American fintech firm opens eastern Croatia office

The American fintech company Mbanq has opened an office in the eastern Croatian city Osijek on Friday, specifically in the Esseker Center, where it currently employs 12 staff members, Grad Osijek confirmed.

Mbanq are a provider of software for various financial service providers, ranging from traditional banks to modern fintech applications exclusively used on mobile devices.

The grand opening earlier this month of the new office in Osijek was attended by the Deputy Mayor of Osijek, Dragan Vulin, the Board Member of Mbanq Croatia, Eduard Rupčić, Mbanq co-founder Javier Valverde, as well as Osijek-based companies with a significant presence in the American market, such as Orqe and Inchooa.

Deputy Mayor Vulin warmly welcomed the opening of another tech company in Osijek, considering it as further evidence of Osijek’s attractiveness to investors and the creation of new job opportunities for young people.

“I believe that many will consider moving here for such jobs in Osijek. This city administration has been focused on economic development from the beginning of its mandate. I remind you that, immediately upon taking over the responsibility of managing the city, we abolished the communal fee for all economic entities, which was one of the key reasons why Jabil decided to build its factory and Centre of Excellence in Osijek. There are also other measures, as well as the proactivity and flexibility of the city administration staff. Just remember how much we did and how quickly we created all the conditions for Jabil to come here. Before deciding to come to Osijek, their delegation visited eight times, and we fought in competition with 17 cities in Eastern Europe,” said Vulin.

He announced that in a few months, the City of Osijek will take a significant step in the digitization of municipal administration.

“This means that we will have a city application through which all our services will be available as communication for citizens, entrepreneurs, individuals, and legal entities with the City. Not only with the city administration but with the entire system—all municipal institutions and companies will communicate through a digital platform accessible through web interfaces on computers and mobile applications. The platform will be modular, with new modules and capabilities added every few months, with the ambition to be a leader in this area among the four largest Croatian cities,” Vulin stated, expressing hope that citizens will be satisfied with the service they will receive.

Eduard Rupčić, a member of the Board of Mbanq Croatia, recalled the year 2017 when a small company from Osijek and Croatia was taken over, marking the beginning of their global journey.

“Before Mbanq arrived, we only dreamed globally, and since that year 2017, we embarked on a global journey. Today, these teams from Osijek and Podgorica maintain banking systems from Belgium to Barbados, from Aruba to Montenegro, and they are very good at it. We will make sure that this team grows, and we will pay as much tax as possible into the City of Osijek’s treasury and strive to be even better,” said Rupčić.

Mbanq co-founder Javier Valverde expressed satisfaction with coming to Osijek, saying that the city is beautiful with a lot of undiscovered potential. He also announced the company’s expectations, which include growth in the Belgian, British, Croatian, and Montenegrin markets.

“We will have a strong network and development team. We hope to discover new talents; we need fresh ideas. Over the past few years, it was difficult for us to understand many things, but now we understand the Croatian market much better, especially in Osijek, where we have a beautiful office, and I’m looking forward to bringing in new people and building a community. The most important thing is that we have 100 members worldwide from America, Croatia, Montenegro, Cambodia, India, and Singapore. I can tell you that one of the main centers is right here in Osijek. I am proud to be here and meet new people,” concluded Javier Valverde.