investment opportunities 39:45 Striking the right risk vs advantage balance 42:19 Can CEE startups get money from US investors right from the start? 44:55 How to differentiate yourself as a VC fund? 47:17 Building the top team for OTB’s portfolio companies 51:24 The leap of faith in investment decisions 52:42 What’s needed to be a good VC investor? 55:05 The CEE VC ecosystem and the lack of private capital 57:45 How will the CEE startup ecosystem look in the future? 1:03:40 How is OTB Ventures adapting to the technological advancements 1:10:00 Outro

    1 小時 10 分鐘

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簡介

The Recursive podcast is your weekly wander inside the minds of innovation leaders across SouthEast Europe. Each week our hosts cozy up with a digital economy champion and dive deep into their life philosophy, values, leadership style, and personal development. Join us for inspirational stories on how to grow, learn and think big.

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