Interview with Valentina Rzheutskaya, executive director and chief legal officer of high-growth fintech company, capital.com

How did you reach the upper echelons of Capital.com, one of the leading fintech companies in Cyprus and such a challenging yet fascinating sector?

My background is in law. I have worked as a lead legal counsel and administrative or managing director in various companies across the IT, media, real estate and financial services sectors. Fintech is a demanding industry that presents many challenges and career opportunities for professionals seeking continuous evolution and growth. I consider myself particularly fortunate to be working for Capital.com, a company that designs innovative trading and investment platforms for its global client base, which consists of over 750,000 active traders. The fact that I work for a global company with offices in eight locations – namely the UK, Warsaw, London, Melbourne, Nassau, Dubai, Sofia and Limassol, where our headquarters are located – makes my role even more interesting, as it requires keeping up with the economic, legal and market realities of all the jurisdictions in which we operate.

How long have you been in Cyprus for?

I moved to Cyprus about four years ago. I was impressed by the high standards in various business sectors, such as IT, retail and real estate. However, above all, and possibly the key factor that has captivated me about Cyprus, is the people and their friendly, welcoming attitude. Whenever I needed help or support, I received it – not only from individuals but also from authorities and government bodies.

Are you pleased that Capital.com chose Cyprus as its business location?

Absolutely! Cyprus is a unique place that offers a wealth of opportunities for ‘sensible’ businesses. By sensible, I mean companies that wish to grow while adhering to global best practices and regulations. As a member of the EU, backed by standardised EU legislation, Cyprus boasts a robust yet supportive regulatory framework. It also has enhanced immigration policies for highly skilled professionals, including suitable visas like the digital nomad visa. Recently, the government announced the Blue Card programme, which I believe will help attract even more talent to the island.

In my view, one of Cyprus’ strongest advantages is its local talent pool, which can significantly drive business success. As a result, you can find many strong professionals for all business needs, especially for innovative tech companies like ours.

I’m very impressed by the emphasis you place on local talent. Do you employ many Cypriots in your local office?

The fact that we decided to establish our headquarters here in 2016, due to the appealing talent pool, clear business regulations and availability of various programs for tech businesses, directly answers your question. As a company, we are committed to growing and collaborating with Cyprus’ talent, which is why 80 per cent of our staff is local. More than half of our senior management team are also Cypriots, including our CEO. In fact, we are currently looking to recruit for over 200 new tech roles.

To support university students in developing an interest in the fintech sector, we have just launched an internship programme for students seeking to break into tech and financial services. This programme runs in collaboration with local universities. So far, we have recruited around 30 interns from TEPAK, and we plan to increase the number of interns to 50.

You mentioned how you support university students understand fintech. How does Capital.com support local talent?

Capital.com supports local talent development through several initiatives. In addition to our internship programme in collaboration with local universities, we invest in continuous professional development for our employees. This includes training sessions, workshops and access to resources that enhance skills and knowledge. We also have mentorship programmes, where experienced professionals within the company guide and support less experienced employees or interns. This fosters knowledge transfer and helps build a supportive professional network. We prioritise local hiring, since we want to not only support the local economy but to also help retain skilled professionals within Cyprus.

You give high emphasis in hiring and training local talent. How does Capital.com measure the impact of its talent development initiatives?

To measure the impact of the talent development initiatives, we apply various methods and key performance indicators. We gather employee feedback, and we do regular employee satisfaction surveys and feedback sessions. We also set some performance metrics where we evaluate employee performance before and after participating in training and development programmes. We monitor retention rates, particularly among those who have participated in development programmes. Tracking the career advancement of employees who engage in talent development initiatives leads to promotions, role changes and the acquisition of new responsibilities over time.

For internship programmes, we measure the percentage of interns who transition into full-time positions. This definitely enables us to evaluate the programme’s success in developing future talent.