At BlackFin Capital Partners, Paul Mizrahi specialises in Capital Markets, distribution and internet finance.

From September 2007 until September 2008, Paul acted as a ‘business angel’ through his company Capital Cube, advising particularly in the internet sector (not including the financial sector). He was also involved in private equity funds as a Senior Advisor on transactions in the financial sector.

n 1999 Paul created the group ProCapital with Laurent Bouyoux, Eric May (and Régis Fraisse). This investment firm, a member of Euronext, focussed on two sectors: the provision of securities services and, through its subsidiary company Fortuneo, online brokerage. Paul directed Fortuneo as Chairman of the Board. By combining a strategy of efficient internet marketing with the targeted acquisition of competitors, he succeeded in raising Fortuneo to second place in France, with a market share of over 15%. Following this success, the ProCapital group was sold to Crédit Mutuel Arkéa in July 2006. Paul Mizrahi assisted the handover of the company until September 2007.

Paul had his first entrepreneurial experience within the Commerzbank group in Frankfurt from 1994 to 1999. Alongside Laurent Bouyoux, Paul was a founding shareholder of Commerz Financial Products, a subsidiary business aimed at developing derivative products for Commerzbank in Europe. Commerz Financial Products developed quickly and profitably, particularly in Germany and France. The founding shareholders’ shares were transferred to Commerzbank in 1997. From 1998 to 1999, Paul was an Associate Director of Commerzbank’s global bond business. In this role, he represented the company on the board of Euro-MTS, the first European electronic trading platform for government debt.

From 1987 to 1993, he helped create the Société Générale’s derivatives business. He began as a trader in Tokyo, where he worked with Laurent Bouyoux, and then in 1989 he took on responsibility for global interest rate options in Paris. From 1993 to 1994, Paul joined SG Warburg (Bacot-Allain) to direct the equities-trading business.

Paul Mizrahi, born in 1966 of dual French-Swedish nationality, is a graduate of Ecole des Hautes Etudes Commerciales (HEC 1987).

At BlackFin Capital Partners, Eric May specialises in outsourcing (BPO), investment firms and distribution.

In 2008, Eric acted as a ‘business angel’ through his company ER2Captial, advising particularly in the internet sector (not including the financial sector). He was also involved in Private Equity funds as a Senior Advisor on transactions in the financial sector.

In 1999 Eric decided to join with Laurent Bouyoux, Paul Mizrahi and Régis Fraisse to create the online broker Fortuneo. His knowledge of the back office and the technical structures of market access meant that he could create a unique platform in the Paris market. Over the years this platform has not only incorporated the brokers acquired by Fortuneo but also provided quality services to other financial establishments (ProCapital). In 6 years Fortuneo became the second largest online broker in the French market, behind Boursorama (Société Générale group) and in front of Cortal Consors (BNP Paribas group).
This success derived from the associates’ ability to develop quality services both directly for specific clients (Fortuneo) and indirectly for other establishments through ProCapital. Eric developed a recognized expertise in the organization and optimization of support functions within the finance sector, as both direct operator and external service provider to other companies.
The ProCapital group was sold to Crédit Mutuel Arkéa in July 2006. Eric assisted the handover of the company until May 2008.

This experience led him to begin a career as a director of the back office of the brokerage firm Dupon Denant (now Natixis Securities). He radically changed the workings of the firm’s back office, making it more efficient and professional. He transformed a business traditionally seen as a support function into a quality service, relied upon by financial establishments such as banking networks, management companies and online brokers. Natixis Securities consequently became the top supplier of negotiation and back office services to the online brokers which had started to appear in the French market since 1998.

Eric May began his career as a consultant at Arthur Andersen, where he quickly became a specialist in financial services, notably through the project RELIT (Règlement Livraison de Titres - Securities Settlement) from 1987. He rapidly developed a passion for the workings of the securities market and for market access systems.

Eric May, a French national born in 1963, is a graduate of Ecole Centrale de Lille and has an Executive MBA from ESSEC.

At BlackFin Capital Partners, Bruno Rostain specialises in life and general insurance, asset management and distribution.

From 2000 to 2006, as Chairman of the Management Board for Aviva France, he was Chairman of the Supervisory Board for ProCapital.

Bruno has extensive expertise in asset management, gained from his experience as a client (as an institutional investor and on behalf of clients’ life insurance) and from his 5 years as Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Aviva Asset Management (assets under management totalling €70 billion).
He has a global perspective having worked for an international group since 1994. He also spent a year in an American subsidiary of the Commercial Union Group. He has regularly participated in the acquisition or sale of businesses, including the acquisition of a 50% stake in Antarius (a life insurance company) in partnership with Crédit du Nord and the sale of Aviva’s pension activity to Médéric.
As Chairman of Aviva France’s Management Board from 2003 to 2008, Bruno established a partnership with Crédit du Nord and restored the mutual trust relationship with the insurance company AFER. From 2003 to 2007, both the written premiums and the assets under management grew by 50%. This resulted in the net income of the Group’s shares doubling to €370 million. During these years he supervised, managed or co-managed various distribution channels for the insurance of financial products including general agents, general or specialist brokers, employee networks (internal networks of Aviva and UFF, a company for which Aviva is a majority shareholder) and retail banking (partnership with Crédit du Nord). He implemented the restructuring of back office operations (including the redesign of the management system) and distribution networks. This included the merger of the general insurance brokerage activities after the acquisition of Groupe Victoire by Commercial Union and the merger of Norwich Union and CGU’s life insurance activities.
From 1992 to 1998, he held operational positions and then senior management positions in general insurance companies (Abeille Assurances then Commercial Union Assurances).
From 1999 to 2003, he headed Aviva’s life insurance business, raising assets under management from €25 to 35 billion and consolidated earnings to €100 million.
As Chairman of the Management Board for Aviva France, he led the Group’s investments in financial products distribution, including UFF Banque (a listed company majority owned by Aviva) and VIP Conseils.

Bruno Rostain, a French national born in 1956, is an engineering graduate of Arts et Métiers, Ecole Polytechnique and Corps des Mines.
After beginning his career in public service, Bruno accumulated 17 years of experience in financial services, particularly in the life insurance, general insurance and asset management sectors.

En tant qu’entrepreneurs et fondateurs de Fortuneo, nous nous sentons tout particulièrement concernés par les opportunités liées à la FinTech et nous pouvons aisément nous identifier aux entrepreneurs de talent qui font émerger ces opportunités.

At BlackFin Capital Partners, Laurent Bouyoux specialises in banking, asset-management and Capital Markets.

From November 2006 to June 2008, Laurent worked in New York for Aquiline Capital Partners, a leader in US private equity specialising in financial services. As a partner he worked with many financial firms during a particularly interesting time for this sector. Laurent then decided to create a similar fund in continental Europe, although he remained Senior Advisor for Aquiline.

In 1999, Laurent created the group ProCapital with Paul Mizrahi and Eric May. This investment firm, a member of Euronext, focussed on two sectors: the provision of securities services and, through its subsidiary company Fortuneo, online brokerage. Laurent Bouyoux directed the group ProCapital as Chairman of the Board. By combining innovation and efficiency in his approach to securities, a pertinent marketing position in retail business, and a development strategy of external or organic growth depending on the cycle, he successfully made his start-up company a group leader in France. Following this success, the ProCapital group was sold to Crédit Mutuel Arkéa in July 2006.

From 1994 to 1998, Laurent successfully engaged in his first entrepreneurial venture within the Commerzbank group in Frankfurt. Alongside Paul Mizrahi, Laurent was a founding shareholder of Commerz Financial Products, a subsidiary business aimed at developing derivative products for Commerzbank in Europe. Commerz Financial Products developed quickly and profitably, particularly in Germany and France. The founding shareholders’ shares were transferred to Commerzbank in 1997. Laurent Bouyoux assisted the handover until 1998.

From 1986 to 1994 he was a founder and manager of the Société Générale’s derivatives business. After creating the Matif options business in Paris (over the counter and then exchange-traded) he spent 3 years running the Asian derivative markets from Tokyo. From 1991 to 1994 he successively held the roles of Deputy Director of Global Derivative Markets and then Director of Global Bond Markets.

Laurent Bouyoux, a French national born in 1961, is a graduate of Ecole Polytechnique (Promotion 81) and Ecole de la Statistique et de l’Administration Economique (ENSAE 86).