My personal 2024 recap: Growing Embedded Finance Review from a newsletter into a multi-channel platform

Welcome to Embedded Finance Review. I make embedded finance more accessible with the weekly newsletter, biweekly podcasts, and events.

This newsletter went out to {{active_subscriber_count}} subscribers. If you want to support my work, you can upgrade to premium or become a sponsor.

Hi {{first name|embedded finance friend}}

I hope you enjoy the holidays and can spend plenty of time with your loved ones. Over the past few days, I visited my family in the north of Germany, but we travelled back to Berlin the day before.

You are reading my final newsletter for 2024. I will not write about the biggest embedded finance news stories for a change. Instead, I am writing a recap of 2024, describing where I stand with Embedded Finance Review and what I plan for 2025.

Let’s dive in and check out my final sponsor of 2024 😉👇

This Holiday Season, Give Yourself the Gift of Nike Air Max.

This winter, take your footwear game to the next level with Nike's Air Max collection for men. With a diverse range of models, this collection prioritizes comfort and functionality, perfectly tailored to meet your everyday needs. Whether you're hitting the gym or heading out for a casual outing, these sneakers deliver the support you crave without compromising on style.

Find the perfect pair that matches your lifestyle and get ready to make a statement with every step. Treat yourself to a fresh pair from the collection this holiday season—you deserve it.

Shop the Men’s Air Max Collection

My recap 2024

I sent 40 newsletters (incl. this one) with > 60.000 words
I started the year with a bi-weekly newsletter cadence but switched to a weekly cadence during the summer
My newsletter has an average open rate of ~57.8% and a click rate of ~11.4%
And the subscriber base grew by 70% to ~ 1.422 over the past 12 months

Podcast

I launched my podcast in June 2024 and published 15 episodes in 2024
Initially, my podcast was only audio with a focus on Spotify and Apple Podcasts
Since episode ten, I started to publish videos on YouTube

Based on pure Spotify data

The podcast has listeners in 41 countries
The podcast ranks in the top 10 for 134 listeners, and it is the top 1 podcast for 27 listeners

Events

I hosted 2 public evening events in Germany:

In April, as a side event of Fintech Berlin (“FIBE”) Conference with almost 100 guests
In October, as an official part of Berlin SaaS Week with around 60 guests

High- & lowlights

Highlights

I started treating Embedded Finance Review like a real business

Initially, Embedded Finance Review was just the domain I used to publish my articles and, later, the newsletters.
However, as I grew my activities, I realised that Embedded Finance Review could be something (slightly) bigger.

I already tested a couple of monetisation activities. My intention was not solely to make money but to

determine whether I provide actual value.
allow me to spend more time on these activities.
My advisory business will remain my primary source of income for now, but this might shift over the next few years.

Launched my podcast

I had the idea for an embedded finance-focused podcast for over a year before launching it in June 2024. I should have done it earlier, but well.
It is still early in my podcasting journey, and there is still so much to learn. However, the podcast has already opened doors for me that likely would have remained closed otherwise.

Published my embedded finance guide

During the quiet summer weeks, I published a slide deck I have used for several speaking engagements and projects.

Lowlights

Didn’t publish longer articles

Publishing the guide was a highlight, but I also planned to publish a series of longer articles to describe the details in greater depth.
However, I have not published a longer article on Embedded Finance Review and am still working on this series.

Webflow page

I have been using Beehiiv to send my newsletter since early 2023 and have never considered switching. Beehiiv also allows you to create a landing page and a basic webpage, but the features are limited.
In early 2024, I decided I needed more capabilities and signed up with Webflow. I kept sending newsletters with Beehiiv but created a Webflow page that included pages for my newsletter, podcast, and event series.
However, I massively underestimated the additional effort required and overestimated what features I needed.
Long story short, I moved back to the Beehiiv page a couple of months ago. I probably spent €700-800 on this experiment (Weblow, template, a designer, Make-com integration, etc.). Sunk milk.

No extension of event series

I planned to extend my event activities in 2024 but hosted only the same number of events as in 2023.
I tried to host an additional event in early 2024 but wasn’t able to create traction with sponsors (spoiler: I was more successful for events in 2025)

Plans for 2025

Sponsor for newsletter and podcast

I have verbal and signed agreements with three companies that want to sponsor my newsletter and podcast.
I will likely start including them in mid or late-January and will continue to look for more.

More events

I will announce my next event in early January, but I can already mention that it will happen in mid-February in Frankfurt/Main.
This will be the first event in Frankfurt and will likely mean that I will be hosting three events in Germany in 2025
Additionally, I will be hosting my first embedded finance private dinner in London (more details and including a chance to apply will follow soon) and am speaking with partners to bring my public event series to other European countries

Longer and co-authored articles

Yes, I will publish a series of embedded finance-focused articles in early 2025 (what I had planned for 2024).
In addition, I am inviting embedded finance experts to join me in producing content in the form of longer articles (ping me if you have an idea). One piece is already in the making; hopefully, many will follow.

A detailed overview of European BaaS providers

I have shared already that I am working on an overview of the European banking-as-a-service provider (and adjacent provider).
It will likely take a bit more time, but I plan to publish it in Q1 or Q2 of 2025.
Also, I have not decided if it will be one big launch or step-by-step (Currently tilting towards the latter).

Maybe: Premium subscriptions

In the past twelve months, I wondered whether paid premium subscriptions or sponsors would be better. As you can see, I decided on sponsors. This is mainly because I do not want to put much of my content behind a paywall.
That being said, I wonder if there are other benefits I could offer my subscribers that are not additional content (I am currently thinking about monthly exclusive online events or other community offerings).
I am not entirely sure yet if I will launch something like this, but I will spend more time thinking about this (and you are free to upgrade to premium to support my work, but currently without any benefits)

Maybe: Weekly podcasts

So far, I can't imagine recording and publishing a weekly podcast. Even though I no longer edit the podcast (thank you, team Orama), it is still a lot of work.
Nevertheless, my ultimate goal is to publish weekly podcasts. Will I achieve this in 2025? We will see.

Thank you!

A big thank you to all my readers, listeners, and event participants. If you have reached out to me in the past, you probably know that I appreciate any feedback and reply to every single email. I do not know where I will stand with Embedded Finance Review at the end of 2025. Still, I firmly believe that our industry can only win when we continue to share knowledge and help newcomers navigate it. Therefore, I will continue my efforts and invite you to support me however possible.

Happy New Year! 🥳