Payrexx appoints new CFO: At just 24 years old, Hendrik Schulenburg takes over the financial management of the Swiss payment provider.

Hendrik Schulenburg has been working at Payrexx since 2021 and, in a short time, has worked his way up from a working student to Chief Financial Officer. During this time, he has made an important contribution to the company’s further development and driven forward pioneering processes.

Hendrik Schulenburg has, over the past four years at Payrexx, proven himself to be an exceptionally reliable, analytically strong and responsible colleague. He knows our company and the payments market down to the last detail and brings an extraordinary level of commitment that goes far beyond the usual. His structured way of working, his pronounced understanding of numbers and his ability to make well-founded decisions even under pressure have convinced us to entrust him with this key responsibility.

Ivan Schmid

Managing Director of Payrexx AG

With this appointment, Payrexx reaffirms its conviction that age or years of professional experience are not the priority, but rather expertise, integrity and entrepreneurial thinking. Hendrik embodies exactly those qualities that are crucial for sustainable and future-oriented financial leadership – especially in the dynamic SME environment in which Payrexx operates as market leader.

Since its founding in 2015, Payrexx has established itself in Thun. Today, the company employs over 45 people and is one of the region’s most innovative FinTechs. By appointing Hendrik Schulenburg, Payrexx also aims to contribute to regional talent development and to strengthening Thun as a growing FinTech hub.

In the interview, Schulenburg provides insights into his career path as well as his view of the future of digital payments and his vision for the coming years.

How is it that, at 24, you are already CFO at Payrexx?

Hendrik Schulenburg: “I became interested in business topics at an early stage. That is why I completed my Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration at Frankfurt School of Finance & Management and joined Payrexx as an intern while I was still studying. That was over four years ago now, and since then I have been able to support the company in various roles, witness many exciting developments and gradually take on more responsibility. The combination of finance and strategic development inspires me greatly, and I am grateful to the Board of Directors and the management for the trust they are placing in me with this role.”

Was it always your goal to become CFO?

“The goal of one day becoming CFO developed over time at Payrexx. The insights I was able to gain, and the topics I was able to work on, showed me that one day I would like to take on that responsibility. I am very pleased to have this opportunity now at Payrexx.”

What makes Payrexx a special employer for you?

“On the one hand, the market itself – the payments industry is incredibly exciting, constantly moving and offers plenty of room for innovation. On the other hand, I’m impressed by how Payrexx has built a strong position in the Swiss payments market over the past ten years with a great deal of commitment and customer proximity. We are particularly proud that Payrexx was voted the most popular provider for Swiss SMEs in the 2023 national online retailer survey, ahead of providers such as PayPal, Worldline and PostFinance.

That is exactly what Payrexx means to me: innovation with a clear focus on the needs of SMEs – with a solution that simply works and offers real added value for SMEs.”

What does leadership mean to you in a FinTech like Payrexx?

“For me, leadership at Payrexx means understanding the needs of customers and the market, always remaining agile and innovative, and working together towards a clear goal. That is what is needed to hold our own in a dynamic market environment.”

How do you see the development of the payments industry?

“I am convinced that both online and in-person business will continue to move towards simplification and efficiency. For example, we can already observe that Instant Payments – i.e. real-time bank transfers – are gaining relevance globally, and it is only a matter of time before this becomes established in the Swiss market as well. There will also be changes at the point of sale. The classic payment terminal (POS terminal), as known in retail today, will increasingly be replaced over the coming years by so-called SoftPOS solutions: in this case, an ordinary smartphone or tablet is transformed into a fully-fledged payment terminal – without any additional hardware. This technological development makes card payments more flexible, cheaper and more efficient – especially for small businesses and mobile providers.

For companies, it is important to stay up to date with such trends and choose the right payment provider. It is therefore particularly pleasing that Payrexx will be able to offer its customers both of the above-mentioned solutions in future.”

And where do you see Payrexx in 5 years?

“That is a particularly exciting question. Payrexx is constantly evolving and, since recently, has been processing point-of-sale payments (payments directly at the physical point of sale, e.g. at the shop till or on site with customers) in addition to e-commerce payments, making it a true omni-payment provider. That is why I see Payrexx as the number 1 in omni-payment for SMEs in Switzerland in 5 years. The all-in-one solution from Payrexx with all important Swiss payment methods from a single source is unique – and particularly attractive for SMEs, as it is not only comprehensive but also available at the lowest price on the market. I am therefore convinced that we will reach many more companies.”

With Hendrik Schulenburg as the new CFO, Payrexx is setting the course for further growth in the Swiss FinTech landscape. We thank him for the exciting insights and look forward to continued successful collaboration.

About Payrexx

Payrexx was founded in Thun in 2015 and, as a registered payment facilitator of Mastercard, Visa, TWINT, PostFinance, CENTI, NAKA and REKA, enables the simple acceptance of payments – both online and on site. As an all-in-one solution, the payment platform developed in-house includes more than 200 payment methods as well as numerous simple sales tools (Pages, Paylink, Invoice, Donations, QR Pay, Terminal). All Payrexx systems are designed with redundancy and meet the highest security standards. More than 60’000 merchants worldwide already use Payrexx, including well-known Swiss companies such as BKW, Carvolution, Zweifel Pomy-Chips AG, Hotelcard or Selecta.