It may sound like science fiction today: The Internet is in its infancy, there are no mobile phones or electronic banking. But there is enthusiasm, persistence and a great business idea which - as it will turn out later - will give the company a competitive edge over others. It’s 1995 and Giełda Praw Majątkowych “Vindexus” S.A. enters the market. Now, 25 years later, we are one of the leading businesses on the Polish debt management market, and stock exchange-listed at that. 

10 May 1995 is the date that marks the beginning of Giełda Praw Majątkowych “Vindexus” S.A. operations on the Polish market. - Those were were interesting times - remembers Jerzy Kulesza, the Company''s CEO in the years 2002-2016. - Keep in mind that it was when the denomination reform took place, cutting five zeroes from our salaries and savings! But that''s not all. The inflation rate was somewhere between 30% and 40%, while the statutory interest for late payments - at 50-60%. This caused huge payment bottlenecks which made running a business as bothersome as a small collision on the motorway. At that time, there were almost 1000 debt collection companies. Fast forward a few years - there were all gone. We are still active because we’ve relied on a different business concept. We decided to buy debt on our own account and recover them, using the available court and bailiff proceedings. It was a good idea and the right time for creating a company like that although initially the conditions were unfavourable. There was no Internet, no online banking, no mobile phones. But the job was very interesting. We had to face and solve many problems, which was incredibly rewarding. There were no ready-made solutions, we had to come up with ideas on our own-says Jerzy Kulesza.

One of the longest-serving employees of the company is Artur Zdunek, who started to work at Vindexus in 1999. Currently a member of the Company''s Management Board, Mr. Zdunek was initially a debt recovery specialist.
- The 25th anniversary… Time flies, many things have changed since the beginning. I remember a funny situation that happened when I was just starting out at Vindexus. The Company directors called a meeting and there were only two lower-rank employees not attending:  me and the secretary, there were only two of us...Currently, our company employs more than 100 people. As for the financial side of our operations, in our initial years we earned around PLN 200-300 thousand zlotys per month. Today, we are able to earn much more in a day... As you can see, we are not standing still, we keep on growing - says Artur Zdunek.

Marzena Markiewicz, head of the the Document Management Office is another employee with a long history of working for Vindexus - 20 years. - Over the years, I have witnessed a lot of game-changing events and incredible growth of the Company. I remember when we implemented the first debt handling system, bought our first major debt portfolio and when we made our debut on the stock exchange.…
Can you imagine that when we first started, employees of debt collection companies were seen as people showing up on your doorstep and pushing you to repay your debt quickly? Our company, however, has always wanted to handle cases amicably, engage in a dialogue,  try to find non-contentious solutions - says Marzena Markiewicz.

Agnieszka Balcerak, a manger at the Financial Department, who has also worked 20 years for the Company, emphasises that going public and getting listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange was a watershed moment for the Company. - Looking at it from the perspective of the financial department, that was a turning point for us. It gave the Company a boost. We had to start applying new accounting principles and the number of reporting requirements that we had to meet grew significantly. The Company’s employees keep facing new challenges which determine the direction of the Company''s further growth. One thing, however, doesn’t change: I consider it a great strength of this Company that we are able to combine professional success with the personal one - believes Agnieszka Balcerak.

- Let''s hope that Jeff Bezos, the CEO of Amazon, one of the biggest businesses in the world, which was established more or less at the same time as our company, is right in saying that the lifespan of a well-organised large company is around 100 years on the average - concludes Jerzy Kulesza.

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