More than 20 startups competed before a jury consisting of six investors
The largest regional FinTech conference, Money Motion 2025, kicked off at the Zagreb Fair, attracting over 2,000 attendees on its first day. This figure surpasses the total attendance of last year’s edition. During the opening ceremony, the event’s founders confirmed that the conference continues to grow annually, with a 25% increase this year, and expressed their ambition to become the largest FinTech conference in Europe.
“Everything has increased – more speakers, more content, more networking opportunities. We are grateful to our sponsors, including ASEE, Mastercard, Monri, A1 Hrvatska, Croatia osiguranje, LAQO, OTP Bank, and about 30 other brands that have supported the conference,” said Nikola Škorić, co-founder of Money Motion, at the opening.
Co-founder Luka Sučić highlighted the impressive participation of 20 startups this year and the visible growth in interest over the past two years.
One of the most attended sessions focused on the future of retail payments, presented by Milan Gauder, co-founder of frēda. Gauder emphasized the decline in cash usage, which accelerated after the pandemic, and the rapid adoption of instant payments, especially in developing countries like India and Brazil.
“For comparison, it took 50 to 60 years for Western countries, including Croatia, to reach a similar level of adoption. The key to success in the East is QR codes. These countries bypassed card payments entirely, adopting QR codes directly, achieving in just five years what took the West ten times longer. I believe that within the next five years, Europe will need to develop an alternative payment system. This is the key, and you must start working on it now,” he concluded.
A panel discussion on changes in payment methods brought together notable names, including Ignacio Terol from the European Central Bank, Dwayne Gefferie, Krzysztof Sobala from Mastercard, and Silvia Mensdorff-Pouilly from WorldPay. The discussion was moderated by Damir Čaušević, CEO of Monri Payments and co-founder of the conference. Panelists concluded that while payments are rapidly transforming, cards remain relevant, albeit in an evolved, tokenized form. Sobala noted that instant payments now account for 80% of Mastercard transactions.
A particularly engaging talk was delivered by Federico Paderni from platform X (formerly Twitter), discussing trends in financial content on social media. He highlighted the rapid growth of video content and the platform’s importance for financial institutions. “All key financial leaders are on X, exchanging insights and engaging with brands,” he stated.
Natalia Leichmanova from the Mastercard Economics Institute provided an economic outlook for Croatia, emphasizing the country’s strong consumer spending power and rising purchasing capacity, particularly in tourism and experiential spending. “Today, purchasing power in Croatia is higher than in 2019, pre-pandemic. This is not the case in Germany, but it is in the region. As a result, Croatian consumers have regained their highest confidence levels, increasingly spending on experiences, entertainment, and memorable moments.”
A panel on the strategic application of artificial intelligence in banking featured Tim Rutten from Backbase, Josip Majher from Hrvatska poštanska banka, Zvonimir Mavretić from ASEE, Vjekoslav Bonić from Raiffeisen Bank International, and Nenad Crnčec from Architech. The discussion emphasized the importance of personalized user experiences and the transformative impact of AI on banking operations.
Piotr Jelenski from ASEE Group presented insights into building a market leader, stating that ASEE continuously seeks profitable businesses that can become profitable within one to two years. “Founders tend to overvalue their businesses by up to 30%, but we focus on strong revenue-generating capabilities and unique intellectual property that is difficult to replicate.”
“My dream is to double our size in the next few years. We have already expanded into Spain and Portugal, followed by Turkey, Egypt, and India. While we remain active in developed markets, we are increasingly targeting large emerging markets.”
The program also emphasized retail-focused topics, featuring a panel with Berislav Marszalek from Entrio, Borko Buturac from Aircash, Maja Fočić from Monri Payments, Bono van Nijnatten, and Michal Baštar from Visa, discussing key drivers of online shopping and payments.
“Across Europe, consumer behavior is remarkably similar. Users do not want to install separate apps for every small service. Our data shows that when offered a unified solution integrating multiple services, user engagement and adoption increase,” Buturac noted.
Marszalek added, “When we started, we aimed to digitalize payments, but we were 3 to 5 years ahead of the market’s needs. We soon realized that our business was failing because consumers still preferred cash transactions. Today, cash payments make up only a small fraction of total transactions and will soon drop below 10%.”
Another key topic at this year’s conference was the future of the insurance industry. A panel discussion on trends in the sector featured Ana Zovko from Croatia osiguranje and LAQO, Ervin Jagetić from Infobip, Oscar Paz de la Fuente from insurNOW, and Simon Kaesler from McKinsey & Company.
Zovko opened the panel with an overview of the industry, noting that currently, 10% of insurance in Europe is sold digitally. “Although digital insurance hasn’t revolutionized the industry like Spotify did for music, I strongly believe the future lies in a seamless user experience and even simpler contracting. And this trend is clearly growing.”
A panel on digital identity stressed the importance of preparing for 2026, when all EU citizens will be required to have digital personal documents. Belgium currently leads in implementation. Sebastian Theisen from Entrust highlighted the regulatory complexities facing Germany, stressing the need for more accessible digital wallets to simplify public service interactions. Valentina Dragomir from Evrotrust emphasized the importance of secure and legally compliant user identification, while Ingo Rübe from KILT Protocol warned about the balance between state control and user privacy, pointing out risks associated with Big Tech dominance.
In the panel on payment trends in the EU, participants highlighted the growing importance of generative artificial intelligence, which Viktoria Merkoulova from Nexi Group presented through their GenAI Lab, focusing on practical applications in business processes. Panagiotis Kriaris from Unzer emphasized the importance of the functionality of digital payments, warning that Europe often incorrectly focuses on speed rather than user value.
Jordan Graison pointed out the lack of public debate surrounding the introduction of the digital euro, while Antonio Argir from NLB Group highlighted that GenAI technology poses a challenge in smaller markets due to their specificities. Finally, Christian Rau from Mastercard spoke about the transformation of payment methods, noting the decline in the use of plastic cards in favor of virtual ones, the importance of cryptocurrency regulation, and the growing collaboration with the public sector on central bank digital currencies.
A particularly exciting part of the program was the Startup stage, where 20 innovative startups competed for the attention and favor of a panel of six experienced investors. The most attention was drawn to a dynamic “fight club” style discussion between three representatives of different startup financing models: one startup self-financed (bootstrapping), another using a bank loan, and the third supported by an investment fund. On Friday, the event will shift focus to future topics with FinTech2030, and by the end of the program, the winners of the Startup competition will be revealed.
Tickets for Money Motion 2026 will be available from Friday evening, March 28, on the Entrio platform. Super Blind Bird tickets will be sold for 129 euros.
