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ICT JULY 2022

CONVERSATION

Anders Dam Jensen: Harnessing the power of supercomputing – RISTRETTO

Fabrice Dewasmes on tech trends to keep an eye on – DOSSIER

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The digital divide

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It is something of a contradiction. On the one hand, the Meluxina supercomputer in Bissen is performing high-speed calculations in the name of science, research and development.

At the same time, some households in Luxembourg still lack access to broadband internet, and the government is investing in a dedicated strategy to get them connected.

This digital divide stretches into other areas, such as the mismatch between the skills of jobseekers and the demands of the market. Three quarters of companies in Luxembourg report difficulties in recruiting ICT staff, more than elsewhere in the EU. Still, the country has above-EU average rates of digital literacy and ICT experts in the job market. It somehow ranks 11th in the EU on digital public services, but anyone who has been refused a covid-19 test because they hadn’t printed their doctor’s emailed prescription will probably scoff at this statistic.

There is a plethora of programmes dedicated to digitalisation, from coding for kids to Luxinnovation’s Fit4Digital scheme to help companies in their digital transformation, from computer classes for the elderly to the planned House of Cybersecurity and Finnovation fintech research hub. All of them show that digitalisation permeates almost every aspect of life, from how we work and learn to healthcare, how we do business and connect with others.

Here, too, we risk a chasm between those immersed in the metaverse, cryptocurrencies and NFTs, and those for whom these terms are little more than buzzwords.

Far from turning the world upside down in an instant, digitalisation has been happening gradually for many decades even if the latest developments seem to be taking place at ever greater speed. As we move forward, Luxembourg will have to defend its place as a digital frontrunner and put its money where its mouth is to silence the critics for whom the grand duchy is ever limping just a few steps behind.

Journalist CORDULA SCHNUER

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JULY 2022 ICT

Editorial #Digitalisation

PUB VIDE xxxx.

ICT July 2022

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06 ON THE RADAR

Luxembourg’s digital performance

18

Entering the “reality-induced bubble”

Ristretto

10 #DIGITALVALUE – FABRICE DEWASMES

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“Companies aren’t afraid of experimenting”

20

“We will talk about mixed reality”

–

12 #FUTUREOFCRYPTOSANDNFTS

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14 CONVERSATION WITH ANDERS DAM JENSEN

“If we stop investing, then we’ll lose what we’ve won”

Setting a new frontier for regulation –

24 TOOLBOX

p.14

Four digital inclusion initiatives

EuroHPC CEO Anders Dam Jensen on developing high-performance computing in the EU

26 CONVERSATION WITH GUY HARLES

“Transform Luxembourg into an international ICT hub of choice” 30 SUCCESS STORIES

Four leading women in ICT 34 FORECAST

Photo

Guy Wolff / Illustration

Salomé Jottreau

Are we facing five more years of fintechs versus banks?

p. 18 The metaverse: from investment opportunities to privacy challenges

JULY 2022 ICT

Dossier INTO THE METAVERSE

On the radar

6

JULY 2022 ICT

Luxembourg’s digital performance

67%

Luxembourg ranks sixth in the EU’s digital society index on human capital, with aboveaverage scores on all three digital literacy indicators. But 67% of companies trying to recruit ICT specialists reported difficulties in filling vacancies, above an EU average of 55%.

4th

The grand duchy is fourth in the EU on connectivity, with the country almost fully covered by fast fixed broadband networks and broad availability of very high-capacity networks.

8%

Companies in Luxembourg are lagging behind the EU when it comes to e-commerce, with only 9% of SMEs selling online, compared to 17% across the member countries. On the other hand, more businesses use AI, big data and electronic information sharing.

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14.04

60

50

15.24

40

9.85

30

19.84

20

10

Luxembourg scores 97 out of 100 points in the provision of digital public services to businesses. Nearly two-thirds of individuals (64%) use the internet to interact with public services.

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DESI

3 QUESTIONS TO

EU Digital Economy and Society Index

LAURENT PEUSCH

Head of employer services at Adem

The European Commission since 2014 has been monitoring the digital progress of EU member countries through the Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI). The report aims to help governments identify priorities for policy decisions in key areas: human capital, connectivity, integration of digital technology and digital public services.

Source

EU

More than two thirds of companies in Luxembourg report difficulties to recruit ICT staff. Are there any kinds of roles in particularly high demand?

What we see is based on our numbers and the vacancies posted with us. We know that there are more. Developers are in the lead, consultants, customer relationship management, but also APIs, analysts and cybersecurity. Something that’s more transversal is project management. You can ask whether that’s an ICT job or more linked to digital skills.

For me, it’s both.

Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI) 2021

Digital public services Integration of digital technology

11.76

Connectivity Human capital

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Adem launched the Future Skills Initiative to adapt its programmes to better meet the needs of the market. Is it possible to become an ICT specialist later in your career?

In the Coding Jobs programme, we train junior developers in four months in different programming languages. There are people in their mid-40s who have a whole career behind them. Our training doesn’t substitute a bachelor or master’s degree. We reskill to a certain level and upskill.

Photo

17.01

Adem

Even for roles that aren’t specifically in ICT, digital skills are becoming increasingly important. Where are the biggest gaps?

Slowly but surely, we are reaching a point where there are hardly any jobs where you don’t need digital skills. There are things that are required everywhere.

Microsoft Office is basic, but we still see people who don’t know the difference between Word and Excel. IT skills were maybe previously tied to white-collar jobs, but it’s industry 4.0. There is no sector where IT skills aren’t needed.

9.39

EU

JULY 2022 ICT

The grand duchy ranks in the top 10 in the EU on its digital performance, with high scores on digital literacy and connectivity, but the country will have to deliver a steady supply of specialists to fill ICT jobs.

On the radar

8

Recruitment JULY 2022 ICT

More than half of ICT roles expected to be hired in the next two years will be new positions, according to an industry report published by the ABBL and Fedil.

Fewer companies took part in the 2022 edition of the survey than in 2020, with the pandemic and economic uncertainty holding up hiring plans.

Source ICT: Jobs with a Future 2022 Number of companies in survey

ICT recruitment over next two years

Total employees

New jobs Replacement for existing roles 47%

2022

97

27,534

687

53%

69% 2020

168

56,030

979

2018

118

46,958

698

2016

148

38,579

532

2014

183

51,324

605

31%

69% 31%

65% 35%

39% 61%

Education level Jobs in ICT increasingly require higher education degrees, with the number of roles available to applicants with secondary school or vocational diplomas shrinking as companies look for highly skilled staff.

Source

ICT: Jobs with a Future 2022

2020

2021

1.5%

0.7% 7.2%

2.2%

1.6%

1.2%

4.7% 28.4%

56.6%

Vocational aptitude diploma (DAP)

Technician

6.1%

Baccalaureate

29.4%

60.4%

Advanced technician’s certificate (BTS)

Bachelor

Master/Doctorate

JULY 2022 ICT

10

Ristretto #DigitalValue

“Companies aren’t afraid of experimenting” New technologies have long been the talk of the town, so we asked Fabrice Dewasmes--CTIO of technology agency Smile--for an up-to-the-minute rundown of which trends to watch.

Which technologies are currently on the rise?

An interesting one is the modern app, which is a way of architecting software infrastructure for companies. When you want to create a specific solution, you’ve got two choices: either you build it yourself and run it on a classic data centre, or you embrace the full set of managed services provided by cloud service providers (AWS, Google Cloud, Azure, etc.) And if you really embrace these services then you can have a modern app, which enables the provider to scale up your projects, because they have the capacity to do so. Thus your project can automatically scale… and you can concentrate on your core business. In the past we had a monolithic approach, with one big piece of software that you ran on your own infrastructure--that is the old world. This is the new world: you can really leverage fast-paced services.

Another area is AI--I think you could have bet that I would say this. With digitalisation, tons of new data is flowing in, and companies often don’t know how to make more business out of it, how to be more efficient with it, etc.

A lot of potential is hidden in this treasure that is data--and the best way to make the most of it is AI. You can correlate information, do projections… analyse data in a smart way, not just by making statistics. AI is big.

A third trending area to mention, but which we don’t exactly know what to do with, is the metaverse. Some businesses are really talking about it, part of which might be FOMO--fear of missing out. But a lot of luxury brands are looking into it as an opportunity to create digital value, especially using non-fungible tokens (NFTs). I’m not especially fond of this technology because it really eats a lot of energy, it’s accelerating climate change… but the general idea is to trade value on digital assets, to have a deed of property that you can circulate in a separate universe.

We’re not especially convinced for the moment-we are taking the temperature and seeing how it goes.

You’re involved in Smile’s R&D projects.

Anything notable to mention?

One interesting area is 5G open-road projects.

The idea is to have smart roads where communication happens among the roads, the vehicles and related equipment. Information is exchanged constantly using 5G--which allows for a low-latency, dedicated line.

The fast bandwidth guarantees security, more or less. You have to be very fast in decision-making when it’s about security on the road.

You also have a background in open-source software. What is the value there?

Open-source software is key in letting you stay vendor-agnostic. In almost every case, open-source solutions stick to standards that guarantee the (relative) permanence and cleanliness of the software architecture--it makes any piece of software replaceable by another, since no vendor is locked in.

This is what can make IT systems future-proof.

What changes have you observed in customer expectations in recent years?

Basically, that companies aren’t afraid of experimenting. In the past they would have precise software requirements: the project and its roadmap were clear. But now we see that people have only a rough idea of what they want to do. They don’t necessarily know the outcome, the timeline or even the budget--but they ask companies like us to develop tools anyway, with which they can experiment.

Fabrice Dewasmes is the chief technology and innovation officer of Smile

Interview JEFF PALMS Photo GUY WOLFF

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Ristretto #FutureOfCryptosAndNFTs

IMPACT FOR ARTISTS

“I can’t imagine a future without this technology; it’s going to simply make things so much better, it’s amazing.... but it took me about a year to understand that it’s not just a jpeg.”

Luxembourg artist Sumo, speaking with Delano about how NFTs can help artists connect with their fans and create new digital artforms, and help buyers authenticate artwork.

2

FASHION BUSINESS ADOPTION

“To stay competitive and relevant, blockchainenabled technologies will be widely adopted for authenticity, transparency, enhanced customer engagements and loyalties, and new revenue streams.”

Fonny Bunjamin, founder of Vestis Labs.

3

FUTURE OF NFTS IN LUXEMBOURG

“NFTs are going to change the way society operates in the future, and in Luxembourg, by taking the right next steps, we have the potential to become an early adopter.”

Jil Haberstig, founder of the Luxembourg NFT Community and chief marketing officer at Nexify Exchange.

4

REGULATION

“We think digital assets shouldn’t be regulated differently because of technology, if they have the same characteristics as other assets....

We should foster a technology-neutral approach [and we should] regulate irrespective of the underlying technology.”

Patrick Hoffmann of the Luxembourg Financial Sector Supervisory Commission (CSSF), speaking at an Association of the Luxembourg Fund Industry conference in March 2022.

5

SMART CONTRACTS

“Smart contracts are not smart and they’re not contracts.... code is code.”

Dimitrij Gede, head of compliance relations at Iconic Holding, speaking at the same summit.

Selected by AARON GRUNWALD

Patricia Pitsch, Vestis Labs, Luxembourg NFT Community, Matic Zorman

JULY 2022 ICT

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Photos

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The EuroHPC network 14

JULY 2022 ICT

democratises access to high-performance computing, says Anders Dam Jensen

Conversation Anders Dam Jensen

“If we stop investing, then we’ll lose what we’ve won” Anders Dam Jensen, CEO of the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking, an EU network of high-performance computers, discusses supercomputing in Europe, Luxembourg’s Meluxina machine and the leap to exascale and quantum technology.

Interview CORDULA SCHNUER

The EuroHPC Joint Undertaking is a pan-European initiative.

How did Luxembourg come to be the headquarters of the project?

That’s part of a political discussion when a new agency or any EU body is being set up. It was before my time. Luxembourg, as I understand it, very early on wished to have this here. And I think rightfully so. They contributed quite a bit to the text that governs the joint undertaking. And what Luxembourg contributed greatly to is that there was room for everyone. The fact that we now have four very nice petascale machines--Luxembourg had a strong word in that.

You took up your role as CEO in 2020.

Has the development of the network gone as planned?

The concept of the joint undertaking started back in 2018 and it was born out of the European Commission. A lot of work was done by the commission to get everything ready for September 2020, when we became an autonomous organisation, and being autonomous means that we have our own budget.

I started on 16 September, we declared autonomy on 23 September and, with that, I could start signing contracts. I don’t think a lot of people have had the pleasure of purchasing six supercomputers in the space of two weeks. That plan for the procurements was neatly laid out.

Photo GUY WOLFF

THE EUROHPC NETWORK PRE-EXASCALE SUPERCOMPUTERS Lumi, located in Kajaani, Finland Leonardo, located in Bologna, Italy PETASCALE SUPERCOMPUTERS Vega, located in Maribor, Slovenia Meluxina, located in Bissen, Luxembourg Karolina, located in Ostrava, Czech Republic Discoverer, located in Sofia, Bulgaria Deucalion, located in Guimarães, Portugal

We’ve been hit by covid in a couple of places. We will inaugurate our biggest machine so far, Lumi in Finland, on 13 June. That was meant to have been in March, but basically covid caused a threemonth delay on that. Lumi will be number three in the world. That’s a fantastic achievement only surpassed by the Japanese machine Fugaku, and then the US is coming in with a brand-new machine, which essentially is the same technology as Lumi, just a little bigger.

The EuroHPC project wants to strengthen industry and research in Europe by providing access to infrastructure. What has been the response of the players this network is aimed at?

Everyone is excited. If you look at the capacity we’re bringing to Europe, with the likes of Meluxina, it’s a significant lift compared to what was available before.

We’re democratising it from the point of view that it becomes available to everyone. There always have been larger machines in Europe, but they’ve been national machines. There has been some good collaboration between countries, but it’s been more on a bilateral basis.

With the joint undertaking, we’re taking this to all the members, which by the way aren’t only the EU member states.

We’re bringing high-performance computing to users that have not had as easy

JULY 2022 ICT

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JULY 2022 ICT

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Conversation

access to it as they will have now. To allo- And, of course, there are some people other out. We’ve had examples when the cate the capacity, we basically go out and who have worked with that hosting entity, technical team in one area looked at an ask for projects to run on them. We’re and therefore know the people and so applicant and said this doesn’t really fit about to close the next round. And there’s on. What we’re hoping to do is to bring well on our architecture, we should move no lack of good project proposals to run all of those hosting entities together, so into this one. They work with each other, on the machines. We have the tough job they also can help each other. Meluxina and we get the application to run where has been really good at that. There’ve it has most impact. of choosing. been some projects where we needed to Can you give me some examples do some training, and they stood up and The machines help develop weather of these projects? helped with that. People are getting to models to combat climate change, but large-scale computing can have It’s very much across the field of science. know other machines.

The big one at the moment is climate The interesting thing about Meluxina a huge carbon footprint. change. Weather modelling is huge. The is that its architecture is a smaller version How is EuroHPC addressing this?

European Union runs a special project of the big machine we’re installing in High-performance computing requires called Destination Earth, which is about Italy. From that point of view, there’s a electricity. It requires electricity to run making a digital twin of the Earth, allow- lot of interest in Meluxina because there’s the machine, but also to cool it. And that’s ing us to model climate change but also an opportunity to get your applications not insignificant. In the application to some of these weather phenomena that ready for when Leonardo becomes oper- host a machine, there’s a strong focus on we’ve been seeing, not to mention what ational, hopefully at the end of this year. energy. We take a holistic view, because happened here last year. The idea there You’ll have the same machine, just 20 we can’t just choose low power, and then is to get models so that we can predict times the performance. There are some not get any compute. We look to get energy these early enough to be able to react. key projects that are waiting for Leon- efficient solutions but, much more imporDestination Earth is desperately waiting ardo, but they now have an opportunity tantly, when we select the hosting entity, for Lumi to be fully operational, Leon- to get started on Meluxina. they come back in their application with ardo [in Italy] as well, but it is one of the how they’re going to deal with the power. projects that’s now gone to Meluxina Meluxina launched roughly a year ago.

Where are we going to get it from? What because they can get started there, which Are you satisfied with its performance? are they going to do with the excess heat Very. It’s 48th in the world. This is not a and so on. Each of the machines has a is fantastic.

There’s a similar one on the human small machine. There’s some very inter- story behind it. brain, there’s drug discovery, engineer- esting technology in that machine. We Lumi is a fantastic example. Because ing and fluid flow modelling. All of those have a very good team out there with Lux- of its geographic location next to a river, are the traditional applications for Provide. In general, across our machines, we get the electricity from a hydropower high-performance computing. As we we have very good teams. But Meluxina plant, The excess heat is pumped into broaden access to the machines, my hope is dear to me. I live in Mersch, it’s in Bis- the city of Kajaani and used to heat houses. is that we will discover brand-new appli- sen. This is where we take people when Meluxina equally has a colocation with they need to see a supercomputer. cations to run on these things. an industry on the other side, where they Each of the machines is unique. There do heat exchange.

Is there preference for one computer We try to make sure to minimise the are nuances. The technologies that went in the network over another? into them matter. You need to master carbon footprint of the machines. What’s There are definitely preferences for one them in order to get the full power out really exciting about that, though, is the machine over another. I think over time it of them. Each of the teams are experts whole research and innovation programme, will fade. We need to remember that we’re in the technology that was purchased for where we’re funding research into HPC bringing in something new. When we have their machine. What we’re getting better technology. We take a very strong focus a computer, it’s hosted by a hosting entity. at within the network is helping each on energy. We have a very interesting project developing a European microprocessor. The aim really is to have a low-power HPC processor, which we hope down the line will show up in our machines.

“ With a little luck, somewhere in 2024 we’re aiming for exascale to be available”

Can you estimate the impact of the energy crisis, which is also leading to higher electricity prices, on the projects in the joint undertaking?

It’s too early to tell. As energy costs go up, so does the cost of operating the machines.

We are fortunate that most of our hosting entities have pre-purchased energy for a foreseeable future. We have some time to figure out how we deal with it on the other

Anders Dam Jensen

17

side. Energy is a very substantial part of the cost of operating each of the machines.

The EuroHPC Joint Undertaking chose the University of Luxembourg and a consortium of industrial partners and other universities across Europe to develop and launch a high-performance computing master’s programme. Partners include the Polytechnic University of Catalonia, the Polytechnic University of Milan and the Sorbonne.

The degree will offer different specialisations to meet market niches, from hardware specialists to software engineers and data scientists. The aim of the programme is to train the next generation of HPC experts in Europe and provide a highly skilled workforce for the rapidly expanding field of high-performance computing.

The first students are expected to start classes this autumn.

still research. The aim is to give researchers access to the different technologies and build up knowledge. Europe is very far ahead in quantum technologies in several countries. This is also about spreading it out and making sure we get as many on this wagon as possible.

More than half of companies in the EU report difficulties recruiting ICT staff--67% in Luxembourg--according to the European Commission’s Digital Economy and Society Index.

What has been EuroHPC’s experience?

The joint undertaking has a budget Everyone is having challenges, not just of €7bn until 2027. That’s in less Luxembourg. It’s across Europe, and than five years. What will come after this funding period? maybe even the world that those people who know what they’re doing are in short If we do a good job, I would imagine another supply. And HPC is an even smaller niche X billion. We need to remember where this came from. EuroHPC is born out of of people. It’s our mission to try and broaden the knowledge and educate more countries realising that there was an underpeople in this area. Hopefully, we’ll be investment in HPC, and that Europe was able to help ourselves. falling behind. What we’ve done with the There’s no question that it’s difficult joint undertaking is closing that gap. Lumi to recruit. There’s only so much talent becoming number three in the world demonstrates that we’re closing the gap available. But that being said, we’re dealrapidly. We’ll have a number of other ing with the larger machines in Europe.

They’re also attractive for the people who That is the coolest thing on this side of the machines coming online and with exasare in this field. It’s not easy to recruit, Earth. It’s natural to see how we can take cale, we will more than fulfil that mission but it’s not impossible either. advantage of quantum together with HPC. and ambition. However, if we stop investBecause the belief is that quantum will ing, then we fall behind again.

How are you preparing the transition be very good at some problems that traI would hope and expect that there from petascale to even more powerful ditional computers are very bad at. will be another funding round. Because exascale computers?

One of the things that Europe has with the momentum and what this delivThe core technologies that we’re seeing, been pioneering is the concept of a mod- ers to Europe, why not? And then we’ll even in a machine like Meluxina, is what ular supercomputer. Instead of it just see what other interesting new things the scales up. What we need to spend a lot being one big machine, it’s modules, and European Union will wish to throw at of time and effort on now is to make sure each module is good at doing something. EuroHPC. It wasn’t obvious that quanthat we are able to use those machines Your application passes the problem around tum was coming to us. I’m really delighted to their full potential and take advantage the different modules to have different that the new regulation chose to put quanof the special technology that’s in there. parts of it done where it’s most suitable. tum with the joint undertaking, because We know how to make the compute Meluxina has three different partitions it makes sense. And it’s just super excitnode, the general node that does the com- where you can divide the workload depend- ing. We’ll see what the next challenge putation. The challenge is making them ing on what type that particular sub-prob- throws at us over time. But the fact is, if all communicate together. You already lem is. You throw it out there, combine we stop investing, then we’ll lose what have quite a large network of nodes in a it with something from another module, we’ve won. machine like Meluxina. We’ll be scaling and in that architecture, quantum is a that even further into exascale. Managing natural extra module that you add to it.

The role of the joint undertaking is that and taking advantage of it is an art very much to do what we’ve done for that anyone in the world has to master.

The US will be the first with an exas- HPC, which is providing the infrastruccale machine, Frontier. The technology ture to the scientists. The aim is that in Lumi is exactly the same. From that EuroHPC will fund a number of quanpoint of view, we’re getting ready. With tum computers across Europe. What a little luck, somewhere in 2024 we’re we’re looking for is technology diversity. aiming for exascale to be available to There are different ways to produce a European scientists. supercomputer, different methods, different underlying technologies. And I The next big thing is quantum think it’s fair to say the jury’s still out on computing, with Luxembourg also which one is going to be ‘the’ solution. already working on projects in secure What we wish to do is fund as many quantum communications. different technologies as possible. We What strategy are you developing need to understand, and we need to find to tackle this technological leap? out, learn more, because this is very much

JULY 2022 ICT

SUPERCOMPUTING MASTER’S DEGREE

18

Dossier

Entering the “reality-induced bubble”​ What is the metaverse--and why should we care?

It’s anyone’s guess as to when the promised paradigm shift could occur, but companies are taking note of the factors likely to play out in its future.

Words NATALIE A. GERHARDSTEIN Illustration SALOMÉ JOTTREAU

Three potential scenarios In its “A whole new world? Exploring the metaverse and what it could mean for you”, published in April 2022, Deloitte anticipates the full manifestation of the metaverse taking five to 10 years but reviews a range of different factors which will drive its evolution, offering different scenarios of how this could play out.

They frame three outlooks in particular: first, what they call “low orbit”, where the metaverse would not become a general-purpose platform, even if at its basis the metaverse can do some things well.

Then there’s a “double star” scenario, where there may not be one single metaverse, but rather “a handful of major players vying for share of a dynamic marketplace,” a scenario which could lead to highly concentrated market due to hefty capital and M&A activity. Finally, there’s what they call the “Big Bang”, where the metaverse becomes the preeminent interface for most daily activities.

Ultimately, however, the Deloitte report’s authors fail to see a “failure to launch” scenario.

Too early to envision the full potential Fateh Amroune, innovation director at Deloitte Luxembourg, leads a team whose mission is to foster innovation with both an internal and external perspective and has, of course, been keeping a close eye on how this space is evolving.

JULY 2022 ICT

The first, standardisation, takes into account standards and protocols, as well as interoperability from platform to platform. Amroune believes that a single FATEH AMROUNE metaverse is unlikely: “We will probably SHORT CV have multiple metaverses with specific Current role purposes, each with a leader on its own.”

Innovation director within the Deloitte Luxembourg Tax department Which would lead to the second driver--market fragmentation. Who will be the In charge of Defining and implementing the market leaders in this domain? What about department’s digital transformation competition and its impact on innovation? strategy; increasing its customerAmroune is confident clear market leaders facing digital solutions portfolio will emerge in different areas--e.g., the At firm level entertainment space--and anticipates “a Leads a large team of innovation specialists; supports startups and lot of restructuring, and mergers and acquilarge companies to review their sitions in the coming years.” business operating models and Users will likely want an intuitive and accelerate digital transformation seamless experience with the interface, and here also the innovation director is confident. “We can achieve that because it’s linked to the creativity and to the capabilities of the technology, which are conHis thoughts on the metaverse: “There stantly increasing,” he argues. “The are a lot of things going on in terms of headset with VR or AR will probably be technology, investment and media atten- better and better--just think about the first tion, so in that respect, we can say it’s a phones, and you see our smartphones today.” bubble… but it’s a bubble founded in what I think is a real thing.”

Luxembourg’s role He compares this effect to what was It’s in the fourth driver, governance, where seen in the dot-com bubble of the 1990s, Amroune sees real potential for the grand a time when there was excessive specula- duchy. It will be tricky to properly ensure tion surrounding internet companies and trust and security, and to protect digital services. The later crash from the effect assets and IP within the metaverse. ultimately caused many e-commerce mer“There are still a lot of unknowns,” he chants to go bust. While the different adds. “[Governance] is the part where technologies for the metaverse are matur- Luxembourg can play a role because we ing, Amroune adds that the projection for are placed well with that and have expethe metaverse to become totally embed- rience in dealing with complex and sophisded in daily life would take roughly a dec- ticated regulation.”

Of course, for a company as large as ade. He notes that the gaming industry is ahead of the curve, the biggest use case Deloitte, it can build up capabilities and therein being non-fungible tokens (NFTs), its network at an international level. But the digital ownership of which he says what about Deloitte Luxembourg’s cliwill “be a big boost in the economy and ents? “They’re still in the stage of questioning, curiosity, so they’re asking us in the business of gaming.”

What Amroune gets most excited about what they can do. They don’t come up regarding the metaverse is not just all the with a specific demand to answer--at least creativity and creators behind it, but the not a lot--but we feel the curiosity, and fact that we can’t even envision what this they want to understand [the metaverse], space will look like in 10 years’ time. As and rather quickly.”

“What excites me is that we don’t see he put it, “We don’t see all the potential.” exactly all the potential there is in the metaverse. There are a lot of creativity, Key drivers influencing the future of the metaverse ideas around that, what startups are doing, The take-off of the metaverse will be driven investments…” The level of creativity, he by four factors in particular, per Deloitte: adds, is “super exciting.” standardisation, market fragmentation, user interface and governance.

Deloitte Luxembourg

While many of the elements that make up the metaverse are already here, with virtual and augmented realities, AI and machine learning, cryptocurrencies and more, how--and to what degree--their fully-developed convergence could be a paradigm shift for individual and business applications still remains to be seen.

One of the reasons the metaverse is getting so much attention at the moment is not just the record investments being made in areas like virtual real estate, but it’s also undoubtedly a result of the covid19 pandemic, which brought so much human activity and interaction online.

The media has also been watching curiously. Time magazine, which launched its own metaverse-dedicated newsletter in November 2021, put it well: there’s “a battle being waged over what the next stage of the internet will look like, and who will control it.”

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Into the metaverse

Dossier Into the metaverse

“We will talk about mixed reality” Opportunities in virtual and augmented reality are plenty, says Matthieu Bracchetti, founder of Virtual Rangers, but the key to success will be delivering a strong user experience with good content.

Interview CORDULA SCHNUER

From marketing to real estate Digitalising business training will be another area of opportunities, Bracchetti says, with his company already well established in the field. The pandemic slowed down activities as onsite workshops, where teams would use headsets as part of an immersive and interactive programme, were

competitors,” says Bracchetti. “We need to talk more about this technology.” The grand duchy is yet to achieve a critical mass of players in the field for virtual and augmented realities to become part of business vernacular. “The market is not closed to innovation,” says the entrepreneur, and policymakers are encouraging innovation. But the technology has not yet reached average users in the same way it has in other countries, like the US. This is in part because of cumbersome headsets, the tools of geeks in the perception of many. Bracchetti expects the equipment to become lighter and more user-friendly in the coming years, saying Critical mass that development largely stopped during But what will it take for Luxembourg to the covid-19 pandemic. “VR was suprealise and seize this potential? “It might posed to be the most successful technolsound strange for me to say this: we need ogy two years ago, before covid arrived.”

But despite having made augmented and virtual reality his business, the entrepreneur does not want a dystopian future in which entire lives are lived online and people live in their separate virtual bubbles. “This technology will tend to isolate and separate people,” Bracchetti says.

“That’s why we try to focus on doing something you cannot do in real life.” shelved. Marketing, too, can offer a new experience using augmented reality.

A fourth pillar of potential in Luxembourg is real estate. “That’s a huge market,” says Bracchetti, “projecting yourself into a building, rather than doing a meeting on plans. You put on the VR set and jump into the building.” First steps have been taken by real estate companies offering virtual visits online, but virtual reality will be another leap forward. “Soon in the future, in the two to three coming years, we won’t be talking about virtual reality or augmented reality. We will talk about mixed reality.”

MATTHIEU BRACCHETTI SHORT CV Founder & CEO, Virtual Rangers Since October 2017 Innovation and business development manager, ImSim November 2014 – November 2017 Energy efficiency engineer & innovation service manager, Cocert September 2011 – November 2014

Marie De Decker

Technology, content and user experience.

These three elements must come together to make the metaverse and other virtual spaces a success, says Matthieu Bracchetti, founder and CEO of Virtual Rangers, a virtual and augmented reality services provider based in Luxembourg.

The scope of applications is wide. For example, the company helped develop an augmented reality experience for the National Mining Museum, bringing its history to life in a new way. “You can be in this mine from Luxembourg, but 100 years ago, and see how people are talking and working together, the tools they’re using.” The team worked with historians on the project.

A similar project was developed by another company, Urban Timetravel, which is offering a virtual reality experience on the Pétrusse Express, allowing users to see the city as it once was on their headsets. The Luxembourg government launched a VR version of its pavilion at the Dubai World Expo, allowing people in the grand duchy to travel to the fair at the push of a button. And not to forget the Luxembourg City Film Festival’s virtual reality pavilion, which offers an innovative take on filmmaking.

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Dossier Into the metaverse

Setting a new frontier for regulation As reports of harassment and abuse in the metaverse start piling up, so are questions on how to regulate the digital realm and apply real-life laws in the online Wild West.

Law professor Mark Cole discusses some of the challenges ahead.

Words CORDULA SCHNUER

Within minutes of logging into Face- “There was a huge amount of losses, some book’s metaverse, Nina Jane Patel from people got very rich,” says Cole. “The London was verbally and sexually har- same thing will happen here. And that’s assed by a group of male avatars. “It was why, when money gets involved, I’m quite surreal. It was a nightmare,” she wrote sure Facebook will try and keep the space in a blog post on Medium, describing her as clean as possible.” experience as virtual gang-rape. But was Regulatory action a crime committed?

“That’s a very interesting question,” says As the metaverse develops, regulators will Mark Cole, a professor at the University need to keep up, but this isn’t a new pheof Luxembourg specialising in media and nomenon, as technology has a history of telecommunications law. “And it’s not the first time it’s come up.” Virtual world Second Life launched in 2003 and raised many of the same issues that are being debated in the context of the emerging metaverse. Harassment and bullying are among them, but also contracts made between users, theft or fraud. “Legal scholarship started thinking about exactly these questions--can there be an application of laws which were designed for the real GDPR world also in the online world if it uses The EU’s data protection laws, virtual representations of persons?” described as some of the toughest In principle, says Cole, any law can apply in the world, came into effect in 2018. to any context, but the devil--as ever--is in the detail. Who committed a crime against whom? How do you identify and locate More than 900 fines have been the individual behind the online persona? issued for GDPR violations, The laws of which country apply in a viras of May 2022 tual space? And then there are the laws themselves. If the definition of rape involves a body conducting sexual intercourse or activity with someone against their will, it Fines can amount to €20m or 4% of a firm’s annual revenue from the could take a new definition of online rape preceding year, whichever is higher to address Patel’s experience.

“It won’t take long until people bring these cases to court,” the professor says.

Again, Second Life, its Linden dollar virThe highest fine issued tual currency and in-world vendor scams so far, against Amazon, although a court has since suspended this offer some insight into what’s to come.

900+ 4%

€746m

first-mover advantage. “When the first cars were invented, there were no rules on traffic,” says Cole. “The frustration is the speed of the development.” One solution is to develop laws that apply to the largest context possible and provide flexibility in their application. This, for example, is the case for the EU’s general data protection regulation (GDPR). Even if the metaverse makes available new types of personal data for processing, the GDPR’s framework should encompass this, even if specific add-ons might be needed as particular issues arise. And in case of perceived abuses, all it takes is one person to push back against flaws in the system, such as Austrian data activist Max Schrems, who brought down the EU-US data transfer mechanism Safe Harbour with his lawsuits against Facebook’s thirst for data.

European Commission executive vice president and digital chief Margrethe Vestager in February said she is planning an analysis of the metaverse ahead of possible regulatory action. “We need to understand it before we can decide what actions would be appropriate,” she said during an online event. As with GDPR and the upcoming Digital Services Act, the EU’s joint heft could help set standards well beyond its borders.

“I do think we need to be very attentive of whether the existing data protection rules--but also rules on, for example, transparency of information, criminal law, private law, commercial law--are fit for any development that might happen,” says Cole.

“Because the metaverse is also a promise, right? Who knows what comes next?”

Toolbox

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1

Wide

ICT is typically a male-dominated field: in 2021, only 19.7% of Luxembourg’s ICT experts were women. Women in Digital Empowerment (Wide) is an initiative which aims to close that gender gap. An NGO founded in 2013 and a social enterprise since 2022, Wide teaches women networking, technological skills and building confidence. This way women, feeling supported in their choice, might more readily go towards an ICT position.

Now the enterprise also offers companies training and services in digital skills, as well as gender equality and entrepreneurship. “We believe that, in 2022, an increasing number of people will consider a career change,” for which digital and entrepreneurial skills will open many doors, Wide told Delano.

3

School 42

Four digital inclusion initiatives Words TRACY HEINDRICHS

GoldenMe

For most people, navigating the internet is a no-brainer. But with administrative tasks and social interactions going online, older generations may feel left out. This is where NGO GoldenMe steps in. Social life can change post-retirement. For some, it’s an opportunity to try out new hobbies; for others, retirement can be isolating.

“For expats, it’s even harder than for Luxembourgish people,” GoldenMe told Delano in a previous exchange. Through workshops, courses, newsletters and individual support, the NGO helps older citizens connect with others online and escape social isolation. The initiative also collaborated with Esch commune on the E-Senior 2.0 project, where the local TV station broadcast tutorials in June to explain the internet and smartphones to complete beginners.

2

Already present in 25 countries and 42 campuses, 42 has decided to set up shop in Luxembourg as a part of the grand duchy’s Digital Learning Hub. The coding school’s entry requirement reflects its educational philosophy: “real openness to all and contributing to social integration,” 42 told Delano. Courses are free, and there are no prerequisites in terms of skills or diplomas.

Courses can be taken at any time of the day, seven days a week, so that students from all walks of life with any kind of schedule can enrol.

42 doesn’t offer traditional classes though. Instead, the school pushes students to work in groups and collaborate to make the most of their three-year programme.

Digital Inclusion Luxembourg

4

Laptops give users access to work, information and education, easing their inclusion in society. Supported by the integration and family ministry since 2022, Digital Inclusion Luxembourg helps people in need by supplying refurbished digital equipment.

The NGO was founded in 2016 to support refugees but over time evolved to include others. This year it also helped Ukrainian refugees.

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Conversation

“Transform Luxembourg into an international ICT hub of choice” Guy Harles works for the government’s department of media, connectivity and digital policy (SMC)

The government last year launched a five-year strategy to boost broadband connectivity in Luxembourg. Guy Harles of the team tasked with implementing the plan discusses why it’s important to get everyone online.

Interview CORDULA SCHNUER

Photos ROMAIN GAMBA

Guy Harles

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CONNECTING LUXEMBOURG

JULY 2022 ICT

The department of media,

Luxembourg in 2010 published a the digital divide and the exclusion of the connectivity and digital policy (SMC) within the ministry of state supports national strategy for ultra-high-speed ‘non-connected’ from essential services the development of Luxembourg’s networks. How does the 2021-2025 has ever since become a major priority. media landscape. Its scope is wide, broadband strategy build on this? covering anything from print, online and broadcast media to satellite Who is involved in implementing The 2021-2025 broadband strategy builds systems, telecommunications and this strategy? What partners on the achievements of the 2010 strategy data protection. The department do you work with? and on a broad consultation with operaworks under prime minister Xavier Bettel (DP), who is also tors and stakeholders. Factors like new Beyond our team at the ministry of state’s minister for communications online services, technological progress, EU department of media, connectivity and and media, and minister for digital policy (SMC), the implementaregulation as well as users’ evolving needs digitalisation. Within the SMC, the connectivity team--which Guy are crucial when defining a new strategy. tion of the new strategy involves a large Harles is part of--is in charge of In 2010, one of the main online activities range of stakeholders, including fixed implementing European and national and mobile telecom service providers, was downloading MP3 music files. In 2022, measures on electronic communication, from broadband network operators, the Luxembourg the focus shifted towards cloud applicaand 5G to quantum communications. tions, video streaming and low latency Regulatory Institute (ILR), as well as sevindustrial applications, all leading to maseral ministries. sively growing data volumes.

To accelerate the implementation of the Thanks to the very ambitious 2010 strategy, the SMC, in close partnership with Lu-Cix, decided to establish an ecostrategy, Luxembourg turned into a frontnomic interest group named MyConnecrunner and achieved one of the highest coverage ratios of ultra-high-speed broad- speed of at least 100Mbps and an upload tivity. The purpose of this new structure is, band infrastructures in Europe, provid- speed of 20Mbps. Older DSL lines are among others, to support our work through ing access to the so-called very high not able to deliver services meeting those additional resources allowing a more extencapacity network to 95% of households. requirements, thus the need for VHCN sive engagement with the local ecosystem.

This fixed VHCN infrastructure includes networks. In Luxembourg, theoretically, fibre, coax and potentially 5G fixed wire- 95% of households have access to such One of the strategy’s other goals less access or advanced satellite services. infrastructure within their homes, yet is to strengthen transparency and While the 2010 strategy’s main focus many households still do not subscribe to consumer protection.

How is it achieving this? relied on a fast and broad rollout of tech- a fixed high-speed connectivity service. nical infrastructure, the 2021-2025 stratWe have identified two main challenges, We estimate that--because of a possible egy considers the point of view of the one of which involves the improvement of lack of knowledge of the meaning of end user, consumer or professional, and take-up rates of VHCN-based connectivity some technical language such as the words encompasses five key objectives: afforda- services where available, and the other, the ‘fibre’, ‘coax’, ‘DSL’, etc.--many private bility of services, take-up of ultra-high- expansion of the availability of at least one consumers may experience difficulties speed services, availability of future-proof VHCN network to every household. Other in selecting suitable solutions for their infrastructure, consumer protection and roadblocks include limited public aware- specific needs.

One of the key roles of MyConneca competitive ecosystem. These key objec- ness of the benefits behind a high-perfortives, coupled with the new strategy as a mance connectivity service, affordability tivity is to become a centre of expertise whole, will play a pivotal role in our quest concerns for some consumers, considera- for connectivity-related questions for to transform Luxembourg into an inter- ble infrastructure deployment costs, espe- both end users and ICT sector profescially in remote area, and difficulties to sionals. This new structure will act as a national ICT hub of choice. install in-house vertical cabling. It is our neutral interface and source of informaAccording to Eurostat data, 99% objective to address these obstacles by 2025. tion, helping end users and ICT sector of households in the country have professionals alike to better understand internet access. What are the To what extent has the pandemic-their needs and the offered solutions. difficulties of reaching the ones and new needs for internet Another goal of our consumer protecwithout connectivity? connectivity at home to work tion-oriented strategy is to ensure that Thanks to the universal provision of cop- and learn--made the implementation end users receive the service they pay for. per lines, about every household has access of the strategy more urgent?

In the context of an evolving and comto at least basic internet infrastructure. Without a doubt, the pandemic further petitive market, we believe that greater Nonetheless, the quality of service offered highlighted the urgency of making transparency is essential, particularly by this infrastructure is no longer sufficient. high-performance connectivity available with regard to service offers, contractual For example, if we look at households to everyone as soon as possible. All of a clauses, quality of service and price. The where several persons need simultaneous sudden, working from home, attending foundation for achieving this goal is the access for videoconferencing, e-learning school classes remotely or completing Law of 17 December 2021 on electronic and video streaming, basic internet con- administrative procedures online was no communications networks and services nectivity service is no longer sufficient. longer a luxury but it became a necessity. transposing the European Electronic Every household should opt for a fixed The pandemic also revealed the impor- Communications Code, which seeks to connectivity service with a download tance to leave no one behind. Avoiding strengthen consumer rights.

Conversation Guy Harles

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The SMC’s Connectivity team (from l. to r.): Patrick Chaussy, Guy Harles, Eric Krier and Laure Bourguignon. The team also includes Anne Blau (not pictured)

The strategy targets not only homes but also the economy. Where are the biggest connectivity gaps when it comes to businesses and industry?

From our consultations with the telecom operators, we understand that larger companies and industrial zones are generally very well connected. Backbone capabilities are sufficient, and Luxembourg has a very good connectivity to international hubs as well as a healthy ecosystem of service providers. However, it is important to have a better understanding of the professional sector at a wider scale, with a particular focus on smaller businesses.

According to European benchmarks, there still seems to be a reluctance of small businesses to adopt digital services, and many of them seem to subscribe to connectivity services actually meant for private consumers, which may lack some important features such as security solutions.

For both challenges, MyConnectivity can play a role in addressing the situation by monitoring the evolution of the ecosystem and raising awareness.

Prime minister Xavier Bettel last year announced a €7.7m budget to remove digital voids in the grand duchy.

What will this money be spent on, and is it enough?

The announced budget foresees different implementation measures set by the 20212025 strategy, such as social measures meant to improve the affordability for households with lower incomes, incentives to increase the rate of take-up of

ultra-high-speed services, as well as sup- Quantum communication, porting measures to reduce the ‘white for example, has become a buzzword spots’ where only low-performance con- that just a few years ago wasn’t in the mainstream. nectivity is available.

As a matter of fact, the consequences The fast-paced evolution of user needs of the pandemic have underlined the and technology was one of the key reacrucial importance and urgency of address- sons why our strategy is now looking at ing the remaining connectivity issues of a horizon of maximum five years, with our society. The 2021-2025 strategy will reassessments and adjustments planned be reassessed before 2025 and any budg- along the way if necessary.

We are currently also looking into etary adjustment will be undertaken as appropriate. other future developments such as quantum communication technology. QuanLuxembourg has started rolling tum communication will enable highly out 5G. What role does this play in secure communications; the use of this the strategy, and is the deployment new technology will, however, be initially going to plan? reserved to governmental and instituThe strategy for ultra-high-speed broad- tional authorities. It is worth mentioning band is interlinked with the 5G strategy that a consortium of Luxembourg-based published in 2018. It is important to note companies is involved in developing prothat we are not looking at fixed and mobile jects around satellite and terrestrial-based connectivity in isolation but are consid- quantum communication. ering the whole picture instead, since both fixed and mobile connectivity are Can you outline some of the nearcomplementary. On the one hand, we future next steps and priorities for believe that there are remote areas where the implementation of the strategy?

5G fixed wireless access can play a role The implementation process is an ongoin filling the fixed connectivity gaps. On ing one: in the shorter term, the focus the other hand, 5G infrastructure is will be on addressing the affordability of dependent on a reliable fixed fibre back- high-speed broadband services, setting bone. Compared to other countries, the up MyConnectivity and the evaluation rollout of 5G antennae in Luxembourg of the implementation of the European is facilitated through the already existing guidelines on state aid for broadband networks. The mid- and long-term outfibre networks. look involves finding solutions for What are the challenges working on a enhanced consumer protection and pro2025 strategy when the horizon of the fessional connectivity. technology keeps expanding?

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Success stories

Four leading women in ICT Representation in tech benefits the growth of industry, but it also ensures future specialists have role models to look up to. The achievements of these four women, who share their passion for tech, prove that gender is no barrier to excelling in ICT. Words ABIGAIL OKORODUS

Emilie Allaert

As the head of network and information systems’ security at Luxembourg’s national “Being a female institute for regulation in this domain gives (ILR), Becker plays a crityou more visibility… ical role in Luxembourg’s so it can also cybersecurity space. The ILR is the country’s sinbe an advantage.” gle point of contact for Sheila Becker the Network and InforHead of Network and Information Systems’ Security, mation Security (NIS) ILR directive that aims to secure essential services like energy and transport, drinking water, healthcare, digital infrastructures, and telecom. The PhD graduate in computer sciences and founding member of the Women Cyber ​​Force (WCF) of Luxembourg has also worked in the telecom sector at the ILR and previously was the head of the cyberdefence team in the Luxembourg armed forces, shortly after which she was seconded to the directorate of defence. Although the flexibility of the field first attracted her, it was the security aspect of tech that appealed to her the most. “Security’s important to me.

It’s my nature to be prepared for the worst but hope for the best.” Working in a male-dominated sector may have its downsides, but overall, Becker says her experience has been very positive.

SPECIALISATION Cybersecurity ROLE MODEL François Thill, director of cyber­ security at the economy ministry FIELD OF STUDY Computer science (PhD)

MOST RECENT TRAINING Risk assessment in aviation YEAR OF CREATION OF WCF 2021 NO. OF WCF MEMBERS 42

As tax advisor at KPMG, Emilie Allaert was already fascinated by the IT world with part of her team charged with “I knew that if you testing IT solutions wanted to get the for tax and email acceptance from the reviews. By her last business world, you year at KPMG, she had joined the IT needed to speak their organisation team language and translate and went on to work it to the IT world.” as an associate at J.P. Morgan before Emilie Allaert Project lead, Luxembourg joining Alpha FMC, a Blockchain Lab consulting firm dedicated to asset management. “I really wanted to be a bridge between the two worlds [finance and tech],” explains Allaert.

She joined the Luxembourg House of Financial Technology (Lhoft) in 2017, working mainly on fintech-related projects, but during this time, she also picked up on blockchain technology and various digital assets and pitched the idea to promote a blockchain ecosystem in Luxembourg. That idea has now evolved into the Luxembourg Blockchain Lab, which she oversees as project lead. By mid-July, she will end her role as head of operations and projects at Lhoft to focus on her new role as the head of the lab.

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Sheila Becker

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Success Stories

The growing importance of tech skills in any profession, an alarming under-representation of girls in Stem programmes and of women in related sectors, and the need to put the spotlight on these topics were some key observations behind the creation of Women in Digital Empowerment (Wide), states the chairwoman of the non-profit organisation working to empower girls and women in digital and tech fields.

Wide was created “when the subject, although very real, had not yet become fashionable as it is today,” says Leclercq-Olhagaray, adding that the presence of women in tech matters to her because “it impacts us all. Our view of the world is influenced by the products we consume, and if they are only thought of by men, then our view is biased and not inclusive. For example, women represent 51% of the people playing video games in France in 2021, but they remain a very small minority in their design and development. This distorts our reality. I had to educate myself late in life on these subjects but they are now essential in my job as a communicator,” she says. Recent Wide programmes have explored hot topics like generative art, NFTs and crypto. In 2022, Wide launched its social enterprise that supports the training needs of companies. To increase “WIDE is proud the number of women in to help hundreds of tech, she says “invest in women each year.” the digital education of young people, and open Marie-Adélaïde the doors to these studLeclercq-Olhagaray Chairwoman ies to more young girls and co-founder, who may not dare to enter Wide the field. This is the only sustainable approach.”

YEAR OF CREATION OF WIDE 2013 NO. OF BENEFICIARIES IN LUXEMBOURG Several hundred each year

Djamila Aouada Coming from a family of engineering scholars (her “It’s important parents are hydraulic to find joy in what engineers, and her two you do, and that brothers studied engijoy varies throughout neering), Djamila Aouada says this fact your career.” played a role in her studDjamila Aouada ies, while her professor Head of CVI2, SnT, University in signal processing in of Luxembourg Algeria had an impact on her research skills. She explains that back then, she could have done anything as she was someone with a lot of interests, but “engineering was the way to go,” as a way to broaden her horizon. Today, the PhD graduate in electrical engineering, computer vision, signal and image processing from North Carolina State University also wears a triple hat as senior research scientist, assistant professor and head of the computer vision, imaging and machine intelligence research group (CVI2) at the Interdisciplinary Centre for Security, Reliability and Trust (SnT). CVI2 works in collaboration with several industrial partners on different projects, and this interdisciplinary approach is what Aouada finds most intriguing. “Working with multiple partners with multiple fields of application is challenging but also rewarding… Every project has something special to it. Sometimes it’s the technical outcome. Sometimes it’s the human outcome,” she says. She adds that what keeps her going are these exchanges and the growth she observes in her students and team members. “This is what makes me wake up very excited in the morning… creating something together, whether big or small.”

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We are hiring

Founded in 1994, Maison Moderne is the first independent media company in Luxembourg. Its activities are organised in three areas: the Publishing House, and its influential media brands Paperjam and Delano, the Business Club, the main business club in Luxembourg, as well as the Brand Studio, which advises companies and institutions in their communication strategies, notably through content marketing and media solutions from the Paperjam + Delano ecosystem (digital, print, live experience). Today, 140 employees work at Maison Moderne.

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Forecast

Are we facing five more years of fintechs versus banks?

Five years ago, fintechs were set to replace banking services. But now they are working in partnership, powering the back-office functions of banks and complementing their product portfolio. Can this continue?

Words JOSEPHINE SHILLITO

ANDY BRYANT Founder & CEO Vektor

FRED GIULIANI Head of information technology Spuerkeess For Fred Giuliani, head of information technology at Luxembourg bank Spuerkeess, the relationship between banks and fintechs is win-win.

“It’s a match made in heaven where banks offer the customers trust, and fintechs the products and innovation,” he says. “Accelerators and fintech hubs in nearly every European market have brought banks and fintechs closer together.”

But this could change as technology focusing on decentralised finance, such as tokenisation, matures. “De-fi could increase competition with banks because the ultimate goal is to get rid of the centralised part--the part played by banks.”

Yet every coin has two sides, and there is also room for banks to use decentralised finance, by collaborating directly rather than passing trades through central clearing houses, or in their products, examples being the tokenisation of formerly illiquid assets like real estate funds.

Sufficient regulation will help maintain financial system stability. Regulatory technology (regtech)--burgeoning in Luxembourg--will support this.

“Yes, a bank will layer a so-called fintech app onto existing infrastructure--but is that innovation?”

Simon Verjus, provided by participant

“Once upon a time we feared fintechs and banks would be at war but they’re not.

They collaborate.”

Bryant, who founded decentralised finance tool startup Vektor last year, believes that decentralised finance will unleash finance in the same way as the internet unleashed free publishing. However, this won’t happen immediately.

“De-fi won’t knock out banks. They’ll continue to work in parallel for quite a long time, banks integrating de-fi opportunities into their products and de-fi startups operating whacky ideas not even tied to the banking system.”

Bryant is sceptical of banks’ ability to truly innovate. “Yes, a bank will layer a so-called fintech app onto existing infrastructure--but is that innovation?” He argues that if the underlying infrastructure stays the same, then no. Bryant, nonetheless, acknowledges that traditional banks have branding and credibility that fintechs lack.

The current bear market of the past few months will drive more rationalised investments in fintech.

“The days of big, headline-grabbing fintech exits might be numbered--for now. I think we’ll have fewer investments but better-quality investments.”

Photos

JULY 2022 ICT

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