CaixaBank will be offering strong support to the entrepreneurial and innovation ecosystem at the Mobile World Congress and 4YFN

CaixaBank is a trustee of the Mobile World Capital Foundation and Innovation Headline Sponsor of 4YFN

• CaixaBank, through its division specialising in technology companies and their investors, DayOne, will be offering personalised advice to entrepreneurs and professionals and a comprehensive programme of conferences at its own stand at 4YFN.
• Visitors to the DayOne stand will be able to speak to experts from all areas of CaixaBank’s work related to tech, such as AgroBank, company banking, sustainability, human resources and innovation; subsidiaries such as imagin, zone2boost and CaixaBank Tech, and company executives such as Rita Almela (101 Ventures), Jordi Romero (Factorial), Marc Jordana (Norrsken) and Pablo Álvarez (Clikalia), among others. .
• The EmprendeXXI Award, backed by CaixaBank and the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism through Enisa, will announce the winner of the 2023 edition in Catalonia on Tuesday 28 February at 11 am.

In keeping with its commitment to innovation, digital transformation and entrepreneurship, CaixaBank will be heavily involved in the MWC and 4YFN, which will be held in Barcelona from 27 February to 2 March. The bank, which is a trustee of the Mobile World Capital Foundation and Innovation Headline Sponsor of the 4YFN, will once again be taking part in this benchmark event.

CaixaBank, through its technology division, DayOne, will have its own stand at 4YFN, where it will offer specialised advice for entrepreneurs, innovative companies and professionals who are interested in the solutions and support for technology companies offered by the bank. Alongside personalised advice, the CaixaBank stand will have a space for activities and talks intended for customers and partners. The bank will also have an exhibition area for start-up clients (start-up corner), where DayOne clients, winners of the EmprendeXXI Awards and Zone2boost investees will be able to showcase their projects and interact with other players in the ecosystem. 

Presentations, lectures and round table discussions: an environment for debate

CaixaBank has organised a comprehensive programme of activities and services, which will take place in its own debate space located within the CaixaBank DayOne stand.

Some of the most salient questions in the field of entrepreneurship and innovation will be analysed, such as how to prepare for investment rounds and IPOs in the current economic climate, how to scale a business without venture funds, the prospects raised by the metaverse and the opportunities offered by digital identity, among others. The event will also feature presentations and debates on women in business and how hospitals can take advantage of digital health solutions for their challenges.

The programme is being organised in partnership with the teams of various specialised areas of the bank and subsidiaries of the CaixaBank Group and partners in the innovation ecosystem such as SpainCAP, Endeavor, Barcelona Health Hub and IESE. Participants will include experts from the business areas of AgroBank, corporate banking, sustainability, human resources and business open innovation, to name but a few. Subsidiaries such as imagin, Zone2boost and CaixaBank Tech will also be taking part.

Besides the directors of the bank, experts in the sector, such as Rita Almela (101 Venturres), Jordi Romero (Factorial), Pablo Álvarez (Clikalia), as well as others, will also take part in the conferences and talks organised by the bank, they will explain what is behind the success of their business models, their experiences and how they have managed to grow..

Weecover, Sibill, Plazah, Payflow, Newe, Nemuru, Haddock and Privasee are just a few of the start-ups in the Zone2boost portfolio, an international innovation initiative driven by CaixaBank, Global Payments and Ingenico with the backing of Visa and Plug and Play. The founders of these companies will showcase their projects and share their experiences at the bank’s stand.

The CaixaBank stand will also host an event to share the results of the first AgroBank Tech Digital Innovation call and future challenges with the start-ups. Additionally, the Observatory of tech trends will be unveiled and a round table on the reality of entrepreneurship will be held, attended by start-up managers from previous editions of the EmprendeXXI Awards and from the programme with the EIC (European Innovation Council).

PEXXI: acknowledging the most innovative companies

To contribute to developing young innovative companies with high growth potential, the bank launched the EmprendeXXI Awards in 2007.

As part of the 4YFN, the regional round of these awards is kicking off and rewards the start-ups with the greatest impact on their territory. Now in their 16th year, these awards have established themselves as a benchmark in the entrepreneurial sector.

The start-up chosen in Catalonia, where these awards are co-sponsored by the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism, through Enisa, will be announced on 28 February.

The awards ceremony will be held on Tuesday 28 February at 4YFN’s Partners Lab CC8 at 11 am

AgroBank drives innovation and digitalisation

Through its commitment to boosting innovation and digitalisation in the agri-food sector, AgroBank has invited leading international agri-food companies and start-ups to explain how they have turned their projects into success stories. This event will be held at CaixaBank’s All In One branch and will feature the start-ups that have submitted their applications to the AgroBank Tech Digital INNovation open call.

The event will be held on Wednesday 1 March at 3 pm at the CaixaBank All In One branch (Pl. de Francesc Macià, 10)

imagin, innovation at the service of users

The digital services and lifestyle platform imagin, powered by CaixaBank, will form part of the official 4YFN schedule by taking part in the 'Business Prototyping Summit', a panel session that will bring together profiles of innovative companies from various industries to explain how agility and efficiency are key to the launch of new products and services.

The event will be held on Thursday 2 March at 10:30 am on the Agora Stage at 4YFN (Hall 8.1) and will be attended by Cristian Farrés, Digital Experience Head at imagin.  

Agenda summary

Various areas of 4YFN will host presentations by representatives from CaixaBank and other key players in the innovation ecosystem, including the following: 

MONDAY 27 FEBRUARY: 

• “Creating value in early stage”, with Rita Almela (101 Ventures), Alberto Hospital (Lanzadera), Bruno Dureux (Innoventures Capital). Monday 27 February at 11:30 am at the DayOne Agora Stand 

• “Digital Identity” with Juan Manel Arcas (CaixaBank Tech) and Ivan Basart Castillo (Validated ID). Monday 27 February at 12 noon at the DayOne Agora Stand 

• “Digital assets – what’s next after the era of speculation?”, with Eva Fernández Santidrián (CaixaBank Head of innovation), Julia Carbajal (Celo), Rajesh Sabari (Telcoin), Eric Pulier (Vatom inc), David Cunningham (Citi), Khusro Khalid (Deloitte Digital). Monday 27 February at 1 pm at the Sky Room – Discovery Area, Hall 8.1 

• “Metaverse” with Marc Cabezas and Carlota Llacuna from CaixaBank Tech. Monday 27 February at 1:30 pm at the DayOne Agora Stand 

• “The Growth of new impact VC Funds” with Manuel Nieto (First Drop VC), Fernando Casado (Inclimo Climate Tech Fund), Maite Fibla (Ship2B Ventures) and Natalia Ruiz (Net Zero Ventures). Monday 27 February at 3:30 pm at the DayOne Agora Stand 

• "Investment red flags: when should VCs say no?", with Marta Antúnez (Wayra), Mercé Tell (Encomenda), Talia Rafaeli (Kompas VC - Israel), Azahara Espejo (Hearst Lab). Monday 27 February at 4:20 pm at the DayOne Agora Stand

TUESDAY 28 FEBRUARY: 

• “Collaborative Growth: Navigating the Instersection of Startups and Corporates”, with Jordi Romero (Factorial), Juan Ignacio García (Boopos), Pere Monràs (Nemuru) and Álvaro Falcones (TaxDown), in addition to other speakers. Tuesday 28 February starting from 9 am at the Partners Lab. CC8 

• “More than scale, multiply. How Unicorns build ecosystems around them”, with Jordi Romero (Factorial), Cesar Miguelañez (Latitude), Yasir Raïs (Syra Coffee), Miquel Subirats (StockAgile). Tuesday 28 February at 1 pm on the 4YFN Agora Stage 

• “From Serial Entrepeneur to Business Angel in Alicante”, with Pablo Alvarez (Clikalia), German Agullo (GDV Mobility), Amaia Rodriguez (Gravity Wave). Tuesday 28 February at 3 pm at the DayOne Agora Stand 

• “Fundraising in the current environment”, with Pepe Agell (Pear VC) Javier del Toro (Angels Capital), Mario Brassesco (Bit2me), Alberto Centeno (Fourvenues), Angels Molist (Secways). Tuesday 28 February at 4 pm at the DayOne Agora Stand

WEDNESDAY 1 MARCH

• “Practical aspects to take into account when closing rounds with Business Angels”, with Joan Roure (Eterlast), Marc Serra (Axial Biotech (Robopedics)), Beltrán Aznar (Clevergy). Wednesday 1 March at 12.30 pm at the DayOne Agora Stand 

• “Perspectivas Venture Capital 2023: how to improve the process of capital raising”, with Aniol Brosa (Inveready), David Hernández (Pangea). Wednesday 1 March at 3 pm at the DayOne Agora Stand 

• “Success stories made in Barcelona”, with Oriol de Pablo (Vicio), Josep Talavera (Mundimoto), Bruno Casanovas (NudeProject). Wednesday 1 March at 3.30 pm at the DayOne Agora Stand 

• An event with international agrotech companies and elevator pitch of the start-ups that have brought their projects to the AgroBank Tech Digital INNovation open call. Wednesday 1 March at 3 pm at the CaixaBank All In One branch

THURSDAY 2 MARCH

• “Business Prototyping Summit”, with Cristian Farrés (Digital Experience Head at imagin); Christel Adam (Kraft Heinz); Yann Bry (AXA Next); and moderator Blai Carandell Saladich (NOBA). Thursday 2 March at 10:30 am on the 4YFN Agora Stage (Hall 8.1)
• Welcome Start-ups of AgroBank Tech Digital INNovation, which will feature the keynote presentation of the Tech Trends Observatory, a speech on the global results and future challenges of the AgroBank acceleration programme and a round table discussion with start-ups on The Reality of Entrepreneurship. Thursday 2 March at 11 am on the dayOne Agora Stand

You can check the full agenda at this link.