The author, who co-founded Adyen (listed in Amsterdam in 2018 and becoming Europe’s most valuable fintech at the time) and joined as employee number 009 in 2007, reflects on his journey and introduces his new venture, Noah, launched in 2025 with Shah Ramezani to build infrastructure for money that moves at the speed of the internet. He argues that Europe does not lack ambition but habitually conceals it, having favored a culture of silence and quiet execution while American founders excel at articulating a future vision. He views Europe’s apparent drawbacks—fragmented markets and limited resources—as competitive advantages that force companies to think globally from day one, as Adyen, Wise, and Revolut did. Europe must combine world-class execution with a compelling vision to attract talent, capital, and customers.
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