​Join us for an intimate conversation with Arthur Waller, Co-Founder & CEO of Pennylane, one of Europe's fastest-growing fintech companies, to unpack what it really takes to build a category-defining company from the ground up.

​Arthur founded Pennylane in 2020 alongside his co-founders with a clear ambition: to build the financial operating system for European SMEs and the accountants who serve them. Since then, Pennylane has raised over €400M, reached a valuation of €3.6B, expanded beyond France into new European markets, and become one of the region's most iconic fintech success stories.

​In this conversation, we'll go deep into the early days. How the initial vision came to life, the key decisions made in the first months, and the challenges of finding product-market fit in a complex, highly regulated space where business owners and accountants have very different needs. We'll also explore how the first team was built, what traits mattered most in early hires, and how those early choices shaped Pennylane's trajectory.

​As the company scaled, new challenges emerged. We'll discuss how Pennylane built a scalable go-to-market motion across 2 very different audiences, managed rapid team growth (from a handful of people to over 1,000 employees) while maintaining culture and alignment, and introduced the right processes to handle increasing operational complexity. Arthur will also reflect on the mistakes, pivots, and lessons learned along the way, and what he would do differently if starting again.

​This event is designed for early employees, founders, and operators who want a candid and practical perspective on the decisions and trade-offs behind one of Europe's most iconic startup journeys.

​We'll wrap up with a networking cocktail and good energy 🔥

​​Agenda and details

​📅 Date: October 28, 2026

​🕒 Agenda
6:45 PM - 7:30 PM: Networking
7:30 PM - 8:30 PM: Fireside chat & Q&A
8:30 PM - 10:30 PM: Networking, food & drinks

​📍 Location: Hexa — 12 Rue Martel, 75010 Paris

​⚠️ Limited spots

​​About Early Builders

​Early Builders is the first and only community dedicated to the high-performing early employees who shape high-growth startups from the ground up. We support them through curated connections, events, and resources tailored to their unique role in the startup journey.

​From peer-to-peer learning to exclusive dinners and public panels, we’re on a mission to elevate and empower the builders behind Europe’s most ambitious ventures.

​More about the community: here

​About Hexa

​Hexa is a startup studio. We partner with entrepreneurs to build ambitious companies.

It all started in 2011 with startup studio eFounders, which pioneered a new way of entrepreneurship, became a reference in the B2B SaaS world, and launched over 50 companies including 3 unicorns (Front, Aircall, Spendesk).

In 2022, eFounders became Hexa, to scale our ambitions further and launch startups in new verticals: AI, web3, fintech, future of work, health. Find more on the website.

​⭐️ Thanks to our partners LocalGlobe and Singular for their support