The September edition of the Catalyst Romania Newsletter
We are excited to share updates on our latest activities and insights from our team and from our portfolio companies. Stay tuned for more news on our investments!
👏 Catalyst Romania Successfully Exits 123FormBuilder Acquired by Kiteworks 👏
Catalyst Romania Fund I announces that Kiteworks has bought its portfolio company 123FormBuilder, a cloud-based platform that helps businesses create a variety of web forms and surveys without coding. This is yet another successful exit from Catalyst Romanian Fund I. Other exits include Vector Watch acquired by FitBit, which subsequently sold to Google, SmartBill acquired by Visma, Vola acquired by Resource Partners and Green Horse Games acquired by Miniclip, a Tencent subsidiary.
123FormBuilder develops easy-to-use form creation software for thousands of applications across various verticals. The Company initially targeted mainly English-speaking countries and has expanded into a multi-language offering, both for SMEs and enterprise clients by providing application design options, payment processing and regulatory compliant data management. Currently 35,000 users worldwide rely on 123FormBuilder’s cloud-based software that automates data collecting workflows using web forms and surveys.
“123FormBuilder was a key investment in Catalyst Fund I and we are proud to see the Company entering its next development phase, which confirms the success story of the business started in Timisoara, Romania. We are proud to have worked with co-founder and CEO, Florin Cornianu and the rest of the team, in helping 123FromBuilder grow. It’s impressive to see this Company be acquired by Kiteworks, a large global strategic player in the secure private content software vertical, who recently announced it has just closed a growth investment round of almost half a billion dollars, just before finalizing the acquisition of 123FormBuilder.” said Marius Ghenea, Managing Partner, Catalyst Romania.
“The Catalyst team helped a lot even before their investment in 123FormBuilder, and Marius and his colleagues supported us in good and in challenging times all these years, not only with investments, but also with guidance, know-how or networking. For me as co-founder/CEO this was extremely valuable and I wanted to give them my heartfelt thanks for that!” added Florin Cornianu, CEO of 123FormBuilder.
✈️ Catalyst Romania’s Portfolio Company Interactive Travel Holdings (Vola.ro) Acquired by Resource Partners ✈️
Catalyst Romania has announced in September the successful exit of Interactive Travel Holdings – ITH to Resource Partners, a regional private equity fund. ITH operates popular online travel agencies across CEE including Vola.ro, the market leader in Romania, and Fru.pl, a key player in Poland.
Daniel Truică, CEO of ITH, stated: “This transaction marks a new chapter for the company, which will focus on growth and expansion in new markets in Europe. It is the second time in the history of Vola.ro and Fru.pl that an institutional investor has validated our business model and growth prospects, which is a great honor. We extend our gratitude to 3TS Capital Partners and Catalyst Romania, who have supported us through the challenges of the pandemic and assisted us in our business transformation, helping us fulfill our mission to simplify the travel booking experience through technology and innovation.”
Catalyst Romania and 3TS Capital Partners played a pivotal role in supporting ITH’s initial phase of regional growth, guiding the company through an expansion from a transaction fee-based model to a comprehensive suite of travel-related products and services. This strategic shift enabled ITH to adapt to the evolving demands of post-pandemic travel, offering passengers more convenient and seamless travel experiences.
“For Catalyst Romania, the investment in Vola.ro was based on our mission to support Romanian champions in any technology vertical, including the travel industry. We are proud to have been part of the success story of the on-line travel market leader in Romania, which is now entering a new stage of its development” said Marius Ghenea, Managing Partner Catalyst Romania.
“We are proud to have been part of ITH’s remarkable journey,” said Zbigniew Lapinski, Senior Partner at 3TS Capital Partners. “The Company navigated the challenges of the Covid period exceptionally well, positioning itself to fully leverage on the post-pandemic up-swing trend in travel. As a result, ITH achieved more than threefold revenue growth in the past three years and significantly improved profitability at all levels. We are delighted that the Company has gained a strong new partner in Resource Partners.”
💸After securing a 10 million euros Series B funding round, LeanPay targets ambitious expansion plan in Romania💸
Leanpay Romania, the local subsidiary of the Slovenian start-up specializing in BNPL (Buy Now Pay Later) services, aims to reach 1,000 partner merchants by the end of 2025. Romania is one of the largest markets in the region for these new credit services, with an estimated potential of around one billion euros, according to local representatives of the non-banking financial institution. Leanpay entered the local market last year and currently has a portfolio of 100 merchants operating in Romania, including well-known players such as Flanco, PC Garage, Evomag, Zepter, Ideall, Lensa, and Bose.
“Romania is one of the largest markets in Central and Eastern Europe for the type of services we offer and continues to have tremendous potential, which we estimate at over one billion euros. Assuming a return to a favorable, stable economic context, without major crises, the local BNPL market will continue to grow rapidly, with double-digit growth year-on-year, similar to other European markets. This year, we aim to reach around 200 local retailers, focusing on sectors where the Leanpay solution can bring the most added value, such as electronics, furniture, DIY, home & decor, sports equipment, as well as medical services. The Leanpay solution is suitable for shopping carts with an average value of 5,000 lei, allowing purchases of products between 250 and 25,000 lei. Our goal is to reach 1,000 partner merchants by the end of 2025,” said Vlad Răduţu, country manager of Leanpay Romania, in an interview with Ziarul Financiar.
The Slovenian start-up entered the local market following an initial investment of one million euros, which was fully used to create the business from scratch in Romania—from processes and technical equipment to the entire operational area and team creation.
“We chose Romania because it is one of the largest markets in the region in terms of potential, after Poland. Also, our country has a stable and correctly regulated legislative framework for this type of business. At the same time, the Romanian market is highly competitive, and what sets us apart in this landscape is the BNPL 3.0 purchasing experience we offer. After the outdated BNPL 1.0 financial solutions (non-digitized services for large-value purchases provided by banks) and the unsustainable BNPL 2.0 business models (unregulated digital solutions offered by fintechs), Leanpay is a pioneer in developing a comprehensive BNPL 3.0 solution. Specifically, installment payments at merchants are available through a fully digital, fast, simple, and transparent process, responsibly presented to the customer, avoiding consumer over-indebtedness, either online or directly in partner stores, for purchases ranging from 250 lei to 25,000 lei, without the need for paperwork, cards, or bank visits,” he explained.
In the past year, over 40,000 Romanians used the Leanpay payment solution to make purchases from more than 100 national merchants that have implemented its BNPL service. “At the same time, in the last six months, the number of final consumers has almost doubled, thanks to the products we offer and the specific benefits of the BNPL 3.0 model we created,” Răduţu emphasized, highlighting the solution’s functionalities.
📖 Adservio piles up innovations for the 2024-2025 school year 📖
Adservio has just announced the launch of an Automatic Timetable Generator for the new school year, fully integrated with the rest of the platform, which significantly eases the way classes are scheduled in schools. This tool simplifies the timetable creation process, removing the complexity and time consumption associated with this task.
With an extremely intuitive and easy-to-use interface, schools will be able to quickly configure the timetable, effortlessly integrating all necessary information about buildings, classrooms, teachers, and time slots. The Timetable Generator is integrated within the Calendar of all the Adservio accounts (students, teachers, parents) and saves users valuable time. It offers increased flexibility, allowing the timetable to be displayed in various formats, tailored to each user’s needs.
Moreover, the timetable can be downloaded in PDF format directly from the platform, making it accessible at any time, from any device. This functionality will, in the future, also become available as a standalone tool, thereby providing added value to educational institutions that seek a dedicated solution for timetable management.
The Company has also unveiled a bunch of other new features, such as:
The AI Personal Assistant for principals: a groundbreaking innovation for education in Romania, this digital assistant analyzes essential daily and weekly data about school activities, such as the number of absences, student behavior, and other administrative aspects, presenting it to principals in a natural, easy-to-interpret way. It’s like having someone working non-stop for the principal, presenting them with a clear report every morning on everything happening in the school. This way, the school management can make more informed and faster decisions based on a clear and detailed understanding of the school’s situation.
The weekly report for parents powered by Artificial Intelligence (AI): an innovative feature that provides a detailed and clear analysis of their children’s educational progress. This was achieved by transforming complex data with the help of AI into accessible and easy-to-understand information. This report, automatically generated weekly in natural language, allows parents to better understand their child’s performance and behavior at school, giving them the opportunity to intervene where necessary.
In addition to these major functionalities, Adservio continues to improve other aspects of the platform by introducing the Diploma Generation Module, which facilitates the recognition and celebration of students’ academic achievements. This module allows for the quick and personalized generation of diplomas, giving schools the option to use predefined templates for various types of diplomas, from excellence and award diplomas to graduation diplomas for middle school or high school, in accordance with the official standards recognized by the Ministry of Education.
Moreover, the improvements made to the Financial Module offer advanced options for managing billing profiles and configuring VAT, tailored to the specific needs of each kindergarten or private school. These updates enable easier and more efficient management of financial aspects, contributing to better organization of private educational institutions.
✨ The conference “24 Trends for 2024: Gender Equality” ✨
Marius Ghenea and Alexandru Holicov, the Founder and CEO of Adservio, recently participated in a conference focused on gender equality. During the event, they discussed the importance of fostering inclusive work environments and promoting equal opportunities for all genders. Their contributions emphasized the need for continuous efforts to bridge gender gaps and support diversity in society.
The National Confederation for Women’s Entrepreneurship (in Romanian, CONAF) has stated: Gender equality can no longer be seen as merely a future goal; it is a present necessity. Supporting equal rights and opportunities for everyone becomes the foundation of a fair and prosperous society. #GenderEqualityDay challenges us to reflect on the progress made, but more importantly, on the steps needed to ensure a future where every person has the chance to reach their full potential, regardless of gender.
Alexandru Holicov added: ”In the education sector, we must ensure that equal opportunities are not just words but a reality for all. During the meeting, we found out that a recent study shows that 30% of people still lack awareness or interest in gender equality. This is an alarming result. Education is the starting point for driving meaningful change—ensuring that both girls and boys grow up in a world where their potential is recognized equally. From classrooms to boardrooms, gender equity should be embedded in all our processes. As leaders, we must create environments where diverse perspectives are not only welcomed but celebrated, as they lead to stronger outcomes and innovation.”
Marius Ghenea says: ”I was honored to take part in this ample TV debate organized by CONAF and Digi24 about gender equality and, in on a more general level, on the equal opportunities in Romania today and for the future, particularly thinking about the agenda for Romania 2030 on these major social issues. As a personal experience, I can mention here that we are looking for more female-led startup and early stage companies to invest in with our Catalyst funds, and we are also promoting female leadership in all areas of company governance, from founder level to non-executive or Board levels, and going also to executive management where we are proud to have a number of investments with female CEO’s or female C-line executives. Additionally, as a personal involvement, I am involved with and supporting CONAF, the most important female-led entrepreneurial confederation, as a Vice-president in the CONAF Board.”
🥇 ESX participation at the Sense4FIT event 🥇
ESX, a key player in Romania’s fitness and wellness ecosystem, is actively involved in the development of this sector, including through its partnership with Sense4FIT. Sense4FIT, the country’s leading event in this domain, took place at Romexpo on the 7th and 8th of September, bringing together top industry leaders, including ESX. The event provided a platform for networking and innovation, aimed at showcasing the latest trends and technologies in fitness and wellness.
Marius Ghenea, Managing Partner of Catalyst Romania and Board Director at ESX, participated in the event to highlight the company’s commitment to the health and well-being of its users. “ESX’s participation in Sense4FIT reflects our desire to expand our influence and create new opportunities for our fitness community by connecting with other industry leaders and identifying innovative solutions for our users,” stated Marius Ghenea.
The ESX Booth at Sense4FIT Summitt was quite busy with gymgoers for the two days of the Fair, while another activity sponsored by ESX, Icetivity or the Ice Bathtub Challenge, was also an interesting hotspot of the fitness event at the RomExpo Fairgrounds in Bucharest.
⚡ New editions of Entrepreneurship Courses coming soon ⚡
The Intensive Entrepreneurship Course, which will take place on the 30th and 31st of October, course focuses on analyzing the key components of a business, starting from the startup phase and throughout its development, highlighting how these elements interconnect to build a sustainable, profitable, solid, and successful business. The program is equally valuable for entrepreneurs at the beginning of their journey, as well as for managers in entrepreneurial companies who wish to gain a deeper understanding of the entrepreneurial vision and how it can be effectively implemented by competent managers.
This type of entrepreneurship course blends theoretical business concepts with concrete examples from companies in which Marius has been involved during his over 30 years of entrepreneurial and investment activity. With an impressive portfolio of companies where he served as an executive or manager, such as Flanco, Flamingo, and PC Garage, participants will gain firsthand insights into the challenges and decisions that led these companies to success. Additionally, Marius has a proven track record as the Manager of Catalyst Romania Fund, which has announced investments of over 15 million euros in recent years, including AdServio, Seedblink, and EvoMag, as well as successful exits like Smartbill, Vola.ro, and 123FormBuilder.
The Intensive Entrepreneurship Course takes place over two days from 15:00 to 21:00, offering valuable content for entrepreneurs who want to stay up to date with the latest business trends, those looking to craft an exit strategy, or those who want to better understand how to attract financing and learn what decisive elements investors focus on.
To register, use the following link.
Moreover, those interested can participate at BusinessDrive. The Business Drive program offers a dynamic, five-day mini-MBA designed to enhance managerial skills through a mix of theoretical sessions and interactive business simulations. Participants gain hands-on experience in decision-making across key areas like finance, marketing, production, and human resources. Using a software-driven business simulation, attendees manage a virtual company through real-world challenges such as market fluctuations and competition. Ideal for entrepreneurs and managers, the program also includes networking opportunities, personalized business coaching, and access to an alumni community.
The newest edition of BusinessDrive will take place between 14-18 October. To register, use this link.
If you want to be up to date with news from the Catalyst Romania portfolio, visit our LinkedIn page!