Gian Reto à Porta is a Swiss fintech pioneer. Now he and his erstwhile Contovista cohorts are back on the scene with Norm, a new startup. finews.com learns it has already found its first major client in Swiss Life.
Although he finds it surprising, Gian Reto à Porta indicates there are similarities between Contovista and Norm. «The idea comes from the finance sector and we are speaking to similar clients», says the serial Swiss entrepreneur and founding member of both companies.
Contovista was a startup that used data-driven finance management solutions and analytics that he and his cohorts sold in 2019 to Swiss payment services provider Viseca. It was also one of the few success stories in the Swiss fintech scene. Norm is not a fintech per se but the company aims to fulfill the needs of banks, insurers, and other institutions involved in the domestic mortgage market.
Equivalent to Minergie
He has already brought his first major client on board. As both Norm and Swiss Life announced on Thursday, the insurer will use Norm's energy certificates to help settle green mortgages and homeowners who get a mortgage from Swiss Life can use the services of Porta's newest creation.
Norm will put out a web app where clients can submit a building's details, including floor plans, photos, electricity, and heating bills. From that, a three-dimensional model of the building will be created, after which energy experts can conduct a comprehensive analysis. The results will be recorded in an energy certificate online and will show the building's energy efficiency, CO₂ emissions, as well as the condition of individual components.
Swiss Life will then use the energy certificates as GEAK or Minergie equivalents, both of which are similar, established domestic certifications used in the construction industry.
Getting Automated
The process will be almost completely digital, promises à Porta, bringing clear advantages for mortgage clients, banks, and insurers. Clients don't need to conduct a time-intensive and relatively expensive on-site inspection by an industry expert. The energy certificate can then be used by banks and insurers to grant green mortgages and use them to determine the interest rate on individual mortgages, something that needs to be done within a two to three-week period. Further on down the line, any subsequent evaluations will also be kept in the system.
For mortgage providers, the system allows them to integrate a digital energy certification process into their already automated processes, something that had previously been unpractical.
Onus on Banks
Domestic banks, through the Swiss Banking Association, have agreed to regulate themselves with mandatory guidelines that help distribute mortgages that promote energy efficiency measures. The guidelines will come into force at the start of 2024 and will make it compulsory for applicants to consider the energy efficiency of the property they are buying while also supporting them in their efforts to raise it. That would have been a massive hurdle without the necessary tools to provide comprehensive analysis against acknowledged standards.
Norm wants to cut those barriers. The application's users won't only get an energy certification of their property but it will also guide them on any potential areas for renovation.
Europe in View
The young company, which sees itself in the cleantech niche, also has other companies in the energy utility segment as clients. According to à Porta, other major financial services providers should join in a few months. Switzerland is a test market as Norm's founders already have plans to expand abroad. «Europe is an interesting market for us », the co-founder says, «the energy efficiency requirements in some countries are more developed than they are here».
The analysis and evaluation process remains the same, however. Only the calculation and certifications need to change, à Porta indicates.
At the moment, Norm's co-founders are growing organically by their own means. As a number of them have already sold their own companies, it is currently self-financed. The team also benefits from their common past experience together. The other key Norm exponents besides à Porta who were on board with Contovista include Julia Cebreros, Flurin Mueller, and Florian Westermann.
