Horizon65: Retirement planning and investing made simple

One day in 2020, in the early stages of the coronavirus pandemic, Nicolas Overloop, founder of Horizon65, received a call from his parents. They wanted his help with sorting out their retirement finances. Dozens of calls, emails and several trips to the post office later, he was left appalled at the state of the European pension industry, which had apparently managed to escape the last 30 years of technological innovation.

After some research, it became clear that the main reason for the lack of digitalisation is that retirement plans are often drafted and explained by financial advisors in person. After Nicolas discussed it in depth with Seamus, a seasoned investment and retirement expert from Germany, a project was hatched to revolutionise the retirement industry. 

Horizon65: Using technology to revolutionise retirement planning

They decided to found Horizon65 and together they embarked on their first steps to make their vision a reality.

They built a mobile app that uses data and artificial intelligence to help users understand their retirement situation and explore their financial options with the help of both AI and independent human financial advisors.

Here’s how it works, in seven simple steps:

1. You create an account and input your personal data.
2. Horizon65 works out how much the government will pay you when you retire.
3. You add details about your retirement investments, including company pension plans and real estate.
4. Horizon65 calculates whether you will have enough money to maintain your current lifestyle during retirement.
5. You receive an unbiased overview of some of your options to save more.
6. You can arrange to speak with an independent financial advisor to work out what’s best for you. 
7. You choose your retirement plan and start saving.

Try Horizon65 and receive a free investment strategy consultation 

Get free, easy and independent advice on your retirement 

As a team of internationals, Horizon65 understands the needs and problems of expats on a personal level - whether that’s the language barrier, bureaucratic obstacles thrown in the way, or simply the whole complex structure of the German pension system.

That’s why Horizon65’s retirement advisor service was built to solve the issues highlighted by real-life clients in face-to-face meetings with Nicolas and Seamus.

Understanding expat issues

Expats’ pension pots are rarely all located in one country. The Horizon65 team has the combined expertise of living in eight different countries and extensive knowledge about the pension system employed in OECD, making them ideally suited to help expats navigate cross-border obstacles.

Horizon65 can help with things like the infamous FATCA reporting requirements in the US - a wide-ranging regulation that leads to many Americans being excluded from the European financial system or porting contracts across borders - to calling up pension reserves from UK-based pension schemes and navigating mortgage applications for non-residents. 

Tailored financial planning

Everybody’s financial situation is different, and plenty of Horizon65 clients already have varying investments in place and different future plans.

No matter whether you plan to return home and rent out your apartment in Berlin, or settle long-term in the Bavarian countryside, you can receive tailored financial advice from Horizon65. On top of the financial AI, there’s always someone available at the end of the phone to help you, so you can review your planning together and make sure it fits your situation and life goals.

This even includes making sure that your ethical considerations are taken into account, so you don’t wake up one day and realise in horror that your money may have in part financed climate change or supported dictators abroad. 

Independent, dependable advice - every time

To deliver on this promise and to guarantee the best possible outcome for its clients, Horizon65 has decided to be completely independent from any investment provider or product.

Most financial advice out there is biassed towards a certain asset class (e.g. stocks) or investment products from a specific institution (e.g. any bank advisor). Horizon65 is free from those restrictions and can look at every possible asset class available and inform you of the most suitable options available in the market.

Pan-European Pensions

Horizon65 knows that expats often move from place to place, accruing pension entitlements all over the world that can be difficult to keep track of. That’s why it’s so exciting that the EU is planning to overhaul the industry with a separate pension plan called the “Pan-European Pension”.

This framework is a European Commission initiative to promote the free movement of people by enabling workers to gather their cross-border pensions into one pension pot. It is designed specifically with fintechs in mind, and Horizon65 is the only fintech company in Germany actively working on this - so if you want to get ahead of the curve and simplify your finances, you know where to look. 

Exclusively for IamExpat readers

Ready to start planning effectively for your retirement? Horizon65 is offering an exclusive free consultation for IamExpat readers to discover what your long-term investment options are. You can claim your free investment strategy consultation via the Horizon65 website.