As head of Fintech Station at Grupo Santander, Diego’s focus is on fostering open innovation and forming long-term strategic partnerships that drive the group's financial performance. Leveraging more than six years of experience in this role (and almost twenty years in banking), his expertise spans strategic business development, mentoring and problem solving within the fintech ecosystem.
João Miguel Dias is a Partner at Armilar, having joined the company in 2011. Before, João developed his career in the strategic innovation and management consulting areas, at Strategos and Willis Towers Watson. He was also a math university lecturer.
João is a board member/observer of several Armilar portfolio companies and plays a key role in the screening of tech-based investment opportunities, working closely with different European ecosystem players.
João holds an MBA from The Lisbon MBA Program (Lisbon, 2008), and a B.Sc. in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Instituto Superior Técnico (Lisbon, 2004).
Jon Lorenzo is an IT professional with more than 20 years of experience, having worked in large multinational corporations (if you want to mention Oracle, Cisco, AWS and Google).
Focused on Startups and Digital Natives since 2014, especially in Gaming and Fintech, with direct experience in startups (he worked for Moovit, Israeli mobility startup), and good knowledge of the ecosystem (Incubators, accelerators and Venture Capital funds).
He has developed his career mainly in Iberia, covering both Spain and Portugal.
Ricardo Álvarez-Cienfuegos holds dual degrees in Law and Business Administration from the Complutense University of Madrid and has an MBA in International Management through the Business Internationalization Scholarship Program granted by the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, and Tourism and ICEX, selected from over 3,000 candidates.
He began his career in banking and consulting at companies like Banco Santander and Xerox. Later, he worked in California at the Economic and Commercial Office of Spain in Los Angeles, supporting Spanish companies in establishing themselves in the United States.
Following this experience, he entered the entrepreneurial ecosystem, leading the international expansion of a biotechnology startup to the United States and managing the search for international investment within the field of preclinical research.
Since 2020, he has been with Plug and Play, initially opening the Barcelona office and leading and scaling one of Plug and Play's largest international projects with one of Spain's leading banks. Additionally, he has implemented and led various projects across different sectors, such as Desigual's fashion accelerator (with over 200 applications and 8 pilots conducted) or Vodafone's 5G Lab focused on the metaverse and video games, among others.
Philipp is a Senior Ventures Associate with a proven track record in early-stage investments and close collaboration with Plug and Play's corporate partners, Philipp has optimized investment sourcing and due diligence, leading to the identification and evaluation of numerous high-potential startups across EMEA. He has personally contributed to investments in 30+ high-growth startups, providing mentorship and strategic guidance to over 100 entrepreneurs globally. Philipp's expertise also includes advising executives at both established corporations and innovative startups, fostering growth and driving digital transformation across various industries. He is particularly skilled in developing and executing VCaaS strategies, helping corporate clients leverage venture capital to achieve their strategic goals.
Currently at Plug and Play, Philipp plays a crucial role in supporting both the venture team and corporate partners' CVCs. He actively identifies and evaluates investment opportunities, both internally and for partners, assists portfolio companies in reaching key milestones, and contributes to the firm's overall success in the EMEA region.
Covadonga works as an Investment Manager in Kibo Ventures. Prior to joining KIbo, Covadonga was part of the growth team at Agora, a London-based startup disrupting the beauty industry through social commerce. Before that, she began her career at Goldman Sachs in London, where she worked in the Financial Institutions Group and Natural Resources team (M&A division).
She holds a Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering from Imperial College London, and also studied Contemporary Art at Sotheby’s Institute of Art..
Quentin Vigneau is a seasoned Product Director with a robust background in fintech and product management. Currently leading payment products at Swile, Quentin has successfully built an EMI infrastructure processing over €3 billion annually. Under his watch, Swile payment team managed to drive significant cost reductions, improved customer experience, and enabled strong growth across Europe and South America. Quentin is also an active angel investor, supporting numerous fintech startups, and holds advanced degrees in Digital Entrepreneurship from HEC and Télécom Paris.
Alexandre is the Country Manager for Spain and Portugal at Klarna and is part of the Forbes 30 Under 30 class of 2023. With a strong track record in leading multi-million Euro B2B engagements, he has been pivotal in driving Klarna’s market expansion in Southern Europe, forging strategic partnerships, and accelerating business growth.
Alexandre's mission is to simplify, enhance, and make the payment and shopping experience more intuitive, accessible, and responsible for consumers. Prior to Klarna, he held senior roles at Iberia and Amadeus. Fluent in Portuguese, Spanish, and English, he holds a BSc in Business Administration from ISCTE Business School and operates between Lisbon and Madrid.