Energy filled every corner of Tallinnâs Mövenpick Hotel on November 22 as Wallester teams gathered for our annual Mission Day. The air buzzed with anticipation, ideas flowed freely, and the future felt bright with possibility.
đ„ Kicking the Mission Day off
The morning began with lively connections and warm greetings. As colleagues from Estonia, Latvia, the UK, and France gathered, the room filled with a sense of unity and shared purpose. Our HR team took the stage first and announced the launch of the âPeople Firstâ project, aimed at reviewing key processes and developing a modern HR system. This initiative is designed to support existing Wallester employees while attracting new talent to sustain the companyâs steady growth.
đŒ CRM team powers Wallesterâs client success
Crowned Wallesterâs Best Team of 2023, the CRM team continues to set the standard for excellence by building strong relationships with partners. This 14-member team of rock stars is the backbone of Wallesterâs client operations, ensuring every interaction is meaningful and impactful. Their ability to anticipate client needs and provide actionable insights has been a key factor in Wallesterâs success.
The Head of Client Success, Kristiina Senno, shared several notable client achievements, including White-Label projects for Latvijas Pasts, KuCoin, AstroPay, and Cino, among others. Additionally, she highlighted companies, which successfully use Wallester Business to support their growth.
đ Wallesterâs expansion and innovations spotlighted
The French team took the stage, bringing energy and insights to Tallinn. Their presentation reflected the dynamism of Wallesterâs operations in France, showcasing the teamâs innovative approaches to market challenges.
The morning continued with a spotlight on Wallesterâs expanding global presence. The âWelcome to Latviaâ session, held by Ludmila Nikitina, Country Manager and Partnership Manager for Latvia, introduced the companyâs newly opened office in Riga. This milestone marks a well-considered move into a promising sector, with the Latvian team sharing their vision for progress and strengthening existing partnerships while building new ones.
The Business Development team painted a bright picture of our growth journey. Edouard Roca, the Head of Business Development, shared stories of wins and lessons learned, demonstrating how systematic efforts continue to fuel Wallesterâs expansion. The team unveiled a new, advanced sales engine aimed at boosting efficiency in lead generation, setting the stage for faster growth in 2025 and beyond.
Ekaterina Gaychuk, the Head of Marketing, highlighted the accomplishments of the affiliate program and demonstrated the results of effective campaigns that elevated brand recognition and acquired new clients. The presentation also provided a glimpse into future plans, showcasing how marketing will drive growth through a mix of affiliate partnerships, content marketing, and strong SEO and PR initiatives.
đš Product and Design vision and accomplishments
The Product team, represented by Product Manager Dmitri Mitikov, showcased key achievements and lessons from 2024, including important projects such as improved 3DS settings, card top-ups, website redesign, numerous integrations, and more. We also had the opportunity to explore key initiatives on the roadmap for 2025.
Head of Design Andrey Davidovich shared a forward-thinking vision for Wallesterâs design strategy. He highlighted a new blueprint for redefining the companyâs design system, emphasizing speed, cohesion, and quality as its core principles. Andrey also gave a preview of the Wallester appâs planned evolution for 2025, showcasing user-friendly improvements and a refined interface aimed at delivering a smooth customer experience.
đ Wallesterâs scalability, security, and financial excellence
The Operations team ensures Wallesterâs systems run smoothly and securely. Artjom Olev, Head of Operations, introduced key topics critical to our companyâs prosperityâpayment security, tokenization technologies, and fraud prevention measures.
Chief Technology Officer Andrei Gornostaev discussed the concepts of scalability, resilience, and security. He provided notable industry examples and explained how these important aspects are implemented at Wallester to ensure outstanding platform performance. Vadims Stojans, DevOps Engineer, delivered a passionate speech about security and its importance for the efficient and safe operation of the entire company.
Head of Finance Artur Lemming took the audience behind the scenes of Wallesterâs financial department, offering a detailed look at its structure and the impressive milestones achieved in 2024. Artur highlighted Wallesterâs remarkable achievement of capturing an 83% share of Estoniaâs transaction volume, proving the companyâs dominant market presence. This session reinforced the importance of a well-structured financial team in supporting Wallesterâs ambitious roadmap for 2025 and beyond.
âïž The importance of compliance
As Mission Day progressed, Head of Compliance Heleri Nisu explained the importance of compliance to Wallesterâs operations. The team focuses on managing risks and adhering to financial regulations to keep operations secure and trustworthy. With a combined 66 years of experience in the financial sector, supervisory authorities, and law firms, the Compliance Teamâs expertise plays a key role in maintaining Wallesterâs strong reputation.
đĄïž Managing risks, fighting financial crime
As Wallester looks ahead to new opportunities, the session on risk management provided a deep dive into how the company ensures secure and sustainable growth. Led by Anna Maxim, Wallesterâs Group Chief Risk Officer, the discussion highlighted the importance of smart planning and resource allocation in keeping up with the constant changes in fintech.
Anna explained how effective risk management builds confidence that operations are running smoothly and that resources are directed to where they matter most, ensuring Wallester grows safely and steadily while making well-informed decisions.
The AML team has had an incredibly productive year, addressing some of the most pressing challenges in the fight against financial crime. Ragnar Russe, Head of AML, explained how their work is critical in keeping Wallester ahead of regulatory changes and maintaining the highest standards of security and transparency.
đ Creators of meaningful events
The Events team has been at the heart of Wallesterâs efforts to build meaningful relationships and expand our network. A key focus this year has been organizing and participating in conferences, where their dedication to creating new connections has opened doors to exciting collaborations and partnerships. During the presentation, they introduced new promotional giveaways, adding a personal touch to every interaction. Looking ahead, the team is gearing up for off-site events aimed at strengthening relationships and creating unforgettable moments for the Wallester community.
đ New horizons
The UK expansion strategy sparked excitement across the room. Julian Brand, the UK CEO, spoke about how Wallester UK will be integrated into the Wallester Group ecosystem to achieve a sustainable and cost-efficient operation.
The presentation highlighted the strategic importance of the UK market, recognized as Europeâs largest and most dynamic fintech environment. Establishing a UK entity unlocks opportunities to expand partnerships and solidify a stronger presence across Europe. As Julian concluded, this initiative is a significant leap toward Wallesterâs vision of becoming one of the global fintech leaders.
Leadership in focus
CEO and COO’s final remarks were a key part of the event, providing a clear overview of Wallesterâs accomplishments and future goals. Our leaders presented a comprehensive summary of the company’s achievements and strategic direction.
CEO Sergei Astafjev spoke about the incredible opportunity for Wallester to thrive in two of the fastest-growing markets â Corporate Cards and Embedded Finance. He explained how Wallesterâs B2B2B model allows clients to introduce the platform to their own customers, creating a natural, value-sharing chain.
COO Dmitri Logvinenko described the flexibility of Wallesterâs cloud-native platform. Built entirely in-house, it is designed to scale effortlessly, giving businesses the tools they need to grow quickly without cutting corners. He emphasized how this platform makes launching new programs fast and easy, empowering clients to stay ahead in competitive markets.
The financial performance further reinforced Wallesterâs success, with an impressive annualized revenue of 18.3 million EUR and a 69% year-over-year revenue growth rate. This demonstrates the companyâs robust market traction and effective execution of its strategies.
Conclusion
From inspiring presentations to exciting milestones and new strategies, it was clear that Wallester is on a remarkable trajectory. Mission Day 2024 showcased the companyâs continued growth, expanding global presence, and commitment to building great products.
Watch this space. The next chapter will be extraordinary.
