A Founder’s Guide to Building Trust With Investors: The Afranga Story

In this episode of The Recursive Podcast, we dive into one of the hottest topics in tech right now — AI in banking. Our host Dilyana Haralanova speaks with Valentin Stepanovich, Head of Machine Learning Platform at DSK Bank, about where he leads ML and AI innovation initiatives. They explore how generative AI is transforming customer service, fraud prevention, software engineering, and financial operations inside modern banks, and more.💡 How AI Is Transforming Customer Service in Banking: Why banks are replacing traditional rule-based chatbots with AI assistants, how customer interactions are becoming more natural, and why Valentine believes customer service will be the biggest area AI fundamentally changes. 💡 The Real Risks of AI in Finance: From AI-generated fraud and identity theft to GDPR, security layers, hallucinations, and the EU AI Act — the conversation unpacks the biggest challenges banks face when deploying generative AI safely. 💡 Why AI Isn’t Replacing Jobs (Yet): Valentin shares why AI is changing the nature of work rather than eliminating jobs, how engineers are adapting to AI-assisted development, and the surprising rise of candidates using AI live during job interviews.

Is the “Genius Founder” Myth Hurting Your Startup? In this episode of the Recursive Roundtable, we pull back the curtain on the real founder’s journey — from the grueling early days of fundraising to the high-stakes world of multi-million dollar exits. We are joined by three industry experts who see the lifecycle of a company from every angle: Gergana Stoichkova, a VC expert and fundraising advisor; Stan Andreev, an M&A specialist with a background at Citibank in New York and London; and Teodor Antonio, a narrative strategist who helps founders shape their public presence. Together, they debunk common misconceptions about "startup freedom," explain why your exit strategy should start on Day 1, and reveal why "chaos mastery" is the most important skill a CEO can have.💡 What we discuss:The Biggest Startup Myths: Why building a great product doesn't guarantee distribution, and why the "lone wolf" founder narrative is a recipe for failure.The Reality of Selling Your Company: Stan explains why an exit is never "easy," how to align co-founder incentives early, and why a declining business is almost impossible to sell.Fundraising as a Relationship, Not an Outsource: Gergana breaks down why you can’t hire someone to raise capital for you and what VCs are actually looking for beyond a perfect pitch deck.Narrative as Infrastructure: Theodor explores how to use major milestones (like funding rounds) for customer acquisition rather than just vanity PR, and why public speaking is a learnable craft.Red Flags for Investors: How to tell when a founder’s confidence has turned into arrogance and when social media "vanity metrics" are masking a lack of real growth.🏆 This episode is essential viewing for early-stage founders, entrepreneurs planning their next exit, and anyone looking to understand the bridge between building a product and building a legacy.🔔 Subscribe to The Recursive for more stories at the intersection of tech, society, and startup ecosystems.

In this episode of The Recursive Round Table, we explore how AI is reshaping music, filmmaking, and advertising workflows. This isn’t a hype conversation. It’s a real look at what actually works, what doesn’t, and why most people are still getting it wrong.Composer and sound artist Emilian Gatsov – Elbi, advertiser and Director of Innovation at OM Group Konstantin Yankov, and film director and video producer Andrey Andonov share their perspectives from across disciplines.We talk about the shift from control to experimentation, why randomness can be a creative advantage, and how AI acts more like a collaborator than a replacement. One key idea stands out: the quality of output is directly tied to the quality of input.They discussed:☑️ How AI changed creative workflows️☑️ Do you need experience to create with AI?☑️ Using AI as an enabler (not a replacement)☑️ AI in film production☑️ AI in advertising☑️ Real examples of using AI in projects☑️ Transparency, copyright & ethics☑️ Creative jobs, skills & the future of creation

💬 What makes someone a great communicator? Is it talent… or a skill that can be trained?In this episode of the Recursive Roundtable, we explore the art of communication from multiple perspectives — recruitment, HR, filmmaking, storytelling, and coaching.Joining the host Teodora Atanasova on this topic are Boryana Borisova (Director of Talent Acquisition @ Delasport; ICF Certified Coach), Konstantin Kunev (Interim CEO @ Future Unicorns Accelerator), and Andrey Andonov, (Video Producer & Storyteller @ The Recursive).Together they discuss:• Why communication starts and ends every human interaction• How vulnerability and storytelling build real connections• The relationship between personal development and career growth• Why many people avoid training communication skills• The difference between personal branding and reputation• How great communicators manage energy, presence, and adaptabilityOne idea from the conversation:“If you become transparent and expose your vulnerability, it’s one of the most powerful ways to connect with people.”

What does it really take to build a successful fintech company in Europe?In this episode of The Recursive Podcast, we sit down with Svetlin Sabev, Bulgarian fintech entrepreneur and founder & CEO of Afranga, a regulated lending marketplace that connects investors with growing European businesses.Svetlin shares the lessons from building multiple fintech companies. He talks about the importance of:- hiring the right people;- choosing the right co-founder;- navigating regulation, scaling platforms, and raising investor trust. He also discusses the future of fintech, the European startup ecosystem, and why founders should stop hiding their ideas and start sharing them.🔔 Subscribe for more startup and tech conversations.

Last week Dilan Sisu, VC (e2vc) and Etien Yovchev, Co-founder (The Recursive) met in Sofia and decided to film a conversation that turned into a thoughtful discussion about the role of media and influence in venture capital.The discussion jumped from whether VCs secretly care about popularity (and why visibility can be a strategic asset, not vanity) to where the next unicorn founder is more likely to appear: through an AI recommendation 🤖 or at a small, well-curated party 🍸.🎙️ They also explored whether age really matters for founders, whether early-stage teams should invest more in founder personal brands or company brands, when media relations should become a priority for startups, and why more investors are launching podcasts.And then the question every investor quietly wrestles with: how do you distinguish strong founder conviction from pure delusion?Running through all of this is a broader theme: visibility, social influence in venture capital, how VC brands are built, and how meaningful relationships actually form — both online and offline.

Why Raising Too Late Kills Startups? In this episode of the Recursive RoundTable, we unpack one of the most misunderstood topics for founders: fundraising strategy — not just the “how,” but the when, the why, and the who.GUESTS:Iliya Valchanov, Co-founder & CEO @ JumaKonstantin Bezuhanov, Co-founder & CEO @ EvrotrustStoil Vasilev, Co-founder & CEO @ Paypercut They share:💡 why starting your fundraising too late is the #1 mistake seed-stage companies make💡 how to structure your investor outreach like a sales funnel💡 what separates “feature AI” from true AI-powered competitive advantage💡 how to choose the right investor — not just the one with the biggest check💡 terms, valuation, control and the long game of capitalYou’ll hear real stories about:👉 outreach strategy and KPIs (77 conversations ≈ 1 deal)👉 managing rejection and staying confident👉 the importance of building relationships long before you need capital👉 why a bad partner can be worse than no partner👉 practical negotiation lessons and term-sheet wisdomWhether you’re gearing up for your first round or planning Series A+, this episode gives you the mental model and playbook you need to approach fundraising with clarity and confidence.

In this episode of The Recursive Roundtable, we explore how artificial intelligence is reshaping work, companies, and the global economy — and whether today’s AI boom mirrors the dot-com bubble of the late 1990s.More than 50% of recent venture capital investment has flowed into AI, raising inevitable comparisons to the dot-com era, when capital rushed into internet startups before real value was fully proven. We discuss what history can teach us, why hype cycles are rooted in human psychology, and how this time may be both similar — and fundamentally different.The conversation examines what’s actually changing today:☑️ why enterprise AI adoption is harder than expected; ☑️ why many pilots never reach production; ☑️ why AI is boosting individual productivity faster than it can transform whole teams or organizations. We also unpack the growing impact on hiring, junior talent, and the future of technical education.🎙️ GUESTS:Svetozar Georgiev, General Partner at Eleven VenturesRaya Yunakova, Investor at LAUNCHub VenturesTsvetan Tsvetanov, Lead Software Engineer, Co-Owner at CamplightChapters:0:43 AI in Everyday Life: Storytime & Beyond1:45 Is AI the Next Dot-Com Bubble?5:42 AI Changes Teams, Not Just Individuals6:11 Why Enterprise AI Pilots Fail8:05 The Myth: “Everyone Is a Developer Now”9:51 AGI Won’t Arrive in a Single Moment11:27 China vs US: Competing AI Strategies12:25 Why AGI Obsession Hurts Real Products19:33 AI Is Reshaping Jobs & Hiring21:03 No Juniors Today = No Seniors Tomorrow23:34 Vibe Coding vs Production Reality24:24 AI Failures Are Coming (2026–27)25:32 Fear Is the Biggest AI Bottleneck31:56 Why AI Regulation Is So Hard36:34 AI Is Already Everywhere

Can companies really stay safe in a world where attackers only need to be right once? In this episode of The Recursive Podcast, we sit down with Miroslav Naydenov, a cybersecurity expert at Amatas, who has spent years on the front lines of digital crisis management — restoring breached systems, outsmarting attackers, and preparing businesses for threats they don’t even know exist.We talk about why most companies misunderstand their risk, how attackers operate like sophisticated businesses, and why AI and deepfakes are about to trigger an identity crisis unlike anything the digital world has seen.What you’ll learn: 🛡️ Why preparation decides everything, and why companies still wait for regulations before taking security seriously. 👥 The real weakest link: people — how employee behavior, misconfigurations, and remote access open the door to attackers long before any technical vulnerability does. 🤖 How AI and deepfakes are rewriting cybercrime — and why distinguishing real from fake will become one of the next decade’s biggest challenges. 🔗 The silent danger of supply chain attacks — why trusted partners can become your biggest vulnerability overnight.🧠 This episode is a must-watch for founders, operators, IT leaders, and anyone building a digital-first business, especially those navigating remote work, sensitive data, or regulated industries.Timestamps: 0:00–1:00 – Introduction1:00–2:30 – Explaining cybersecurity simply & overview of AMATAS role2:30–5:22 – Cybersecurity landscape in Bulgaria and the region5:22–8:23 – Talent shortages and early education8:23–11:14 – Incident patterns, importance of preparation11:14–16:00 – Why companies get breached16:00–20:21 – Cybercriminals operating as businesses20:21–23:02 – How companies should start with cybersecurity23:02–30:00 – Human factor, deepfakes, and phishing evolution30:00–36:04 – Most frequent and damaging attacks36:04–39:05 – High-impact cases39:05–45:03 – Biggest misconceptions45:03–48:30 – Final advice

Can founders really scale without letting go? In this episode of The Recursive Podcast, we sit down with Boyan Stoyanov, an entrepreneur and operations strategist with a decade of experience building and running teams across Europe & Southeast Asia. After leading recruitment and people operations for digital-first companies, Boyan now helps organizations scale sustainably under the VEDA brand — uniting operational design with accounting, payroll, and financial strategy to help founders move from working in the business to working on the business. We talk about his journey from Asia back to Bulgaria, why most companies get stuck small, and how VEDA’s merger with Hireworks is designed to solve the scaling problem end to end.What you’ll learn:🏗️ The hardest founder shift: delegating not just tasks but decision-making, and how to build the infrastructure to do it safely.🏝️ How Southeast Asian business culture compares to Eastern Europe: trust-first relationships, indirect “no,” negotiation norms, and why you need boots on the ground.📈 Why hiring can hurt capacity in the short term, and how onboarding, process, and performance loops must improve across the whole funnel to truly scale.⚖️ The case for fractional operational leadership vs. a full-time hire, common mistakes with consultants, and how VEDA’s integrated ops + finance approach accelerates growth.This episode is a must-watch for first-time founders, scaling operators, and leaders eyeing international expansion, especially those considering fractional services as a smarter path to senior expertise.CHAPTERS00:00 Introduction01:39 Boyan's Journey to Startup Founding04:29 The Crossroads of Employment vs. Entrepreneurship05:07 Business Culture: East vs. West vs. Southeast Asia09:49 Hard-Learned Lessons in Asia15:11 Operational Shift: Moving from Asia to Bulgaria19:27 The VEDA Merger25:37 Market Focus and Complementary Networks26:33 The Future of VEDA and Bulgarian Brands28:10 Scaling a Company and the Core Team31:01 Advice for First-Time Founders and the Value of Fractional Services39:27 Common Mistakes When Using External ServicesSubscribe to The Recursive for more founder stories and practical playbooks from the CEE tech ecosystem!Learn more about VEDA and Boyan:https://www.veda.works/https://www.linkedin.com/company/veda-works/https://www.linkedin.com/in/boyan-stoyanov/