Delano January 2022

JANUARY 2022

No. 85

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FORECA

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FORECA

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Tourism: the road to recovery €4

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The Luxembourg venture capitalist on why the sector will have another booming year and why he is opening an office in Berlin.

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Laurent Hengesch: Risk and return

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ITION

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Luxembourg in English

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Editorial #ANewYear

And so 2021 ends with a bang, not a whimper.

Pierre Gramegna’s bombshell decision to step down from government, following the resigna­ tions of fellow cabinet ministers Dan Kersch and Romain Schneider, has left the DP-LSAPDéi Gréng coalition requiring yet another reshuffle. Of the original 17-member cabinet sworn into office by Grand Duke Henri in December 2018, just 12 will still be in office at the start of 2022. Indeed, Paulette Lenert will be the LSAP’s third deputy prime minister to serve alongside premier Xavier Bettel, while the Greens already have their second deputy PM in the form of François Bausch.

What does this mean for the coming year? Well, new blood in government usually takes time to settle in. Kersch and Schneider’s replacements, Georges Engel and Claude Haagen respectively, will want to bring in their own ideas and maybe even their own trusted chiefs of staff. The civil service machinery may be well-oiled--in most cases-but it is not used to such shake-ups in the middle of a government term.

Both new boys will have to show strength of will if they want to make a mark. Then again, as François Bausch told Delano before the last election; “if things don’t get done, it’s not because the civil service… is to blame, but because the minister didn’t want it to happen or have the courage to try.”

But make a mark they must as the LSAP seeks to build on the popularity of Paulette Lenert and the evergreen Jean Asselborn ahead of the elections in 2023. Meanwhile, at the time of writing the DP had not yet announced a replacement for the seemingly

JANVIER 2022

Ring out the old…

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irreplaceable Gramegna. Here was a minister respected the world over for his finance industry acumen and often sought out by specialist media for commentary.

But the DP is still also suffering from the plagiarism “scandal” surrounding Xavier Bettel, frustra­tion at lack of information regarding covid cases in schools and the fall-out from the Waringo report into failures in care homes during the first covid wave.

As for the opposition, the CSV continues to do its best Cheshire Cat impression-all smiles and bearing of teeth without real substance. The new Déi Lénk MPs, Nathalie Oberweis and Myriam Cecchetti, have been very vocal without really reaching a new audience. The ADR, without doing much positive in parliament, has somehow mana­ ged to improve its standing in the polls, probably thanks to a rancorous constituency frustrated with the pandemic.

And the Pirate Party, whose star MP Sven Clement has been one of the most effective voices of opposition, is out­-performing all comers in the polls. How the still young party will convert that momentum into actual results in 2023 depends a lot on introducing charismatic potential candidates to the public in the coming twelve months.

Editor-in-chief, Delano digital, DUNCAN ROBERTS

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Contents #Forcast2022

Challenges and opportunities in 2022 06 BUSINESS & ECONOMY

“ We’d like to see more political support for industry”

20 POLITICS

“ The Commission is the guardian of the treaty” Anne Calteux Head of Luxembourg representation of the European Commission

40 CULTURE & LIFESTYLE

“ I hope we can celebrate art again”

Michèle Detaille Fedil

Bettina Steinbrügge Incoming Director Mudam

26 TECH & INNOVATION

Photos

Andrés Lejona, Simon Verjus, Matic Zorman, Guy Wolff, Natascha Unkart & Isabelle Köhler.

12 FINANCE

“ We saw a great business opportunity”

“ Get the best out of data” Pascal Bouvry Head of HPC infrastructure University of Luxembourg

Fred Giulliani Spuerkeess

32 Business Report

Tourism: The road to recovery 46 Business Club 50 Pick’n’Mix

5 under-30s on their plans for 2022

JANUARY 2022

Experts

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Having survived, and in some cases thrived, another year of uncertainty caused by the coronavirus pandemic, businesses face a slew of fresh challenges as they look ahead to 2022.

The continuing need to be vigilant and protect employees’ physical and mental health after 21 months of anguish should be paramount. The voluntary introduction of CovidCheck regimes at the work-

Words DUNCAN ROBERTS

place has not been universally welcomed, but as of January 2022, they will become compulsory. However, companies that find a balance allowing some remote working at the discretion of managers will be sought after by employees who learned during the pandemic that working from home is not only possible but, in many cases, more efficient and better for their well-being.

Material shortages, supply chain issues, fluctuating energy prices and the pressure to comply with emissions reduction targets will also be at the forefront of concerns for business leaders over the next 12 months.

The key to managing many of these challenges is digital transformation. Used correctly, smart technologies in the form of lightweight apps as well as the increase

of big data analysis, artificial intelligence and automation will help manufacturers and suppliers plan more reliable production and delivery.

Regarding Cop26 and its impact on ­business, experts like Joachim Clemens-­ Stolbrink from Luxinnovation think that there are “more pluses driven by the d ­ igital economy than negative impacts. ­Provided that the computing power is also p ­ roduced in a friendly way.”

The lack of skilled labour is a major challenge that close to 70% of Luxembourg companies said was top of their priorities for 2022 when asked for the 2nd edition of the Chamber of Commerce’s 2021 Economic Barometer. And the legal and finance sectors are also facing a continuing war for talent over the coming months. It’s going to be a very interesting 2022.

Salomé Jottreau

Business & Economy

Illustration

JANUARY 2022

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Ristretto #Business

“We’d like to see more political support for industry” Talent shortages, technological transformation and ambitious decarbonisation goals all present exciting challenges for Luxembourg industry.

Fedil head Michèle Detaille talks about keeping industry competitive.

As chairwoman of Fedil and managing director at Alipa Group, what do you see as the key challenges for industry in Luxembourg in 2022?

They are twofold: finding the right talent in a context of technological transformation and decarbonising our production processes to meet the GHG emission reduction targets.

In addition to these two challenges, I see the exposure of many industries to increased costs driven by disrupted supply chains and soaring energy prices.

R&D activities. They belong to foreign groups that concentrate R&D activities in their home country, for example, the US, Japan, France and Germany.

What can be done to improve R&D investment in Luxembourg?

Collaboration between public research and industry is a key element. Fedil suggested the creation of one or more technology parks, where this kind of collaboration could materialise. Besides that, the agency Luxinnovation plays an important role in fostering innovation and supporting companies, especially SMEs, to launch successful innovative activities in Luxembourg. A wide range of financial aids is available to support R&D. Last but not least, R&D investments could also be further stimulated through a more attractive intellectual-property regime.

Is government policy doing enough to support industry?

The government built up a muchwelcomed framework of support measures during the pandemic. Efforts undertaken in the areas of research and development, innovation and greening are also well supported. However, we’d like to see more political support for industry in general. We deplore how industrial investment projects are often viewed with an overcritical eye, even though economic, ecological and social performances of the industrial companies in question give no cause for concern.

Also, policy makers should constantly tackle the question of whether existing or planned regulation is really required, or whether it stems from an exaggerated mistrust of industrial companies.

The OECD identified R&D investment as low in Luxembourg by international standards. How does this affect productivity and innovation in industry?

Innovation and productivity are not always directly linked to R&D. Technological leadership is much more linked to R&D and several industries in Luxembourg are well known for their remarkable R&D performances. The OECD ranking might result from the fact that a bigger part of Luxembourg‘s economic output is not produced in sectors with high R&D spending. Another explanation could be that some bigger industrial companies in Luxembourg are pure production sites without

Following covid-19, there has been an increase in raw material prices in some areas. What are these and how should industry manage this challenge?

Price increases are linked to insufficient production and rapidly growing demand on certain markets. Energy prices are also affected by the economic recovery on the demand side and by some disruptions on the supply side. I think it is important for industry to look for a secured and, if possible, a diversified supply. In this respect, it might help to reshore production that have disappeared from our continent or to (re)develop regional production in important areas. This being said, I think it would be a big mistake to overlook the advantages of globalisation.

Michèle Detaille is chairwoman of Fedil and managing director at Alipa Group

Interview JOSEPHINE SHILLITO Photo ANDRÉS LEJONA

JANUARY 2022

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Business & Economy

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JANUARY 2022

3 QUESTIONS TO FRANÇOIS KOEPP

François Koepp, CEO of hospitality industry association Horesca, is grateful for the Christmas markets.

Do you feel optimistic for the year 2022?

In October we were optimistic.

Figures were good, businesses were bringing in enough to start clearing their debts. Then, when cases in Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium began to rise in mid-November, we started to see New Year’s Eve parties in Luxembourg cancelled. Now, around 20% of hotel reservations are vanishing.

For comparison, in 2018, room occupancy in Luxembourg was at around 80%. This year, it will approach around 43-45%, a percentage point loss of around 35.

The shock resignation of finance and budget minister Pierre Gramegna at the end of November followed just six weeks after he presented his draft budget for 2022.

Based on what some commentators, including Chamber of Commerce head Carlo Thelen, called rather optimistic forecast figures for 2022--growth of 4% for 2022, a deficit of just 1.7%--the budget was meant to signal a return to some sort of normal.

But institutions like the Fondation Idea and the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce voiced concern. The former, for instance, wanted the budget to redress the imbalance that leaves up to 40% of the population at risk of poverty by introducing a tax adjustment for single-parent families (this in lieu of the promised reform of the tax law which will now not happen in this parliament). Measures to tackle the housing crisis were also missing, according to several critics.

Inflation to steady

The Chamber of Commerce also said that the budget was weak on investment in digitalisation, with current expenditure barely exceeding 1% of the total budget. The lack of concrete measures to support businesses in dealing with soaring energy and commodity prices was also noted by the Chamber.

The Chamber of Skilled Trades and Crafts also had its say, calling Gramegna’s budget “too chilly to warm up” the crafts sector.

But reaction was not all negative. Most commentators were pleased with the general level of investment in infrastructure--even if it did not meet the heights of spending before the financial crisis of 2008--and were also happy with the lack of major tax increases.

Source

Statec *EC

Enterprises should have the power to carry out identity checks with the covid pass to guarantee safety for guests and staff. A volunteer measure to take a lateral flow test alongside the CovidCheck could help provide an extra layer of reassurance at events where people are circulating and not sitting down.

What do you think about the covid measures at the Christmas markets?

I’m glad the Christmas markets are taking place and I think they are doing a good job. I saw a group without vaccination certificates being turned away.

The markets attract people to the city and enable the city’s businesses to share in a slice of the cake, so to speak.

5% 4%

In November, the European Commission forecast a slowdown of inflation in Luxembourg from 3.2% in 2021 to 2.2% in 2022 and 1.8% in 2023. Statec, meanwhile, expects a range of between 2% and 3% for general inflation in 2022, exceeding the eurozone, but below that of the United States.

What would you like to see changing?

3% 2% 1% 0% 2021

Luxembourg United States

2022

2023

Euro area United Kingdom

Photos: Romain Gamba (Maison Moderne), Mike Zenari

Mixed prognosis for Gramegna’s budget

Business & Economy #Digitalisation

JANUARY 2022

9

Joachim ClemensStolbrink is Senior advisor digital transformation at Luxinnovation

Tech convergence Luxinnovation’s Joachim Clemens-Stolbrink explains why younger generations are the driving force behind industrial change.

Interview DUNCAN ROBERTS Photo MATIC ZORMAN

Senior advisor on digital transformation at Luxinnovation, Joachim Clemens-­ Stolbrink is excited about developments happening in the grand duchy in terms of digitalisation. His evidence derives from a bus tour conducted by the institution’s Digital Innovation Hub in November. “One takeaway from that tour is that, of course, there are already companies here in Luxembourg that are on the higher level of digitalisation, and many others are following.” But Clemens-Stolbrink thinks these developments are more of an “evolution, from a practical viewpoint” rather than a fourth industrial revolution.

He admits that terms like artificial intelligence, augmented reality, big data… are more than just buzzwords. “But what we recognised on the bus tour was that you need people. And you need motivation to change something in your organ-

isation. Then you have to find out from digital solutions in their supply chain. your pain point which technology can “Digitalisation would mean better warnactually help you to innovate and go for ing systems, more reliable information digital transformation. But the technol- for production planning.” ogy itself, as a stand-alone, will certainly Another major change for industry is not help you.” the convergence of the back office, IT, One element that companies should and production or operational technolnot underestimate is the young genera- ogy. “Ten years ago they were completely tion, says Clemens-Stolbrink. “They are separated,” Clemens-Stolbrink explains. used to all the different tools… you have “But that is changing due to new techvery lightweight solutions in the form of nologies, particularly data analytics, data apps on your mobile. And this is what lake thinking, AI and machine learning.” that generation expects when joining a But using these technologies requires company. And I think it’s what profes- companies to be cloud ready. “Of course, sional customers will soon expect from if cloud, IT and OT are closely connected, their supplier. So there is influence com- you have to be very careful on cyber­ ing from that side, and I would say even security measures. But that is almost a pressure, to change the way companies prerequisite before you are mature enough deal with customers and suppliers.” to move to those more high-end techCurrent material shortages also means nologies. And you have to combine all that customers are looking for better that data in an intelligent way.”

BRAND VOICE

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JANUARY 2022

Higher return Increased purchasing power

Investing can be complex

Low returns

SAVING VS

INVESTING Low risk Inflation eats away at your money

Banks

Tips for new investors in Luxembourg

Photo

With rising inflation and savings products offering little incentive, it is a great time to start investing. This is particularly true in Luxembourg, where residents enjoy special advantages. What should beginner investors keep in mind?

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Sponsored content by SWISSQUOTE

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Fix your goals No matter if you are investing a thousand or a million euros, you need to determine your investment goals. These might be planning for retirement, having money for a down payment on property, or wishing to fund your children’s university education. Weigh this against the lifestyle you want to enjoy, what you need in expendable assets, and it will become easier to work out the degree of risk you need to take to meet

“ People need to have the discipline to just continually invest and not get scared by short-term volatility. ” Jeremy Lauret Head of Sales & Marketing at Swissquote Bank Europe

Dave Sparvell CEO of Swissquote Bank Europe

those goals. Then, set up a time horizon for your investing, the longer the better.

Consider starting with ETFs An easy way to start investing is with a basket of exchange-traded funds (ETFs), which are very liquid and transparent instruments and can track a whole market. This grants you diversification and exposure to a stock market index such as the S&P 500 or the Euro Stoxx 50, or to bonds, precious metals and other asset classes. Investing in an ETF also means you do not have to pinpoint and choose particular stocks. Still, many investors do go on to invest in individual stocks, and more speculative instruments, once they gain knowledge and experience.

Choose an investment provider that does not eat into your performance It is difficult to time the market, but one variable you can control is how much you pay for your investments. It is important to choose a provider such as Swissquote which offers low commissions on trades.

This means that even as your portfolio grows and you do well, you still enjoy a low overall cost of having the account. Some banks in Luxembourg still charge an annual custody fee, which eats into your investment returns over the long term.

You should also select an investment product that is as low-cost as possible. Some ETFs have management fees as low as 0.04 percent, whereas traditional investment funds offered by large retail banks often charge more than 1 percent annually, which can really eat into your investment returns.

Control your emotions and think long-term The other thing beginner investors should try to control is their emotions during times of market volatility, and consider markets in the long term.

What was interesting during the Covid market correction in 2020 was that retail investors were buying the correction, which was in contrast to their behaviour after the credit crises market crash in the 2000’s.

Time is the investor’s best friend, and it allows you to see out the dips in the market. Looking at the early days of the pandemic in 2020, there was a 30 percent market correction. Six months later, the pandemic was still here, but the markets had recovered that 30 percent. Markets go down as well as up, and history tells us that over time, there is never really a wrong moment to start investing.

Various studies show that stocks, over the long term, will perform better than most other investments.

Zero capital gains tax for investments held six months or longer.

ETFs are a great entry point as they can track an entire market.

Some ETFs have management fees as low as 0.04 percent.

Deposits are protected up to € 100,000.

re rn mo To lea , go to g vestin in t u lu abo

uote.

swissq

JANUARY 2022

Luxembourg: a great place for investing Residents of the Grand Duchy enjoy advantages that investors in other countries may not have.

Notably, if you hold an investment for six months or longer, you do not have to pay capital gains tax on it, and this includes cryptocurrencies. Also, in Luxembourg, there is no financial transaction tax on buying and selling stocks and shares on an exchange.

Another great advantage is that Luxembourg is deemed very safe for investors and offers substantial protections.

“ Inflation is really eating away at anything you can put in a savings account, even if you find a half-decent positive return. ”

FACTS: INVESTING IN LUXEMBOURG

Finance

Words JOSEPHINE SHILLITO & AARON GRUNWALD

However, in 2021, government and investor sentiment seem to have spurred a noticeable shift. The influence of ESG has started to make its mark. ESG investment practices are taking real shape, even though the industry is very much in a transition phase.

How we talk about ESG investments is important, particularly as fund mergers in Luxembourg and beyond create new opportunities for asset managers to repurpose existing funds as ESG and to retrospectively apply ESG principles to their portfolio. While this has given asset managers the opportunity to class some investments as ESG without the headache of sourcing new assets and new investors, it also poses the question of whether funds should merely comply with ESG criteria or if they have a responsibility to actively start making a positive impact.

S t u d i e s s u c h a s G re e n p e a c e’s ­G reen(washing) finance analysis in

June 2021 also turn up the heat on this question. The paper found that many so-called sustainability funds fail to direct capital towards sustainability, a blow to the very valid efforts made by well-intentioned funds.

Fortunately a grading system around ESG investments is emerging. The difference between investments that are harmful, investments that limit harm and those that actively exert a positive impact is something that can, in the future, be easily communicated and is an important distinction for investors to understand.

At a time when funds are shapeshifting into ESG, either through mergers, repurposing or retrospective application of the criteria, it becomes crucial that the term ESG itself retains investor trust. The challenge of communicating the differences within ESG to investors, particularly retail savers, remains paramount.

Illustration

ESG funds use environmental, social and governance criteria to screen out or select in investments. These have been given a push under the EU’s recent Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation. There has been palpable excitement about these types of “good investments” for years in Luxembourg. Much of that was clearly marketing hype, even if you could charitably call it aspirational. Cynics could say much of that was simply greenwashing.

Salomé Jottreau

JANUARY 2022

12

“We saw a great business opportunity” It’s been a busy period for digitalisation at Spuerkeess. Delano speaks with head of digitalisation Fred Giuliani about ways to enhance the consumer experience--from paying the doctor to buying a house.

First, can you tell us a little about open banking and PSD2?

Sure. Open banking is basically a way to force collaborations between banks and fintech through sharing application programming interfaces.

The Payment Services Directive (PSD2) provides a legal framework for doing this.

so that it can be done in real time directly through the S-Net app.

Although Luxembourg banks are complying with PSD2, not all of them are exploiting the provisions of the regulation.

Why is this?

Complying means you make your APIs publicly available. The second step is using the APIs of a competitor bank, and I believe that in a few months, all banks in Luxem­ bourg will have done this too. The next step is using the APIs of fintech companies.

Not all banks are doing this. Another step after that is to make platforms the power player in the market. For example, by putting your APIs on a housing market platform. There are several of these platforms emerging, one example being bank ING’s 90% stake in Makelaarsland, a Dutch digital real estate platform.

APIs mean the customer can see simulations of loans offered by different banks. For the banks, it’s a great source of customer leads. For the customer, it’s a faster, smoother experience of obtaining financing for a house.

Spuerkeess has led the way in Luxembourg with its S-Net application, where customers can manage multiple accounts in one place.

Can you tell us more about this?

When PSD2 legislation came in in 2018, we saw a great business opportunity.

There were several approaches we could take-to comply with the regulation of course, to offer banking services to third parties like fintech by developing those APIs, or to put the customer at the centre to offer a better user experience. We decided to use provisions under PSD2 to really offer the customer more functionality, particularly when it comes to payment through the S-Net app and managing accounts from other banks through the S-Net app. The next step is that other banks will put in place more APIs so we can further exploit this.

Can you give some concrete examples of what the customer can do now?

At the moment the customer can manage all their accounts in one place through the S-Net app.

This started with the six main Luxembourg banks but now we have added neobanks N26 and Revolut. The future is where it gets really exciting.

We could, for example, enable the customer to pay their doctor through the Luxembourg health insurance system, the Caisse Nationale de Santé, in a smoother way. At present, you pay your doctor, submit receipts and the CNS reimburses 80%.

With the correct APIs, a Spuerkeess customer could pay the doctor only the 20% they would pay anyway, with payment triggered directly from the CNS to the doctor for the remaining 80%.

Let’s take the example of trading. Most banks have a trading facility, but it’s not always good.

In the future, we could use APIs from the brokers

We’ve spoken exclusively about open banking, but what are your other digitalisation plans?

We’re embracing digital first, including machine learning. Most people only interact with their bank through an app, so we want to adapt our processes so that the customer can do the maximum through this interface. This means, for example, using machine learning to give approval for consumer credit--if a customer wants a loan to buy a sofa on a Saturday, they can get that loan on Saturday.

Fred Giuliani is head of digitalisation at Luxembourg state savings bank Spuerkeess

Interview JOSEPHINE SHILLITO Photo SIMON VERJUS

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JANUARY 2022

Ristretto #Finance

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Conversation

JANUARY 2022

“Who takes more risk and has more returns?”

Laurent Hengesch, founding partner at Ilavska Vuillermoz Capital, spoke with Delano about why European investors like to stick together, his firm’s 2022 expansion plans, and why he’s sure that venture capital and private equity will have another booming year.

The interview took place in November 2021.

Interview AARON GRUNWALD Photo GUY WOLFF

Laurent Hengesch

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Founding partner Laurent Hengesch is a native Luxembourger from Dudelange, who said he did not excel in school.

He worked in a hotel and as a wine salesman in Berlin, before returning to Luxembourg for stints at Carey Group, a corporate and fund services provider, and MM Warburg & Co, a private bank.

There’s a lot of money flowing into European private equity and venture capital funds right now.

Ten years ago, most European fund managers had the urge to go to the US, like San Francisco or New York, to invest into startups. Now, it’s the other way Ilavska Vuillermoz Capital Co-founded by Hengesch and round. The Americans are coming here.

Alain Wildanger, and named after The average European fund is around their grandmothers. maybe €100m-€200m, the total fund.

Started as private investment But now, we have hybrid venture capivehicle in 2019, then opened up tal-hedge funds coming from the US to to institutional investors.

Europe and they sign tickets of €200m.

Georges Bock is partner in its So they come with like €10bn-€20bn in flagship fund, which is focused on the fintech sector. Hengesch said that so assets under management.... far, it has invested “between €10m There’s a positive and a negative thing, and €99m” (he did not want to reveal of course. [The] negative [thing] about the precise amount) and the “target is €100m”. The fund has the Americans coming to the European invested in N26, Investify, venture market is there’s a lot of money.

Penta, Solarisbank, and One Group So the valuations go up like crazy. If you Solutions, among others. have already done your participations like we’ve done, it’s great. But people are going crazy. That’s a bit of a problem. The positive thing is there is a lot of money. So if you have a strong company and you need more capital, it’s very American investors invested [during] the first three quarters this year €50bn easy to raise. into European venture capital. Can you imagine? It’s crazy.

Do you think that smaller firms like yours might get priced out?

No. The important thing is to know that Do you think it will be the same we, European venture capital funds, are in 2022? working together... we get a lot of deals I think it will be more, because the ­Chinese from German, Austrian and Swiss ven- venture capital market is declining. It ture capital firms. We give them deals, has been declining, which is crazy. And they give us deals, and then we partici- so this money will then go into European pate together. We are very well connected venture capital companies because the on the European market. And then, we pricing is still lower than the rather overdon’t need the Americans. They have crowded US market... Furthermore, we more equity, that’s for sure. But they don’t have changing demographics. People are necessarily have the access that we have. getting older, meaning pension funds And we, Europeans, like to work together. need higher returns. The new generation Then, on top of that, we invest in tech doesn’t make as much money as the older companies. Tech means we have [intel- generation anymore. So [pension funds] lectual property], we have knowledge, have a huge problem. They need to change things that are being developed. Often, their asset allocation and take more risk the founders and European companies to have more returns. So that’s interestdon’t want that knowledge to go to the ing, because who takes more risk and has US to be copied. Same with Chinese more returns? Venture capital. So those investors. You don’t want to necessarily pension funds now need--they are have a large Chinese company invested ­forced--to invest into venture capital, in your company, so they take out the otherwise, they will not get the returns. tech to China and then copy it cheaper and become your main competitor. So, Do you plan to expand your team there’s another aspect to this. We, Euro- next year? peans, rather stick together, especially Yes. Next year, we are going to expand in the growth phase. our team, we are going to open a Berlin We [Ilavska Vuillermoz Capital] invest office. [You are the] first media I ­dis­closed between €1m and €10m per company... that information [to]. We will also expand

our advisory board... now, 80% of our deals are in Germany, but we’re going to expand more to other European ­juris­dictions.

What other plans do you have for 2022?

Our outlook is to become more like a hybrid venture capital-private equity fund.

So we do really like venture capital and we want to develop that. [However] we’re not a traditional venture capital company.

We are more like a private equity firm, providing great deals to our investors. So we want to expand our LP [investor] base.

We want to start some more funds next year, [in the fields of] climate tech and deep tech/artificial intelligence, which then is very complementary to the ­current business that we do. So we have organisations like the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank that say every investment must play a critical role in climate technology. So businesses developing green hydrogen, green agriculture, green steel and green cement. Every single business, everything single thing that we have on this planet needs to become greener. And those are very interesting business opportunities that come with climate change.

That field is very different from the financial sector. Do you guys have the expertise?

That’s a very good question. Not yet. And, to be honest, two years ago, we didn’t have the expertise in fintech. And now, we are very specialised and we have a lot of expertise. So it comes a bit learning by doing, obviously, and we are expanding our team. We want to employ more investment analysts, investment ­managers, in our core company. But then, for e ­ xample, in financial technology, Alain and I, we said: ‘Okay, we need a third person in our partnership for financial technology that has a lot of expertise’ [editor’s note: which led to the recruitment of former KPMG CEO Georges Bock]. And we could do the same with climate tech.

We’ll see who could be a good partner for us in that.

JANUARY 2022

ELEVATOR PITCH

TECHNOLOGY & INNOVATION

Demy Schandeler: BIL Lease facilitates the transition to electromobility An independent family-owned business, Demy Schandeler has grown continuously with the help of Banque Internationale à Luxembourg, société anonyme (BIL) and its subsidiary Société Luxembourgeoise de Leasing BIL Lease, société ano­nyme (BIL Lease). This support means the company can start transitioning to electromobility with peace of mind.

In 1949, with 30 years of experience in the bus industry, Dominique (Demy) Schandeler took over his employer’s business and founded Demy Cars. With two buses, it connected the villages of Keispelt, Meispelt, Nospelt, Capellen, and Mamer before moving to the capital after being awarded several routes. The first journeys took employees to work and pupils to school, but the travel bug had been caught.

The company acquired new vehicles in the 1950s and built a new garage.

The 1960s saw the first trips abroad.

Meanwhile, the company changed its name, adding a generation to become Demy Schandeler & Fils. The company kept growing and opened six travel agencies and an Eischen branch, and constructed a new office building.

The third generation – made up of cousins Laurent, Joël and Gast – took the reins in 2008.

“Demy Schandeler now owns a fleet of some 250 buses and minibuses, covering 14,700km and carrying over 400 workers each day,” stated Gast.

Becoming more sustainable With this third generation, Demy Schandeler is investing more in sustainability, and as a

5 With the acquisition of five hybrid buses through BIL Lease in 2021, Demy Schandeler starts the transition to electromobility.

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result has received a CSR certification. The company considers the quality of jobs and social inclusion, while supporting the local economy and choosing the least polluting vehicles. “Our office building is eco-friendly and we are working with SuperDrecksKëscht for our waste. We also try to minimise empty runs to reduce our carbon emissions.”

80% of Luxembourg’s public transport will be electric by 2025. This transition to electromobility is therefore a major challenge for the company, and requires considerable investment: vehicles, charging stations, new depots.

“BIL Lease is one of our biggest partners in this transition, helping with the leasing of buses and the construction of a depot near Steinfort, which holds a dozen vehicles.” For 30 years, BIL Lease has been enabling companies to use a vehicle, machine or piece of equipment in exchange for lease payments, and then acquire ownership of it after a number of years.

BIL Lease A Luxembourg leasing company and BIL subsidiary, BIL Lease, société anonyme, has financed a wide range of professional equipment for 30 years. There are numerous benefits for businesses and professionals: 100% pre-­ financing by BIL Lease (including VAT), no capital outlay, no impact on the balance sheet, and tax relief on lease instalments as operating expenses. To support Demy Schandeler and enable it to satisfy the government’s environmental demands, we have arranged the financial leasing of vehicles that meet green mobility criteria.

Raoul Schmit Relationship Manager at BIL

A 25-year relationship built on trust Demy Schandeler continues to choose BIL Lease because of the special relationship forged between them over the long term. “We keep the line of communication open and share data, which means we can solve problems quickly. We regularly finance Demy Schandeler’s investments, particularly helping them to acquire equipment,” says Raoul Schmit, commercial Relationship Manager at BIL. This has led to Demy Schandeler acquiring five hybrid buses to herald the start of its transition. “We have some big plans for buying new vehicles

together. Given the investments earmarked for the next two years, we want to continue this profitable collaboration with BIL and keep using BIL Lease.” As BIL Lease celebrates its 30th anniversary, Demy Schandeler and BIL Lease both intend to maintain this relationship of trust over the long term, and use this financial backing for future endeavours.

Banque Internationale à Luxembourg SA, 69 route d’Esch, L-2953 Luxembourg, RCS Luxembourg B-6307 - T: 4590-1 www.bil.com

1. Every day, the buses of the Demy Schandeler fleet are cleaned in the garage with recycled water 2. Laurent and Gast Schandeler, Raoul Schmit (BIL) and Joël Zangerlé (Demy Schandeler) 3. Created in 1949 by Dominique Schandeler, the company was then called Demy Cars 4. A component (part) of an electric motor 5. Several hybrid buses have joined the company’s fleet of vehicles 6. Buses are regularly maintained to ensure that they remain in perfect condition 2

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7. Demy Schandeler also owns minibuses for up to eight people.

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Financial leasing Discover the full range of our BIL Lease services: www.bil.com/leasing

January 2022

Finance #ESGfunds

3 QUESTIONS TO DENISE VOSS

Photo

JANUARY 2022

Matic Zorman (archives)

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Chair of Luxflag, the responsible investment fund labelling agency

Funds to become ‘ESG’ after mergers

The latest spate of fund mergers will lead to fewer ETF products and some fund repurposing in 2022, according to Refinitiv Lipper’s Detlef Glow.

Various mergers amongst Luxembourgdomiciled asset managers, big and small, means we can expect a temporary oversupply of products in the market followed by fund closures and repurposing, Detlef Glow, head of EMEA research at financial data provider Refinitiv Lipper, explains to Delano.

Giant deals such as asset manager Amundi’s planned €825m acquisition of Societe Generale’s asset management arm Lyxor, announced in spring 2021, will create Europe’s biggest exchange-traded fund, but also a flood of smaller ones. “[Amundi and Lyxor] have a lot of ETFs tracking the same index. Once the ink has dried on the deal, we can expect some fund liquidation across both active and passive ranges,” says Glow.

European alternative ESG AUM, €bn Assets under management in private equity funds that consider environmental, social and governance factors are forecast* to have a compound annual growth rate of 24%-35% between 2015 and 2025.

Infrastructure funds will see a 31%-46% CAGR, real estate funds 18%-27%, and debt funds 28%-39%.

Source

PwC Global AWM Market Research Centre, Preqin

As well as liquidation, the current trend towards environmental and social governance could see some funds repurposed with the ESG benchmark applied and the asset mana­ gement approach changed retrospectively.

An advantage for fund managers is that they don’t have to gather new assets and they can retain existing investors, particularly those that demand more green in their portfolio.

Meanwhile, recent aggressive fund marke­ ting is forcing the closure of funds that fail to live up to overhyped performance promises.

“People are pulling their money from products that promised no negative performance and the funds have to close. We’re particularly seeing this in absolute return, alternative Ucits assets and mixed-asset funds.”

500

Are there enough good investments for portfolio managers?

Asset managers have always tried to reduce their investment pool universe down to something they could look at, and try to figure out what they will invest in.

Now they’re just doing it with non-financial factors. So it shouldn’t really reduce the number of companies that [Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation] article 8 funds invest in, because they’re just taking a more well rounded look at those companies, if you will. Whereas it’s true that for the article 9 funds, it’s challenging, because there’s maybe not that many companies [making a] positive impact, although there’s more and more every day.

Do you think that your everyday investor understands the difference between SFDR article 8 and article 9?

No. No. No, a lot of education [is needed].

400 300 200 100 0

Given the regulatory push that’s been going on now... and investor demand, I don’t think assets managers really have a choice, to be honest. If they want to get shelf space, they will have to. The challenge is that this is a journey. And it’s a journey for asset managers, too. Some asset managers are further along the journey than others.

2015

2020

2025B**

2025H***

Private equity

Infrastructure

Real estate

Private debt

*PwC, “EU Private Markets: ESG Reboot”, October 2021; **B refers to base-case forecast scenario; ***H refers to high-case forecast scenario

Photo

Refinitiv Lipper

Will there be enough ESG funds to meet demand?

DIGITAL EUROPE PROGRAMME

The Digital Europe Programme (DIGITAL) is a new EU funding programme focused on bringing digital technology to businesses, citizens and public administrations.

How to make Europe greener and more digital are the twin challenges for our generation, and our success in meeting them will define our future.

The European Commission has begun to look at a greener Europe through the lens of the European Green Deal. At the same time, it is opening up discussions about the move to a more digital world: the digital transition.

With a budget of €7.5 billion in current prices, it aims to strengthen investments in supercomputing, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, advanced digital skills, and ensuring a wide use of digital capacity across the economy and society.

Its goal is to boost Europe’s competitiveness and the green transition towards climate neutrality by 2050 as well as ensure technological sovereignty.

First calls for proposals under the Digital Europe Programme are launched in digital tech and European Digital Innovation Hubs. Find out more about the calls by scanning the QR code.

The DIGITAL EUROPE PROGRAMME funds: €2.2 BILLION for supercomputing €580 MILLION for advanced digital skills

€1.7 BILLION for cybersecurity

€2.1 BILLION for artificial intelligence

€1.1 BILLION for ensuring the wide use of digital technologies across the economy and society

Politics

Words DUNCAN ROBERTS

bets are off with the continued impact house of representatives and are also of covid on France’s economy and its expected to challenge by any means posvery social fabric come next April still sible any narrow Democratic wins.

Closer to home, there is still plenty of uncertain, and with the likes of the extreme right Trumpian populist Éric Zemmour unfinished business for Luxembourg’s still to officially declare his candidacy. coalition government to deal with in 2022.

The presidency of the EU by one of The reform of the constitution, the conits largest founding member states is a tinuing housing crisis, vaccination stratkey moment for the union. With Angela egy, and balancing Cop26 commitments Merkel no longer chancellor in Germany, with sustained economic growth to name the role of a natural leader is up for grabs just a few. And, following another year in and Macron could use France’s presidency which Luxembourg reputation was tarto make that powerplay for the grande nished thanks to the OpenLux and Pannation. Italy has already recognized the dora Papers revelations, the government’s new influence France will have by sign- nation branding will need to continue to ing the bilateral Quirinale Treaty at the work to full effect. end of November.

Whether any other more surprising Further afield, the Biden administra- “scandals”, like the plagiarism story that tion – indeed, US democracy – could well blighted Xavier Bettel for the last two face a reckoning in November’s mid-term months of 2021, will come to light is another elections. Republicans will probably regain question. One year is a very, very long time control of the senate and maybe even the in politics.

Illustration

The year before Luxembourg’s own super-election year in 2023, all eyes in the grand duchy will be focused to the west in the first half of 2022. Not only does neighbour France start its six-month presidency of the European Union on 1 January, but it also holds crucial presidential elections in April that will be a test of how much of an inroad populism and the far right have made in the five years of Emmanuel Macron’s reign. All

Salomé Jottreau

JANUARY 2022

20

Ristretto #Politics

“The Commission is the guardian of the treaty” The head of the Luxembourg representation of the European Commission, Anne Calteux, talks about some of the challenges the Commission faces in 2022.

Frans Timmermans said the COP26 final text keeps alive the Paris Agreement target of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. How can the EU convince other leading industrial countries to follow suit?

We need to keep on investing in climate diplomacy. I think we were really strong partners in the Cop negotiations in Glasgow.

The EU delegation participated in really, really long, difficult negotiations, always having in mind the objective of compromise in order to keep everyone on board. I think the text is still quite ambitious. It could have been much, much less ambitious if the EU hadn’t been there. That’s my conviction.

2022 marks the European Year of Youth.

What particular challenges are youngsters facing now and how can the EU help them in concrete terms?

I share the perception of the president [Ursula von der Leyen] that the pandemic was very rough on young people. There are many young people who think they have missed opportunities.

They are the Europe of tomorrow, so we need to cherish them and to give them perspectives.

That can be done in several ways. One, specifically mentioned in the State of the Union speech, is the new Alma (Aim, Learn, Master, Achieve) programme which will enable young people to work on a short term basis abroad. It's a bit like Erasmus, but for young workers. So it's a new layer.

And on top of that, the commission has announced in its new working programme for next year, that it will invest a lot in digital skills.

It aims for digital skills to become an integral part of education programmes at schools and universities.

Indeed, the Commission recently announced a new €1.98 million funding for the Digital Europe Programme.

What needs to be done to make Europe more competitive in this field?

The president called it a make-or-break issue, and I find that really to the point. We need to create the conditions so that we have a trustworthy and secure environment, but always putting people at the centre of our efforts.

The European Chips Act has been announced for next year, also in the spirit of greater autonomy or sovereignty, as we call it, with regard to the US and China. And I think that's a good thing, because the pandemic has shown us how fragile we are and how dependent you can become really quickly on other countries who have a monopoly in producing certain things. Also, the Commission will invest, from next year onwards, a lot of money into secure global space communication.

So, that's maybe something that could interest Luxembourg.

The new German government’s programme is very pro-EU, but it is also urging the Commission to be tougher on rule of law disputes with Hungary and Poland…

So far there has been a lot of dialogue.

But the president said recently there are also other means beyond dialogue--infringement procedures, the conditionality mechanism to withhold financial means, that’s a very strong instrument, and Article 7, so you know what that means [to suspend certain rights from a member state]. And the commission is really willing to use all these instruments if needed. Because we have come to a point where just watching what's happening is definitely not an option. It’s a direct challenge to the European legal order. People need to be able to have the same rights, to exercise the same rights, wherever they are in the European Union. And we cannot let that be questioned. The Commission is the guardian of the treaty, and it is willing to live up to this role.

Anne Calteux has been head of the representation of the European Commission since September 2021

Interview DUNCAN ROBERTS Photo MATIC ZORMAN

JANUARY 2022

21

Politics #Changes

JANUARY 2022

22

Socialists on the rise?

Recent polls suggest the LSAP is back on track.

The popularity of health minister Paulette Lenert and opinion poll results from November showing the party would gain two seats have been a boost for the LSAP. The rise of the German SPD to take the chancellorship after 16 years in the wilderness and centreleft politicians in government in Sweden and Norway have given new momentum to socialism.

All eyes on France

Macron had not officially announced his candidacy by 30 November. As Philippe Poirier, assistant professor in political science at the University of Luxembourg, explains, it is the incumbent president’s prerogative to declare last. “By announcing last, he is still in a position of authority,” says Poirier. “He is the President of the Republic. Nicolas Sarkozy did the same thing, Jacques Chirac did the same, François Mitterrand did the same, Giscard d’Estaing did the same.”

Poirier says that the rise of someone like Zemmour, akin to Macron coming out of almost nowhere in 2017, is down to several factors. “The structure of political information is still predominantly dominated by news

channels and social networks. News channels have their storytelling, they have to maintain their audiences, their ratings. Of course, in a storytelling, you need new actors or new actresses.” Zemmour, who is very familiar with how television works, has been a player in the media political scene for years. His candidacy may pose a problem for Marine Le Pen. “For the first time, what we call the conservative or the national camp has a competing candidate,” says Poirier.

The political scientist reckons that if Macron is re-elected, relations between France and Germany will continue as normal. “They will always appear united in front of the stage and will decide the essential things for the EU by sometimes delivering a fait accompli. And we will keep the points on which they have some distance, or even a very strong position, without publicising them too much.”

Even if a candidate like Zemmour ends up in the Elysée, Poirier reckons that France and Germany are like an old couple who must continue to live together. “But the flame is not as strong as it used to be, especially on the energy issue, or even on issues concerning the relationship with Russia, or relations with the Arab-Muslim world, or with China.”

COP26

“ Not reaching our climate targets is not an option.”

Additional reporting Bianca Panainte

Following the election of a new, very pro-EU, coalition in Germany, all eyes in Europe turn towards France in 2022. A stable relationship between the two giants of Europe is crucial for the future of the EU. Currently, Emmanuel Macron is leading in the polls and could well be elected for another five-year term in April.

But there are murmurings on the far right that cannot be ignored. Even if Marine Le Pen may not be the force she was in 2017, there is still the populist, and some would say downright dangerous Éric Zemmour to worry about.

Xavier Bettel Prime minister

Photos

Uni.lu political scientist Philippe Poirier reckons that France and Germany are like an old couple that must continue to live together.

Andrés Lejona, Martic Zorman, Anthony Dehez

To maintain that swing, in 2022, the LSAP must ensure its two new cabinet ministers, Georges Engel (photo) in the labour ministry and Claude Haagen in social security and agriculture, are highly visible.

Because, despite polls suggesting the Pirate party and ADR are on the rise, in Luxembourg, it is household names that tend to pick up the actual votes on election day.

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Politics #Parliament

JANUARY 2022

24

Sérgio Ferreira is a spokesperson for Asti

Care about the constitution The reform of Luxembourg’s constitution matters, says Sérgio Ferreira of foreign workers’ rights group Asti.

Interview CORDULA SCHNUER Photo GUY WOLFF

The reform of the grand duchy’s 150-yearold constitution has been ongoing for more than a decade and lawmakers in 2018 presented a completely new draft of the highest law. Party political squabbles meant that this text was shelved the following year and members of parliament have since been working on amending the existing constitution from 1868.

“It’s like the Echternach dancing procession. There are steps forward, steps sideways, steps backwards,” said Ferreira.

“And even for people who follow Luxembourg politics very closely, it’s not obvious to understand.”

But it’s crucial to pay attention, Ferreira said, as the constitution not only forms the basis of the rule of law--with “direct and indirect consequences on our lives”--but also has symbolic value. “Unfortunately, in our eyes, the realities of the

country aren’t being taken into consideration in some areas,” said Ferreira.

For example, the new text states that Luxembourgish is the country’s national language, with the use of French and German determined by the law. “You’re saying that Luxembourg is a monolingual country,” Ferreira said. “In reality, the language of Luxembourg isn’t Luxembourgish. The languages are Luxembourgish, French, German, but also Portuguese and English.”

Elsewhere, the constitution currently states that all Luxembourgers are equal before the law. “From a point of view of international law this is completely outdated, the principle of equality based on nationality.” But the reform would uphold this. “We’re a country of immigrants and to uphold a distinction between nationals and foreigners sends the wrong message.”

It’s not the first time that the constitution has been amended. Previous updates include the abolition of the death penalty in 1971 or the introduction of universal suffrage in 1919. But the current reform is the most wide-reaching effort at modernising the document. It aims to enshrine academic freedom and the independence of the judiciary, ensure children’s rights and animal rights.

The first out of four reform chapter passed an initial vote in parliament in October 2021. This will need to be confirmed by a second vote unless a citizens’ initiative for a referendum succeeds. This was still pending at the time of publication.

For a heart-warming end of the year We wish you a warm end of the year, surrounded by all your loved ones.

Leo, the energy provider of the capital Serviceline 8006-4848 • www.leoenergy.lu

Luxembourg has a habit of selling itself as a technology frontrunner--whether in fintech or 5G, fibre connectivity or coding for kids. But it can also never quite shake off critics who say the country is actually trailing behind.

The pandemic has accelerated digitalisation in some areas. The MyGuichet platform saw a 146% increase in administrative procedures processed via the site

Words CORDULA SCHNUER

between the end of August 2020 and the same time in 2021. Orders placed with e-commerce platform Letzshop grew 1,400%.

The growth is spectacular, but also feels overdue for a country that is working on creating its digital twin and hosts the world’s first data embassy.

It is perhaps a discrepancy between digitalisation in daily life and projects driven at national level that plagues the grand duchy. Since June 2021, a high-performance computer is humming away in Bissen, performing calculations at incalculable speed.

The petascale Meluxina machine can do 10 million billion floating point operations per second. Even if, like me, you’re not a numbers person, it doesn’t take much to understand that this translates into an asset for research and development. A dedicated high-performance computing master’s programme will launch at the University of Luxembourg next year.

At the same time, however, the government for 2022 has pledged €7.7m to speed up internet connections in the country and make sure that fibre optic cables reach homes rather than lying abandoned underground just a few metres short. The arrival of 5G has also been somewhat less of a revolution in people’s lives than perhaps anticipated. I sometimes still struggle with reception in Luxembourg City.

A “finnovation” hub slated for the coming year aims to boost innovation in the financial sector, the economy ministry has floated a space campus to house the burgeoning sector, cybersecurity agency Securitymadein.lu has announced a House of Cybersecurity, the government plans on spending €25m on European cloud project Gaia-X. The list of projects is long, but money alone won’t make Luxembourg’s innovation drive a success for the people.

Salomé Jottreau

Technology & Innovation

Illustration

JANUARY 2022

26

“Get the best out of the data” Professor Pascal Bouvry, head of high-performance computing (HPC) infrastructure at the University of Luxembourg, looks at the master programme coming in 2022, developed with a team of European partners.

The HPC master’s degree is a European project.

How did Luxembourg come to lead the initiative?

You hear about HPC everywhere, about HPDA [high-performance data analytics, editor’s note] and AI. The key thing now is to define the body of knowledge necessary to master this field. We’ve been working with a large set of partners to start defining this, what’s going to be included, build the lectures.

It’s really a prototype. We have quite a few prestigious partners in this consortium, including the Polytechnic University of Catalonia, the Polytechnic University of Milan and the Sorbonne. We are going to define specialisations that correspond to niche markets. Luxembourg has been extremely proactive in the field of HPC. We’re also a very small country, meaning that we can put the actors easily around the table and make fast decisions.

Also, with a young university, we can be more agile.

a lot of data. Space is a booming market. At the Luxembourg Space Agency there are already something over 20 petabytes of data. By using Meluxina, we can really get the best out of the data.

To what extent is this kind of technology essential for Luxembourg to be competitive?

It’s not only essential to be competitive but also essential to have sovereignty over the data and data processing.

For some of the data and some of the processing, you don’t want this going across borders, you don’t want people to be able to peek inside. It’s essential that Luxembourg has the right set of infrastructure, but infrastructure is not an end in itself. We need the expertise and the right set of people to operate the infrastructure and bring solutions to our industry and society.

The US is looking to launch its first exascale computers at the end of 2021 and in early 2022. What does that mean for the technology we have in Luxembourg right now?

When I was doing my PhD, the target was a gigaflop. Now, we talk about peta or exa.

The supercomputers of yesterday are today’s desktops and will be tomorrow’s mobile phones.

We are working in a tier architecture, depending on the needs. You need to find the right platform.

In some years, the exaflop will be hitting Europe.

The newer set of funding for EuroHPC--something like €7bn--includes making calls for exaflop machines. The way we see current needs, Meluxina is a very good fit but in a couple of years, new demands will come. In 2006, I worked with biologists and they were happy to sequence a family-two parents and two children--and today they are sequencing populations.

What kinds of skills will graduates bring to the job market?

As I mentioned, there will be different specialisations and also a match with other markets. For instance, some countries work more on the hardware side. Luxembourg is more about the data economy. We just started a new master’s in data science, we’ve been running a master’s in computer science. We can see the master’s in HPC as putting these two together, providing software engineers who can develop efficient code for the HPC, but also data scientists that can take advantage of this kind of machine.

When you say “advantage”, how is HPC shaping research and innovation?

HPC is really helping to provide a new dimension.

Imagine the kind of granularity you can achieve, for example for designing new materials. With HPC, you can go for something that is more robust, well-defined and later on requires less testing in real life, cutting costs by providing high-level simulation and modelling. We’ve been gathering

Infrastructure alone isn’t enough, says Bouvry

Interview CORDULA SCHNUER Photo GUY WOLFF

27

JANUARY 2022

Ristretto #Technology&Innovation

Technology & Innovation

28

JANUARY 2022

3 QUESTIONS TO ANDREEA MONNAT

The deputy CEO of Luxembourg’s National Research Fund (FNR) on what will shape research next year.

What has been the impact of the pandemic on research and innovation?

The next chapter of the 5G (r)evolution

The pandemic has shown that it is primordial that research becomes available to researchers instantly and openly, and that collaborations are the only means of working and progressing humanity in the right direction.

There is need for a higher purpose for all research that needs to work for the benefit of society and existence of life in general. Challenges related to global health, environment, space and labour can only be tackled together while pursuing the same objectives.

The buzz around 5G has somewhat abated--bar coronavirus conspiracy theories--but work in the background is continuing to grow the network and bring its benefits to businesses.

Which trends do you anticipate for 2022?

DIGITAL

“ Cybercriminals are ever more agile. We need to innovate, too.

A combination of public funding and private investments is key to shape the future.”

Pascal Steichen CEO, Securitymadein.lu

Working more collaboratively and in an interdisciplinary manner on grand challenges, valuing the individual and their needs, an emphasis on societal impact (not just scientific), communication to society, reinforcing trust in science as a pillar of our society, and involving society in the definition of chal­ lenges and potential research.

How will the FNR meet those trends?

The FNR will support missionrelated research through national centres of excellence, raise awareness about equality, biases, gender issues, mentorship, mental health and well-being.

It will reward such impact and adapt evaluation criteria.

The FNR will explore various concepts of science commu­ nication and “citizen science”.

Matic Zorman, Maison Moderne, Guy Wolff

a lot of pilot projects this year where we implemented 5G in different areas, whether that’s in health, industry or automated driving,” Konsbruck said. One of them specialised in ensuring connectivity as an automated car crosses the border between Luxembourg, France and Germany. More such projects are coming down the pipeline next year. From the first steps that began in October 2020, the company plans to expand its network.

“Around 20% of our antenna are upgraded to 5G. Our objective is to have deployed 5G nationwide by the end of next year or early 2023,” the director said. And more capabilities should be transferred from the pilot projects to the general environment.

“In the transformation of our economy, 5G plays a very important part.” CS

Photos

Around 20% of smartphones with a Post Luxembourg subscription are 5G compatible and will automatically switch to the network when there is coverage, said Cliff Konsbruck, director of Post Telecom. “We said from the beginning that 5G wouldn’t be a revolution for private customers, but for professional customers the evolution that comes with 5G is enormous,” he said. Nonetheless, more people join the 5G network every day by virtue of acquiring a new generation phone. “There aren’t really new functionalities for private customers.” Or not yet. Konsbruck expects new applications to emerge with time, for example in the field of virtual or augmented reality.

It will be businesses that benefit from the faster connectivity first. “We’ve done

FR/EN

LUNCH TALK CONCRETE IMPLEMENTATION OF COP26 IN LUXEMBOURG

20.01.22

Thursday 12:00—14:00

Registration and information: www.paperjam.lu/club

Technology & Innovation #Space

JANUARY 2022

30

For Serres, there is momentum for funding in the space sector

“There is a lot of potential” Luxembourg’s space sector saw significant growth in 2021 and is setting its sights on the year ahead, said Luxembourg Space Agency CEO Marc Serres.

Interview CORDULA SCHNUER Photo MATIC ZORMAN

The number of space companies in Luxem­ “There is a lot of potential to use space bourg grew from around 50 to 70 in 2021, in other sectors,” the Luxembourg Space said Serres, but there is room for more. Agency (LSA) CEO said, from meteorology “Our mission is to develop this sector.” This and aviation to logistics, the maritime will in future include a space campus, industry, agriculture or even insurance. aimed at becoming “the centre of gravity “But they are often fields that don’t know of the Luxembourg space ecosystem,” a lot about space.” This is a challenge for according to the state’s draft budget for space startups that are also looking for 2022. The ministry of the economy is capital and investors. “That’s not easy. In expected to reveal more details next year. America there is a culture for this,” he said.

“There’s a clear need in our ecosystem for Europe is catching up. “There is a momen­ such an initiative,” Serres said. tum and our companies must leverage this.”

But amid a proliferation of space com­ But the industry has also been slammed panies, experts also expect consolidation, for its carbon footprint. One rocket launch especially in the satellite segment where in general produces around 200 to changing consumer habits have meant a 300 tonnes of carbon dioxide. Billionaire drop in revenue from television activities. Richard Branson’s space venture Virgin SES will be well-placed in this environ­ Galactic is planning on offering 400 space ment with its O3b mPower network, Serres flights per year. Add Jeff Bezos’ Blue Ori­ said, positioning itself in a market with gin and Elon Musk’s SpaceX, among growing connectivity needs. others, and the space race is turning into

one giant leap for pollution. But space tourism could also help accelerate tech­ nology and innovation in the sector, Serres said. “Here in Luxembourg, we are defi­ nitely in a mindset where we want space to develop in a sustainable manner.” A part of this is Luxembourg’s commitment to tackling the issue of space debris. As Luxembourg builds its place as a hydro­ gen research centre, Serres also sees poten­ tial for synergies.

Josef Aschbacher, head of the Euro­ pean Space Agency (ESA), during a visit to Luxembourg in November called the grand duchy a “space power”. The LSA is planning on reviewing the national action plan on space and towards the end of 2022 making a proposal to the government on how to move forward. “If we want to do more, we must adapt the means to the needs of our ecosystem.”

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S TENANT S & OW N E R

Business report

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JANUARY 2022

30

30

M$ 25

The road to recovery

M$ 15

M$ 10

6-YEAR EVOLUTION OF THE TOURISM BUDGET The national tourism budget shows minimal impact from covid and maintains an upward trajectory.

Source Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce, Chamber of Skilled Trades and Crafts

M$ 5

M$ 0

2016

2017

2019

Holidays and travel

1 An evolving strategy with parallel goals National tourism p. 34

2 High hopes for 2022 Business travel p. 36

3 Luxembourg in motion Reinventing hospitality p. 38

S ubsidies for municipalities T otal budget L uxembourg for Tourism M ajor tourism projects * 2022 draft state budget figures 2018 figures are excluded: the data for the budget of the General Directorate for Tourism was combined with that of the ministry of economy.

2021

2020

2021

2022*

JANUARY 2022

After a covid-induced drawback, experts anticipate a more optimistic rebound in 2022. Tourism ambitions are high and backed by financial targets above the pre-pandemic levels. Business events and leisure travel picked up in the latter half of 2021. Nevertheless, the recovery pace remains a “covid-dependent” variable.

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Holidays and travel

Business report

1 Forecast

Lex Delles

Earlier this year, a call for projects was launched to identify potential tourism projects for the 2023 to 2027 period.

“We’re going through the projects now and we will write the law in the next months. It will be submitted to parlia­ ment next year and voted on in 2022,” tourism minister Lex Delles discloses.

In terms of project highlights so far, he recalls the tourism budget, which has been on an upward trend in the past years, has supported regional tourism offices, the Luxembourg Convention Bureau (LCB), and the digitalisation agenda via the new VisitLuxembourg app. In addition, the recently concluded tourism awards aim

to incentivise more entrepreneurship by private players. “We had nice projects that participated and won,” he recalls.

Looking ahead, hiking and biking pro­ jects will play a significant role in the next five years. “Especially biking, because we’re not only a hiking destination, but also a biking destination and we can com­ bine these in interesting ways,” the min­ ister underlined.

Also, he notes the defining role remem­ brance tourism will play. “There are a lot of things you don’t think about, but they are part of remembrance tourism, and we’ve defined what this means,” he clar­ ifies. For example, the world wars, Luxem­ bourg’s industrial heritage and the construction of the European Union. The return into service on the Moselle of the MS Princesse Marie-Astrid ship, on which the Schengen agreement was signed, demonstrates the commitment of the ministry that fully subsidised this project.

TOURISM BUDGET

Budget allocation for tourist offices, tourist office associations and other non-profit associations.

Source

budget.public.lu

2018

2019

1,000 800 600 400 200 0

2016

2017

* 2022 draft state budget figures

2020

2021

2022*

Sustaining the “staycation” trend Besides the short and mid-term benefits of the €50 vouchers, the minister clari­ fies the long-term goal is to encourage more people to go back to the places they visited. “Tourist attractions do not remain the same. Every child in Luxembourg has probably been to the Vianden castle. But the Vianden castle I used to know when I was a child, about 25 years ago, has totally changed. The building did not change, but you see it differently as you age,” he explains.

To maintain the growth of local tour­ ism observed during the €50 voucher era, changing the perception of residents towards local tourism will be critical. “Cam­ paigns like ‘Lëtzebuerg dat ass Vakanz’ are a good example that shows what Lux­ embourg can offer,” Delles says. “When you go to the Moselle region, it’s very different. When you go to the southern part, it’s something very special,” he explains. According to a Statec survey, about 43% of respondents did not think they’d repeat the staycation adventure.

“As inhabitants, it is easy to forget Lux­ embourg has so much to offer, like the different landscapes you can find here in half an hour by train, bus or car,” he adds.

Future projects include the upgrade of Luxexpo The Box and boosting hotel capacity in rural areas. “We have inves­ tors asking to build hotels, and we have to engage with them,” he reveals.

Attracting specific markets Luxembourg’s neighbours represent the biggest share for tourism, but the minis­ ter explains that in the last two to three years, tourism markets are defined based on specific target groups, rather than from a geographical standpoint. “Now we go for markets of people looking for something in Luxembourg. Nature lov­ ers will love the north of the country, the south, or even the wider region.”

Words ABIGAIL OKORODUS

Guy Wolff

Plans are underway for the 11th five-year programme (2023-2027) for tourism infrastructure. Tourism minister Lex Delles lays emphasis on nature and heritage tourism with a focus on specific target groups rather than countries.

Photo

JANUARY 2022

An evolving strategy with parallel goals

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36

Holidays and travel

Business report

2 Aviation

During the crisis, the group collaborated with the Horesca federation through the (re)Discover Luxembourg campaign. This led to 1,603 passengers benefitting from the €50 reduction for hotel bookings, as well as an increase of 46% of first-time visits on the web page for participating hotels offering the 10% discount on hotel stays, explains Feith. “As a ­Luxembourger, I love when people visit.”

Encouraging more business travel In the past months, the group carried out several changes to cater to the needs of business and other travellers, who often rely on airlines to provide a stable and reliable network, and flexibility. “We have

Gilles Feith

a stable flight plan now and we try not to change it,” said Feith. Part of the actions include flexible fares--smart fare--allowing clients to customise the tariff. “We noticed that customers accepted this offer and we didn’t increase the standard fares,” he adds.

Given that business travel managers have different needs, Feith underlines plans to develop corporate offers backed by contracts with varying conditions depending on the situation. A digital SME programme is being developed to complement the group’s existing business partner programme. The airline now offers 85 destinations from Luxembourg, ­including 16 new destinations--10 for Luxair and six for LuxairTours--in a bid to compensate for flight frequency loss on some of the routes, he explains.

Predicting recovery patterns An October survey shows business ­travel in 2021 surpassed 2020 by over 50%.

PASSENGER EVOLUTION AND CARGO VOLUMES (January - October) Source

Luxair

1,200,000 1,000,000 800,000 600,000 400,000 200,000 0 Luxair airline

2019

2020

2021

LuxairTours

However, it remains 42% below the 2019 levels. A separate survey expects a slow recovery for corporate meetings by 2022 and for the Mice cluster by 2024, explains Alain Krier, the head of research and media management at Luxembourg for Tourism. Although business travel for Luxair was estimated to have fallen by 80% before September, “it’s getting ­better slowly.”

Luxair quarterly surveys show below half of travel managers anticipate travel to remain at below 50% in the short term.

In contrast to past and current numbers, this remains a positive outlook. About 22% believe travel will return to between 80% to 100%, while 8% think the numbers will surpass pre-pandemic levels due to a pent-up demand.

On the supply side, artificial restriction is not an option, Feith reassures.

“Once demand is fully there again, we will fly as often as possible,” the CEO explains, adding that a snowball effect could propel a fast return of activities as competitors in all sectors do not want to be left behind. “I spoke to some business leaders, who are now following up on deals that took longer or did not happen due to covid.”

Anticipated collaborations Besides the current Expo 2020 Dubai collaboration, “I’d like to keep working with Horesca, and I’m in contact with the tourism ministry to find nice ideas on how to boost travel to and from ­Luxembourg.” In terms of service expansion, innovation and serving all potential clients are high on the agenda. “The only strategy is to keep innovating, listening to the market and making different offers,” Feith notes. “We will surprise Luxembourg with new offers. I want to have at least 1,000 new hotels in the Luxair ­holidays à la carte offers.”

Cargo volumes

Words ABIGAIL OKORODUS

Mike Zenari

“We had two aims during the pandemic. To fly the maximum we could, and keep connectivity for Luxembourg,” says Gilles Feith, CEO of Luxair Group.

Results of a survey show half of travel managers predict positive trends in 2022.

Photo

JANUARY 2022

High hopes for 2022

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38

Holidays and travel

Business report

3

MASTER A

JANUARY 2022

Hospitality

Luxembourg in motion Local hotels are expanding their range of services as they re-build trust and adapt to new norms and consumer behaviour. Nonetheless, the uptake in business travel is directly linked to the share of business clientele.

how the hotel space is expanding its offers.

Another example is the Médecins Sans Frontières and Magnum Photos exhibition organised in partnership with Meliá Luxembourg. “This is the role we need to play. We can highlight and help amplify messages towards the local community and international visitors.”

First signs of a recovery?

Getting clients to come back to hotels The indication from the last six months also meant adapting at the height of the shows optimistic signs in comparison to pandemic. The Stay Safe with Meliá pro- a particularly slow year in 2020. “We realgramme--focused on hygiene and safety ised that since June, business went up. And rules--was geared towards building trust. then, August, September, and October Likewise, Graace Hotel, the winner of were really good,” says Ommeganck. “A lot the Luxembourg Tourism Award, rein- of businesspeople are coming back. Whereforced its contactless experience by chang- as in the beginning, we only had leisure ing its entire lock system to avoid using tourists from the neighbouring countries.” actual keys, explored online check-in, and Its current share of business clients is estinew ways to stay close to guests while mated to be on a par with leisure clients.

Peeters mentions a similar trend at limiting physical contact, explains the hotel’s manager, Eline Ommeganck. The Meliá. “In July and August, we saw a lot launch of a café, wine bar, and glasshouse of leisure clients. As from September, we in recent months, and other service alter- saw that business travel, and the meeting ations to reduce energy consumption and and events industry were picking up, but food waste, forms part of new trust build- with a lot of last-minute requests. Noveming mechanisms that are being explored. ber still seems to be fine, however, due to the recent increase in infections, there Re-building trust and pivoting are again some question marks.” A higher hotel services share of leisure clients came during the “I think it’s a very old-fashioned way to weekends, while clients staying for non-­ see hotels as just a place to sleep,” says leisure related reasons during the week Chris Peeters, the director of sales and in September and October are estimated marketing at Meliá Hotels International. at around 65 percent. New strategies are “Hotels are hotspots for the community in the pipeline to boost business stays. and for travellers to meet and have special encounters.”

2022 trends Initiatives such as the first edition of It would not be far-fetched to expect more the vide-dressing event to support local last-minute bookings. This may be because businesswomen, which was hosted at the “people are still a bit afraid of cancellation newly opened Innside by Meliá, point to policies”, explains Ommeganck. Never-

theless, she adds that business and international travellers will look for a “complete experience” after being stuck at home for so long. To match these expectations, “hotels that think outside the box or have a completely different design and approach are getting more buzz than those traditional hotels”. In 2022, promoting initiatives by local entrepreneurs together with leading players is high on the agenda, explains Peeters.

Words ABIGAIL OKORODUS

TOURIST CAPACITY 2021 Source

www.Statistiques.public.lu

250 200 150 100 50 0

Hotels, hostels and guest houses

Campsites

50,000 40,000 30,000 20,000 10,000 0

Hotels, hostels and guest houses Bedspaces

Total

Centre

Campsites Bedspaces

Luxembourg City

The University of Luxembourg is recruiting.

The University of Luxembourg is a multilingual, international research University.

The University of Luxembourg, through its Faculty of Science, Technology and Medicine, aims for excellence in biomedical research and training. In this context, the University is recruiting:

Professor of Clinical Medicine Medical Oncology

(Full Professor or Associate Professor, promotion track).

• Type of contract: Permanent • Working time: Full time 40.0 Hours per Week • Location: Belval • Reference: UOL04190 The incumbent will have significant clinical activity in one of the four hospitals.

The distribution related to academic teaching and clinical activity will be discussed and adapted to the needs of the candidate and his project. The ambition is to create a national reference center in a subspecialty of oncology to be determined.

The academic commitments will be split between teaching responsibilities and research.

(Full Professor or Associate Professor, promotion track).

• Type de contrat : Permanent • Working time: Full time 40.0 Hours per Week • Location: Belval • Reference: UOL04191 Academic activities at the University will be split between teaching responsibilities and research.

The incumbent will significantly practice general medicine in Luxembourg, either alone or in a medical center, and will intervene personally as an internship supervisor.

The distribution between the different activities (academic / research and professional) will be adapted according to the profile of the holder.

Your profile:

Your profile: The Full Professor hired at the University will meet the following criteria: • MD or MD-PhD with a prestigious track record of international publications.

• In the case of a hiring as an Associate Professor, promotion track: MD or MD-PhD with a prestigious track record of international publications. Promotion to the rank of Full Professor is possible after five years in accordance with the legal provisions.

• Teaching experience at all levels of medical education.

• Research profile in onco-immunology with experience in basic, translational and clinical research.

• Sub-specialization in a clinical field of oncology and willingness to integrate into a hospital group.

• Internationally recognized reputation and research expertise based on the quality of international publications.

• Connection to European/International clinical trials networks and / or pharmaceutical industry.

• Experience with leadership in European/International scientific societies.

• Linguistic profile: The University of Luxembourg is located in a multilingual context. The person chosen for this position must be fluent in English as well as one of the following two languages: French or German. However, preference is given to the French language. The University encourages its staff to learn the other language and provides access to language courses for this purpose.

Gender equality:

Professor of General Medicine

The University of Luxembourg is committed to gender equality among its academic staff and aims to remove obstacles to the recruitment of female professors as well as to the advancement of their careers. In the event that two applicants submit equivalent CVs, the University will give preference to the female application, in all departments in which gender balance is not achieved.

The ideal candidate hired at the University is a teacher-researcher who will meet the following criteria: • Holder of a doctorate (MD or MD-PhD) with an internationally recognized reputation and research expertise as obviated by a track-record of international publications.

• In the case of an hiring as an Associate Professor, promotion track: Holder of a doctor’s degree (MD or MD-PhD) with an internationally recognized reputation and research expertise as obviated by a track-record of international publications. Promotion to the rank of Full Professor is possible after five years in accordance with the legal provisions.

• Field experience in specialist training in general medicine, concerning theoretical teaching and supervision of trainees.

• Research experience in general medicine and supervision of research or doctoral thesis.

• Connection to general medicine training departments at universities abroad.

• Responsibilities in European societies of general medicine.

• Linguistic profile: The University of Luxembourg is located in a multilingual context. The person chosen for this position must be fluent in English as well as two of the following three languages: French, German, Luxembourgish. The University encourages its staff to learn the third language and provides access to language courses for this purpose.

Gender equality:

The University of Luxembourg is committed to gender equality among its academic staff and aims to remove obstacles to the recruitment of female professors as well as to the advancement of their careers. In the event that two applicants submit equivalent CVs, the University will give preference to the female application, in all departments in which gender balance is not achieved.

Are you interested in one of these profiles? Apply by scanning the QR code above.

To ensure full consideration of applications, please apply by January 15, 2022.

Applications should include: Detailed curriculum vitae / Cover letter / Review of research work / Teaching experience report / Complete list of publications and at least 4 names of experts who can produce letters of reference upon request from the faculty.

For more information, please contact Professor Gilbert Massard, Director of Medical Education gilbert.massard@uni.lu.

The University of Luxembourg considers inclusion and diversity to be key values. We are fully committed to removing any discriminatory barrier.

2022 comes around full of anticipation for Esch’s reign as Capital of Culture. The southern city and its surrounds deserve a shot at hosting this landmark event and to boost the region’s standing. Reaching out to the two other Capitals of Culture in 2022, Kaunas in Lithuania and Novi Sad in Serbia, Esch has also underlined its ambition to reach an international audience. The question is whether

Words DUNCAN ROBERTS

Esch2022 will result in a long-lasting end of November and local theatres comlegacy of the kind that 1995 and 2007 missioning works from playwrights and did for the capital city. choreographers that should see the light Still recovering from successive lock- of day over the next 12 months. downs, limitations on audience sizes and Restaurateurs and bar owners are also restrictions on travel that stymied touring hoping that a fourth wave of covid does artists, many culture venues will also be not knock them back just as the shoots looking to 2022 to get back to some sense of recovery were beginning to bear fruit. of normalcy. While seated venues like the The optimism that was evident at the ­Philharmonie and the Grand Théâtre were Gault&Millau Luxembourg awards is a able to put on limited programmes for prime example of the hospitality sector’s much of the past year, the likes of den ­Atelier resilience. Winner Ryôdô opened its doors and the Rockhal were virtually crippled just a week before the first covid lockfor close to 18 months. Luxembourg urgently down in March 2020, yet somehow manneeds that vibrancy, the sense of happen- aged to sustain itself and has profited ing and the joy of seeing live art again. from public eagerness, post-lockdown, On the other hand, home-made pro- not only for the new and exotic but also duction in the arts is likely to continue to a willingness to pay for quality in this flourish in 2022 with the Film Fund brave new world. Let’s hope that continannouncing a new round of funding at the ues to be the case in 2022.

Salomé Jottreau

Culture & Lifestyle

Illustration

JANUARY 2022

40

Ristretto #Culture

“I hope art can be celebrated again” Bettina Steinbrügge is set to lead Mudam in April 2022.

The experienced curator and professor sees 2022 as a year where discovery and togetherness will be at the forefront.

How do you imagine the art world in Luxembourg in 2022?

First, it’ll be about getting to know the local art world a bit better. I only know some protagonists of the art world here. Next year will be about getting to know the art gallery managers, visiting artists, and discussing the Luxembourg art scene with everybody.

And then, by the next Lux Art Week, I hope I’ll have a better understanding of it all.

artists and there were these grand openings…

In the last year and a half, a certain humility has been present. Because we had to adapt to completely new situations that simply made each and every one of us completely vulnerable.

I think that’s something one must think about on all levels. This vulnerability touched everybody, regardless of their position in the work dynamic.

How do you picture this togetherness you mentioned in the future, when everything is back to the new “normal”?

I don’t know but I hope that it’ll be a little bit like before. I hope art can be celebrated again and that we can be together.

That’s the beauty of inaugurations and that’s what we missed; suddenly it wasn’t possible for a few hundred people to come together to celebrate the arts or artists.

I hope we can go back to that. I think “taking better care of others” is the slogan now, especially in the art world. I just did a project on that a year ago with Nataša PetrešinBachelez, where we discussed with artists, theorists and visitors what needs to change.

Also, visitors want to participate much more in institutions nowadays. A lot of hierarchies are on their way of being deconstructed too, like, for example, how people meet up in museums now, etc. It’s much more about participation. And how we can cater to that is something we are all currently learning.

I can’t say how exactly it can be done.

These are learning processes one edges towards step by step to understand how the visitors’ behaviour will change.

You have a lot of experience as an art history and theory professor. Do you plan on taking this pedagogic approach with you in this future position at Mudam?

Partly. What I did a lot was to work and develop projects with students, but it’s a different kind of research. I think Mudam is more about something else, like the research on the collection itself with the entire team. How far one can work with schools really depends on the situation and the projects.

Is there anything from 2021 you would carry into the next year?

That’s a good question, because we’ve been in a pandemic for the last year and a half…

I think what I’ll bring along is a reflection about what came out of the pandemic.

I mean, what has to change, how people deal with it, what experiences they went through, what insecurities currently worry society on all levels, whether professional or private.

A feeling for what just happened is something I will take along in 2022.

What was that feeling?

What I noticed during these years of pandemic is short-term, very flexible work. We had to make sure we could adapt and had to think much harder about how the artists were doing. How our own teams were feeling. How our visitors were feeling, and how we could still create moments of togetherness, and what this togetherness really means. And that’s something where I have to say…I used to produce a lot with

Bettina Steinbrügge is currently director of the Hamburg Kunstverein

Interview TRACY HEINDRICHS Photo NATASCHA UNKART & ISABELLE KÖHLER

JANUARY 2022

41

Culture #Lifestyle

JANUARY 2022

42

Four foodie trends for 2022 These are some of the food trends that may likely define the coming year.

1

Foodtech is revolutionising the modus operandi for the sector. But eating healthy is still trendy. In 2022, several players will expand their offers and boost advocacy for eco-friendly shopping. The HelloFresh climate label, which is expected to be rolled out in Luxembourg following trials in Austria and Germany, may be one of the first to set the pace in 2022.

Fast-tracking slow fashion

To pave the way for more sustainable fashion brands, it is important to understand the root cause of emissions in the fashion industry to begin with.

CovidCheck It may be wise to brace up for another year of QR code scans before dining in-house as we will surely be taking our covid etiquette with us into the new year.

3

Local preference After filling up on some hot potato pancakes (Gromperekichelcher) from the Christmas markets, it will be hard not to develop a craving or curiosity for more Luxembourgish specialities. The Schengen Lounge (at Luxembourg’s Expo 2020 pavilion) recipe book now available to the public will certainly spark some creativity.

4

OSCARS

“ A great honour for me and my entire crew. We don’t know where we’ll get to, but we are already very happy and grateful.”

2

Market expansion If 2020 and 2021 didn’t stop new restaurants from opening, 2022 will be no different. A more thriving culinary space should return in full force as pandemic rules ease up.

Donato Rotunno Film director & producer, Io Sto Bene

Shutterstock, Lët’z Refashion pop-up store, Sandra Santioni Photography

The scaling circularity report by the Global Fashion Agenda and McKinsey & Company estimates the fashion industry could become 80% circular by 2030. However, this will require investments of up to $7 billion in recycling infrastructure by 2026.

This puts into perspective the role that fashion brands will have to play in 2022 by paying more attention to supply chains and reassessing production methods.

At local level, the Rethink your Clothes campaign and the Circular by Design challenge are two of many exemplary initiatives aimed at promoting sustainable and ethical fashion, raising public awareness, supporting the growth of a thriving ecosystem, and boosting sustainable fashion production and consumption. A.O.

Photos

How many people think of the consequences of fast fashion while searching for the Black Friday best sellers or strolling down the aisles of the big fashion retailers? Probably not too many. But what happens if only eco-fashion brands were being produced in the first place?

A report by the World Economic Forum identifies fashion as the third out of eight supply chains responsible for over half of global emissions. However, the largest share of emissions for the fashion industry comes from fossil-derived energy. In fact, it is estimated that about 45% of emissions could be reduced by switching production to renewable power sources. On the other hand, putting pressure on suppliers to increase process efficiency could decrease emissions by 15%, and almost 2% of all emissions can be reduced by recycling.

Eco-friendly meals

Spréch,

www.paperjam.lu

Wierder, Schreifweisen D’Bicher vum Zenter fir d’Lëtzebuerger Sprooch

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Delano’s 2021 distinctions

44

The crucial three... the state of the nation’s economy and business environment. Not afraid to take on government or unions, Olinger could be viewed as channelling the spirit of former UEL president Nicolas Buck.

POLITICIANS

Françoise Thoma has led Spuerkeess (the BCEE-state bank and savings fund) to landmark achievements this year. As well as sharing the title of top Luxembourg brand (according to KPMG’s Customer Experience Excellence report), Spuerkeess has also developed a coherent approach to ESG, launched fully digital student loans and joined the UN Net-Zero Banking Alliance.

Enrique Sacau brought a breath of fresh air to the Luxembourg financial sector upon taking the reins of Kneip in the summer of 2020. This year, Sacau has brought in Cyril Molitor as COO and has also been pushing equality in the workplace. In November, Kneip struck an exclusive deal with Nasdaq to bring increased visibility for European investment funds to American investors.

The outspoken director and executive committee chairman of the UEL, Jean-Paul Olinger, has often been a leader in expressing employers’ concerns about

With covid fatigue setting in, defining a coherent public health policy may be proving more exasperating this year than last. But health minister Paulette Lenert remains by far Luxembourg’s most popular politician, according to November’s Politmonitor poll.

President of the OGBL union Nora Back continues to be a thorn in the side of the government, and employers’ associations. She has been persistent in demanding the restoration of the national tripartite meetings between government, employers and unions, and also questioned the validity and strategy of the CovidCheck at work policy.

Two years ago, Delano hailed Pirate party MP Sven Clement as our “disrupter” of the year. In 2021, he has been at the forefront of some of the most effective parliamentary opposition of the year. That helped propel him into the top 10 on the Politmonitor poll.

NEW STORIES

The devastating floods that affected homes and businesses in the grand duchy in July were a sign of things to come. The grand duchy escaped lightly compared to neighbouring Germany and Belgium where 196 and 42 people, respectively, lost their lives. But the damage highlighted the paucity of Luxembourg’s warning system.

The story broken by Reporter.lu surrounding Xavier Bettel’s plagiarism of a dissertation for his post­ graduate degree at the university of Nancy just wouldn’t go away. We still await the final assessment from the university, but the accusations are likely to hang around the prime minister for several months.

The OpenLux and Pandora Papers revelations once again showed how vulnerable the grand duchy is to accusations of being a tax haven that turns a blind eye to entities of dubious origin. It simply must do better.

EXPATS The career of Francis of Delirium singer-songwriter Jana Bahrich has exploded to the next level this year with a tour of the UK, rave reviews in the likes of Pitchfork for the Wading EP and a place in Stereogum’s 40 best new bands of 2021. And her orchestral concert at Rotondes was a thing of great beauty.

Wendy Winn not only continued to provide entertainment and insight into local culture, business, expat life and social issues in her weekly Happy Hour show on Radio Ara, she also found time to write a fine book of poetry-Train of Thought.

Fiona Godfrey may have wound down British in Europe but she is still a voice of reason and righteous anger at the damage Brexit has done to the status of UK citizens in the EU. And she gained rightful recognition when she was awarded an OBE this year.

Romain Gamba, Matic Zorman

BUSINESS PERSONALITIES

Photos

JANUARY 2022

Words DUNCAN ROBERTS

45

Charles Grethen had a superb Olympics in Tokyo.

The 29-year-old middle distance runner reached the 1,500 metres final (where he finished 12th) and set a personal best and a new Luxembourg national record of 3:32.86 in the process.

Veteran table tennis player Xia Lian Ni made up for a disappointing Olympics by reaching the semi-finals of the world championships with partner Sarah de Nutte.

Photos

Charles Grethen (Instagram), PTD, Maison Moderne, Mélody Funck

Recovering from injury in 2020, paralympic shot putter Tom Habscheid placed second in the European Championships in Bydgoszcz, Poland, and then travelled to Tokyo where he finished fourth. He announced his retirement from international sport soon after the Tokyo games.

NEW RESTAURANTS

Ryôdô Kajiwara rightly took the Gault&Millau’s Chef of the Year award for Luxembourg for his work at Ryôdô. The restaurant in Hollerich technically opened last year just before lockdown, but this year has won plaudits for its innovative Japanese

cuisine and sommelier Olivier Chocq’s knowledge and passion for sake.

The latest place to open on rue de Strasbourg, Madame Jeanette specialises in healthy, delicately flavoured Latin American cuisine and superb cocktails, all in a slightly kitsch setting and with excellent service.

Amore is the latest establishment to be opened

by Gabriel Boisante and the Hickey brothers. Like its nearby sister venue Bazar, it is a blend of urban cool and exotic sophistication, with several neatly portioned dishes good for sharing. Also serves some mean cocktails.

FILMS

Radu Jude’s Berlin Golden Bear winner Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn (co-produced by Paul Thiltges Distributions) is a delightful, thoughtful and slightly crazy look at hypocrisy in society-in this case Romania, but it could apply to almost any western nation.

Fans of Capitani’s Luc Schiltz will flock to see Jean-Louis Schuller’s docfiction crossover Hytte (produced by a-BAHN). Schiltz plays Luc, a Luxembourger who ends up in a remote part of northern Norway where he looks for meaning and affirmation of his masculinity.

Directed by Karolina Markiewicz and Pascal Piron, The Living Witnesses (Paul Thiltges Distributions)

is a moving account of how three young people whom society might call marginalised learn about the Shoah from those who survived on a journey across Europe.

SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS Siggy the Cyclist (@CyclistSiggy) the selfproclaimed “Urban Cycling Guerilla”, together with ProVelo.lu asbl (@ProVelo_lu), continued a sustained campaign on Twitter to make cycling safer and more accessible, especially in the capital city.

The Luxembourg Expats COVID Community on Facebook continued to provide helpful information on the latest covid measures, especially for those wanting to travel. And it served as a useful platform to call out anti-vaxxers and dispel other conspiracy theories.

Mélody Funck (@melody_ funck) used her TikTok videos and Instagram account (@melodyfunck_) to showcase her extravagant and elegant sense of fashion and her apparently lavish lifestyle. With over 534,000 followers and 14.6 million likes, she must be doing something right.

THOSE WE HAVE LOST IN 2021 Paul Helminger, the former mayor of Luxembourg City, diplomat and chairman of Luxair and Cargolux, passed away in April at the age of 80.

† JANUARY 2022

SPORTS PERSONALITIES

Chris Garratt, the scout leader, facilitator, coach and trainer for leadership, project and change management, died in August, aged 79.

Manuel Schortgen, the third generation of the family to head the publishing house that bore his family name, died on 14 January following an accident.

Sachin Vankalas, the general manager of Luxflag, died at the age of just 38 in July after contracting covid-19.

Frédéric Genet, the former CEO of Société Générale Bank & Trust, died in August at the age of 66.

Frédéric Antzorn, the journalist who was last employed by Delano publisher Maison Moderne in its Brand Studio, died unexpectedly in July at the age of 53.

Welcome to the Club

Business Club

JANUARY 2022

46

In numbers

Flashback Your events

1,100

As we come towards the end of the year, many of us took the opportunity, at the Keytrade Investment Day, to hear of new strategies for our portfolios. One unregulated, yet frequently discussed opportunity is cryptocurrency, but our panel concluded that we have enough financial regulation already! Thanks to our panel and guests, including 2 Louise Bernroth.

Meanwhile, as the rules surrounding covid continue to change, our speakers at the Delano Live, 1 Sophia Karlsson and 3 Nele Segers, were providing the insights on the signs of burnout to look out for.

COMPANIES The number of company members of the largest business club in Luxembourg.

18,000 MEMBERS

The number of individuals who are part of the vibrantly active Paperjam + Delano Club community with whom you will get to interact.

383

EVENTS The number of digital and on-site events. Choose from about 400 conferences, training, networking and workshop events each year.

“Time to be honest about what burnout is.”

Sophia Karlsson Leadership and Talent Development

500

HOURS

The number of annual training hours for your employees to develop their hard and soft skills: an additional benefit for you and useful extras for your teams.

1

3

HOW TO ATTEND PAPERJAM + DELANO CLUB EVENTS ?

You’re already a member Please check the Club section on our website paperjam.lu. Select, among all the digital and on-site events listed, the ones you would be interested in, fill in the registration form at the bottom page and register.

You’re not a member yet Please email the Paperjam + Delano Club via club@paperjam.lu and an account manager will be in touch to introduce you to all the perks offered by the largest business club in Luxembourg.

2

47

Programme December/January

JANUARY 2022

Wednesday 15 December

3

Start-up Stories Awards 2021 TIME 17:00 – 18:30 Livestream Wednesday 12 January

CEO- & Entrepreneurs-Only Cocktail TIME 20:00 – 22:30 Livestream LOCATION Philharmonie de Luxembourg 3

Tuesday 25 January

5

10×6

10×6 Luxembourg: Financial centre 2030

Nadia Manzari Schiltz & Schiltz

LOCATION Athénée de Luxembourg

Photos

“Smart regulation is a positive step forward for the industry.”

Simon Verjus, Eva Krins

TIME 18:30 – 22:30

Sign up on the Paperjam + Delano Club site: club.paperjam.lu

011 BY MIKE K N2 OE DI DI DE

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JANUARY 2022 EDITION

JANUARY 2022

PUBLISHING DIRECTOR

Mike Koedinger EDITORIAL DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR

Editorial Phone (+352) 20 70 70-150 E-mail news@delano.lu JOURNALISTS

Teodor Georgiev (-158) Aaron Grunwald (-152) Tracy Heindrichs (-164) Abigail Okorodus (-155) Jeffrey Palms (-156) Bianca Panainte (-159) Cordula Schnuer (-163) Josie Shillito (-153)

Nathalie Reuter EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, DELANO MAGAZINE

Publisher

Natalie Gerhardstein (-154) EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, DELANO DIGITAL

Duncan Roberts (-151)

Brand Studio Phone (+352) 20 70 70-300

www.maisonmoderne.com Phone (+352) 20 70 70 E-mail publishing@maisonmoderne.com

DIRECTOR

FOUNDER AND CHAIRMAN

Youcef Damardji

Mike Koedinger

STRATEGIC BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT ADVISOR

CEO

COMMUNITY MANAGER

Francis Gasparotto (-301)

Geraldine Knudson

Christophe Lemaire

HEAD OF MEDIA SALES AND SOLUTIONS

ADMINISTRATIVE AND FINANCIAL DIRECTOR

PHOTOGRAPHY

Romain Gamba Guy Wolff Matic Zorman

Dominique Gouviaux (-338)

Etienne Velasti

COMMERCIAL ASSISTANT

PUBLISHING DIRECTOR

Céline Bayle (-303)

Mike Koedinger

MEDIA ADVISORS

STRATEGIC BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT ADVISOR

Nicolas Galtier (-318) Mélanie Juredieu (-317) Virginie Laurent (-322) Aline Puget (-323) Léo Santoro (-335) Mikaël Spezzacatena (-326) HEAD OF CONTENT STRATEGY

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Jeremy Leslie STUDIO MANAGER

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José Carsí LAYOUT

Sophie Melai (coordination), Juliette Noblot, Marielle Voisin

Francis Gasparotto DIRECTOR, BUSINESS CLUB

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Viktor Dick HR MANAGER

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Sylvia Leplang DIGITAL PROJECT MANAGER

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Kévin Thirion IT MANAGER

Matthew Dixon

ILLUSTRATIONS

Salomé Jottreau

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Pick’n’mix

50

Under-30’s perspectives

Flavia Carbonetti

ARTISTIC PROGRAMMING COORDINATOR AT LUX FILM FEST

AWARD WINNING MAKE-UP ARTIST

FOUNDER OF MAGRID

FOUNDER OF MÉTÉO BOULAIDE

FOUNDER OF EINFÜHLUNG

Today I’m focusing more on how I plan my time to create a healthy work/ life balance. Family and friends matter a lot, but so does business.

I now understand the importance of a healthy body and mind. If you are not healthy your business will not be. Take some time for yourself and put it in your agenda!

We set out to solve problems faced by children with migratory backgrounds but found an inclusive solution to help so many more. Our mission has expanded.

There’ll be more than one event in 2022. I’m addicted to makeup competitions. I‘m part of the International Beauty Industry Awards 2022.

With more reliance on virtual contact, I see a greater desire for one-on-one connections. Any conference where I can meet educators in person would be wonderful.

It is OK to quit. Do not continue doing a job, a hobby, or other activities if you don’t get any enjoyment out of it.

Overworking yourself is the biggest mistake.

That little break is so important and even taking some time off from social media is very helpful.

The organisation of the Luxembourg City Film Festival in March 2022.

On a more personal level, I want to expand my knowledge and learn a new language.

I think Luxembourg has evolved in the last couple of years, but I believe it would be beneficial to have a few more graduate schemes.

How have your priorities evolved from when you first started?

I started out working for free. But that changed very quickly. Now I’m glad to be fully booked with weddings until 2024.

What would you be doing if you weren’t doing what you’re doing now?

One event to anticipate in 2022 based on your line of work?

When I started and didn’t really know the cultural sector, I wanted to try everything and work everywhere. I am still curious but can now focus on what I love.

The 12th edition of the Luxembourg City Film Festival.

A marine biologist.

No, there aren’t any specific events yet, but if I get the opportunity to attend one, I’ll take it.

2020 taught me the lesson of not planning too much in advance, so I’ll seize the moment when whatever comes.

Catastrophic ones you cannot recover from. Maximize opportunities, minimize risks, make mistakes, learn from them, forgive yourself, and move on.

Some forget that it’s important to always take one step after another.

Don’t rush and don’t try to take shortcuts.

There are no mistakes when you start your own business. The most important thing is to be passionate and to stay true to your values.

Well, the beauty industry is huge and there is so much that I haven’t experienced yet, i.e., working on a movie production, television shows or even working for celebrities.

We are conducting pilots in France, the US, soon the UK and beyond. We look forward to doing more outreach in Europe and the US in 2022.

Becoming more independent from social media and building a better weather alert system to prevent damage to property and lives

Luxembourg is doing well for startups and small businesses. I‘m lucky to have my own studio in Differdange at the 1535° creative hub.

Mentorship programs for experienced entrepreneurs to give back and for young entrepreneurs to learn and be mentored.

Teaching students that there are other legitimate ways to succeed in life than pursuing the traditional educational path.

I would do nothing without my job because my whole passion and heart goes into it. I can‘t imagine living without it.

I‘m living my dream.

Sleeping. Starting a business is hard work, thankfully it is a lot of fun and very rewarding.

Our mission keeps me energized.

Maybe something I don’t like, which I consider as a waste of time.

I will take time to improve my personal skills and… who knows, maybe that will take me to other parts of the world!

Competitions, calls for projects are always a good way to create new opportunities and to refresh the already established players.

I would be trying to find a way to get to do what I am doing.

Provided by participants, Levygraphie, Christine Eckardt, Romain Gamba, Shutterstock

Philippe Ernzer

What mistakes should under-30 entrepreneurs avoid?

Tahereh Pazouki

Key projects for 2022?

Luca de Michele

How can Luxembourg foster more opportunities for youths in 2022

Chiara Lentz

Photos

JANUARY 2022

2022 will be the European Year of Youth. Six trailblazers aged under 30 share their expectations.

PUB VENDUE MINISTERE SANTE