Anchoring Beyond-Banking Innovation: A conversation with amberra

amberra, the strategic investment and venture-building studio of the co-operative financial network (Genossenschaftliche FinanzGruppe Volksbanken Raiffeisenbanken, GFG) is leveraging innovation to develop a Beyond Banking ecosystem - focuses on the everyday lives of customers, strengthens regional structures, and fosters new relationships.

Together with MVP Factory, amberra’s venture building unit, “amberra build” is building new business models in the four areas of “Sustainability”, “Living”, "Health” as well as “Regional Economies” from the initial idea to spin-off companies.

To better understand the vision, motivations, and the collaboration with MVP Factory, I sat down with Christian Haß, Head of Venture Building at amberra, for a conversation.

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• Hello Christian, it’s great to have a chat with you! Please tell us about yourself and your experience in Corporate Venture Building.‍

My focus is on strategic corporate development, building corporate startups, developing digital product and service innovation as well as agile transformation. As Head of Venture Building, I am currently in charge of the amberra build division. Previously, I was responsible for the establishment and further development of innovation management at DekaBank.

In addition to twelve years of experience in banking, I have extensive expertise in the development of corporate start-ups and the strategic development of portfolio companies in the industrial sector.

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• ‍Can you tell us more about what amberra is doing? What are your goals and vision behind it?

amberra is the strategic investment and venture-building studio of the Genossenschaftliche FinanzGruppe (cooperative financial network). We operate in three business segments: We invest in relevant start-ups, we build start-ups and develop new business models and we partner with startups - three ways to drive innovation and growth for the cooperative financial network. 

We are involved in four areas of life that go far beyond the core banking business: Housing, Health, Sustainability, and Regional Economy. In this way, we create new customer interfaces, strengthen existing customer relationships, and build new ones.

Our vision is to build an ecosystem of near- and beyond-banking products and services that transform the finance group from a financial partner into a partner for life. We claim to build new customer relationships for the cooperative banks - with solutions for life.

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• ‍Why do you think "beyond-banking" is a crucial topic for the banking industry? 

Financial products are becoming more and more interchangeable and there is less and less demand today for personal advice on-site. Banking services are increasingly and seamlessly integrated into other (digital) services and products. The actual banking service becomes invisible and fades into the background. This represents a fundamental challenge for all banks, not least for the regionally based cooperative banks.

Within an ecosystem of banking and non-banking products and services, beyond Banking opens up new horizons for banks - and enables new customer interfaces and revenue streams. At its core, it is about helping people in the regions with completely new offerings in their everyday lives. As a result, the cooperative financial network is broadening its base and moving from being a financial partner to a partner for life as a whole.

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• ‍Can you share any notable successes or milestones achieved so far?

amberra started operations on April 1, 2023. Since then, we have built up our leadership team and a team of around 20 employees - with extensive expertise in investments, product development, company and brand building as well as communication and growth. And the team continues to grow. 

The biggest milestone to date was the launch of the amberra fund in March 2024, which gives member banks and companies in our cooperative financial network the opportunity to actively shape the future in near and beyond banking. We aim for the broad participation of the nearly 700 cooperative banks in the fund. Our investment unit amberra invest has set up the future investment process – thereby creating the conditions for strategic investments.

At our venture building unit, we have outlined the steps for business model development and venture creation using a three-stage gate model: discovery, validation, and MVP development. We have also launched our first two venture-building projects. In parallel, we are now building our business segment for partnering and integration.

In addition to investments and venture building, we also want to utilize venture clients and partnerships with startups in the future to drive innovation and growth within the financial group.

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• ‍How has the collaboration with MVP Factory been so far? What would you say is the success factor of this partnership? 

‍We are happy to have MVP Factory as a strategic partner. Their extensive experience in corporate venture building, methodological competence, entrepreneurial mindset, and expertise are invaluable to us.

Our project teams are interdisciplinary, comprising members from amberra, MVP Factory, and partners of the finance group. They work together as a professional venture team, bringing joy and passion to their work. It's inspiring to see their dedication and enthusiasm.

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• ‍What are you most excited about the future of amberra? 

‍The cooperative financial network currently has a high demand for our venture-building services, which perfectly align with their needs. I am excited to see which solutions we will implement in the near future. Our long-term goal is to develop business models that solve real customer problems while helping the banks capture new customer interfaces and generate value beyond their traditional core business.

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• ‍Why do you think it is important to build start-ups in areas that are focused on the common good and sustainability?  

amberra's focus is on long-term strategic success. We ensure that the start-ups we invest in, build ourselves, or partner with, benefit the members and customers of our cooperative financial network.

This network has a long tradition of promoting the common good and the region. By building new customer relationships for the cooperative banks, we ensure that personal proximity to local people remains a sustainable competitive advantage.

In this way, we are also sending a joint signal to members, customers, and the competition: the cooperative financial network is continuing to develop with a regional focus, supplementing existing services and focusing on diversification, including those outside its core business.

Sustainability is not just a megatrend, but the starting point for a long-term paradigm shift. Solutions for the energy transition or more sustainable consumption, circular economy business models, and innovative offers for agriculture open up numerous opportunities to tap into new customer groups and revenue streams. 

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About amberra build: amberra’s venture building unit, “amberra build” develops new business models in the four areas of “Sustainability”, “Living”, "Health” as well as “Regional Economies” from the initial idea to spin-off companies. In cooperation with partners of the finance group, amberra is developing a Beyond Banking ecosystem that focuses on the everyday lives of customers, strengthens regional structures, and fosters new relationships. 

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About MVP Factory’s role: Leveraging our expertise in building winning studios like DB Schenker and Startrampe, we support amberra in building the studio setup and developing an innovation funnel that transforms ideas into scalable ventures. Now, together, we are empowering financial institutions to identify new opportunities “beyond the core”.