QARA has been busy these past two months.
With a drive to globalize our services, our team has been working nonstop to attend exhibitions and pitch competitions in different parts of the world. As tiring as this may be and as obvious as this may sound, one way to stay relevant and catch up with global trends is to actually be part of the culture you are trying to do business in, even if it’s just for a few short days.
FIN/SUM 2018, Tokyo
From September 25th to September 28th, just only two weeks after attending Deloitte Tohmatsu Innovation Summit in Tokyo, our Global CEO Katie Bomi Son returned to Japan to participate in FIN/SUM (Fintech Summit 2018) for their annual Pitch Run.
FIN/SUM is a global event that brings together thought leaders and tech professionals from around the world to engage in hard discussions related to fintech and provide opportunities to showcase their newest innovations. Among the 32 fintech firms chosen for the pitch, QARA was selected as the only Korean startup to attend. Through her presentation, Katie got the chance to introduce KOSHO and its related features and share about our company to global investors and potential business partners.
Beyond TIPS, London
Chosen through a rigorous selection process, QARA went to London through the Tech Incubator Program for Startups in Korea (TIPS). Our CEOs Luke ChangHwan Byun and Katie Bomi Son attended the program from October 7th to October 12th. While there, they attended several workshops about the European financial markets and took IR pitch training sessions at the Royal Academy of Engineering.
Throughout the program, Luke and Katie also connected with several investors and venture capitalists who showed genuine interest in our company. During the last day, Katie took the stage and gave a quick presentation about QARA as well as hold a Q&A session with the panel of judges.
StartCon 2018, Seoul
While Luke and Katie were abroad in London, other members at QARA attended the Global Open Innovation Korea (GOIK) from October 10th to October 12th. The first two days were spent on meeting with global investors and venture capitalists. On the last day, our very own Senior Financial Analyst, Jinkyu Eden Lee, participated in the StartCon Pitch Competition. The winner would get a free ticket to join StartCon in Sydney, Australia and get a chance to pitch for $1 million dollars. Although we didn’t win first place, of the 60 Korean startups that competed, Eden made it to Top 6.
Xtech Expo 2018, Tokyo
For three days and two nights (10/17–10/19), QARA visited Tokyo, Japan for the third time this year to attend Xtech Expo 2018 at Tokyo Big Sight. Known for its vast connections with business leaders and global tech industries, this ICT event held by the Nikkei Group brought together hundreds of companies and organizations to participate in business talks and innovative exchanges.
Three members of our company, including Luke, Katie, and James have attended the forum.
QARA was among the few Korean startups to attend the event in Tokyo. Placed under the Fintech category, our team had gathered early in the morning to prepare and set up the booth with just two posters, one banner, and a collection of brochures, stickers, and gimmicks. Although our booth wasn’t as flashy as the other companies, suffice to say, it was enough to attract the Japanese consumers.
Throughout the three days, our team was busy talking with investors, journalists, and regular consumers about our company vision and about our app KOSHO. Several people showed genuine interest in KOSHO and downloaded the app right on the spot.
Final Thoughts
While the last two months have been nothing short of busy and hectic, we believe that the work we do makes it all worth it. Our goal is to utilize our deep learning technology to build products that can ultimately help people improve their lives. And for that to happen, we need to continue taking risks.
As the wise Walter Disney once said -
If you can dream it, you can do it.
Our next stop is Singapore for their annual Singapore Fintech Festival! Please stay tuned for more details.
