Campus Lecture of Steve Anavi "9 Lies About Entrepreneurship - Lessons From Building a Unicorn"

On 4 March, the EPFL community gathered to welcome Steve Anavi, co-founder of Qonto, a digital financial services company for professionals, and recipient of the 2025 Alumni Award, for a Campus Lecture entitled: "9 common misconceptions about entrepreneurship – insights from building a unicorn".

A graduate in Microtechnology from EPFL (2006), Steve Anavi continued his studies at the University of Tokyo and then at INSEAD, before beginning his career at Deloitte and Groupon. In 2013, he co-founded Smok.io with Alexandre Prot, a start-up acquired by a Fortune 500 company. It was whilst grappling with the complexities of corporate banking that he identified a market opportunity. In 2017, the two partners launched Qonto with a clear ambition: to simplify day-to-day banking for SMEs and the self-employed in Europe. To date, Qonto has raised €622 million from the world’s leading investors and is part of the French Next40 programme. Steve Anavi is also a Knight of the National Order of Merit.

During this talk, Steve Anavi challenged nine common misconceptions about entrepreneurship, from the need for a revolutionary idea to the supposed freedom of the founder. Without offering any magic formulas or theoretical discourse, he shared the reality on the ground: what really helps you get started, stay the course and build a viable business in the real world.

Isabel Casado Harrington, Head of Startup Launchpad EPFL, introduced the talk, followed by a Q&A session with the audience.

Thank you to Steve for this practical and inspiring account, and to everyone who contributed to the success of this Campus Lecture.

To watch this Campus Lecture again: