Bringing a tech business to China

Kellogg-Recanati EMBA group, 上海15/04/2016

by Itai Damti

TOPICSLeverate’s story: Garage to HK + ShanghaiOur business in Asia Pacific (APAC)China 101 for foreigners: culture, tech, enteringOur localization points in China: tech & othersMain challenges in ChinaQ&A

LEVERATE IN NUMBERSFour founders160 employeesSix branches: Israel, Ukraine, Cyprus, HK, Shanghai, Berlin160 clients and GROWINGMonthly trading volume $100BRaised $240k (2008) + $6.25M (Saxo Bank, 2011)

WHAT WE DOSome of you are traders.Our clients: brokers (we’re a B2B company)Our business model

… AND THE

BACK

THE GARAGE DAYS (2008)One day in the IDF…Money machine! (take 1 - sports)Money machine! (take 2 - FX)January 2008: $240k seed fundingDamn. It works.But one broker…October 2008: we’re going B2B with LXFeed

THE PRODUCT BOOM (2009-2011)Intros, sales, intros, sales…Product #2: LXRiskLXSuite is born (brokerage in a box)MORE PRODUCTS.Total chaos But we’re a market leader.

SCALING UP & ABROAD (2012-2014)BUSINESS BOOM (100+ clients)BABY BOOM (40 to 150 employees)• Proper structure• Focus on marketing & Sales• Big deal: trading back-end• Expanding globally: London, Ukraine and…

2013

2015

BUSINESS IN CHINA = STARTUP

NON-STOP DILEMMAS

YOU’RE UNCERTAI

N AND ALONE

FIRST TIME IN

CHINA: x5 MISTAKES

OUR APAC TIMELINE2012: trends going for the Asian market2013: office in HK2014: founder relocating to HK2015: office in Shanghai

Mid 2014 Mid 2015 Mid 2016

LEVERATE APAC IN NUMBERSTwo offices13 employees, 3 more open positions40 clients in 5 countries5/6 time zones away from ILRegional growth ~100% yearly, currently 7 digits USD in ARR

CHINESE CULTURE

101

Fast & dynami

c

Business savvy,

number savvy Trust issues

everywhere Face

Innovative &

creative

CHINESE TECH

101

Censorship BrandsWeb,

mobile, desktop

(HOW) SHOULD

YOU ENTER CHINA?

“GET A LOCAL PARTNER”

CAN FOREIGN COMPANIES SUCCEED AT

ALL?

FIXING OUR TECH

LanguageOperating systems & platformsConnectivity & hosting 3rd parties: payments, mass mailingForget about GoogleThat also means Google AnalyticsBoost your security & performance

LOCALIZING EVERYTHING

Local product packageMarketing: local seminars, local expos, Baidu, QQSales: local pricing, local food & drinks, Chinese contractOnboarding: local partners, local instrumentsCustomer service: QQ, WeChat, face-to-faceCollection: keeping cultural subtleties in mind

CHALLENGE #1:

COMPETITION

CHALLENGE #2: THE CS MELTDO

WN

Regulation

Trader culture:

resources, sophisticati

on

Business culture: resource

s, risk appetite

Language

Payments

Marketing

channelsMarketin

g vs. sales

balance

OTHER COUNTRIES IN APAC

HK & TaiwanSingaporeMalaysiaIndonesiaThailandPhilippines

WATCH / READ / LISTENThe Art of War (just kidding)The university of life & languageTechInAsiaA16Z blog & podcastAlibaba’s World (book by Porter Erisman)A Crocodile in the Yangtze (film by Porter Erisman)Remote (book by 37signals)China Business CastStartup NoodleChina 2014 (e-book)

Q&A

KEEP IN TOUCHTwitter: itaidamtiLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/itaidamtiBlog: www.imaginedorder.com