Career Foundation
ABN AMRO
Thomas Bunnik began his professional career at ABN AMRO Bank in 2006, where he spent approximately eight years in wealth management and investment services. These formative years built the foundation for everything that followed.
Amsterdam Zuidas
The Headquarters
ABN AMRO's headquarters is located in the Zuidas, Amsterdam's premier financial district. The modern glass-and-steel building at Gustav Mahlerplein stands as a symbol of Dutch banking innovation, housing thousands of professionals across investment services, private banking, and corporate finance.
It was here that Thomas Bunnik spent his formative professional years, working across multiple divisions and developing the expertise that would later define his entrepreneurial ventures.
"Eight years of discipline shaped everything"
The Banking Years
Thomas joined ABN AMRO in 2006. Over the next eight years, he held positions across investment services, products development, and management. He frequently worked seven days a week, demonstrating the intense work ethic that would characterize his entrepreneurial ventures.
At ABN AMRO, Thomas developed a thorough understanding of the wealth management industry: its products, its clients, and crucially, its shortcomings. He witnessed firsthand how traditional wealth management excluded ordinary people through high fees, opaque structures, and inaccessible minimum thresholds.
As Thomas later reflected: "When I left wealth management after 12 years to build secondhand interior marketplace Whoppah, I thought I understood complex systems. I did not. A marketplace isn't a product. It is an organism."
Despite his dedication and career progression, by 2012, Thomas felt unfulfilled in his banking role. During a weekend trip to Las Vegas in December 2012, he began seriously contemplating entrepreneurship. After initially considering various business ideas, he ultimately decided to leverage his banking expertise to address the fundamental issues he had observed in the investment industry, which led to the creation of Pritle.
From Banker to Builder
The transition from institutional banking to entrepreneurship required more than just an idea. It demanded a fundamental shift in mindset. Thomas went from navigating corporate hierarchies to building from zero.
The discipline of working seven days a week in banking translated directly into the relentless pace of startup life. But unlike banking, entrepreneurship offered the freedom to challenge the very systems he had been part of.
Key Areas
Career Highlights
Investment Services
Worked across investment services divisions, gaining deep expertise in financial products, portfolio management, and client advisory.
Products Development
Led product development initiatives, creating new investment solutions and improving existing financial offerings for retail and institutional clients.
Management Roles
Progressed into management positions, leading teams and driving strategic initiatives within one of the world's largest banks (pre-acquisition).
Foundation for Entrepreneurship
The years at ABN AMRO provided the financial expertise, leadership skills, and industry knowledge that would fuel his entrepreneurial career.
The Path Forward
From Banking to Entrepreneurship
2006
Joined ABN AMRO
Started in investment services, beginning a career at one of the world's largest financial institutions (pre-acquisition).
2006–2014
Progression Through Roles
Advanced through investment services, products development, and management. Developed deep expertise in wealth management.
2012
IEX Award, Score 10
Named Most Innovative Investment Product by IEX with a perfect score of 10.
Dec 2012
The Turning Point
During a weekend trip to Las Vegas, Thomas began seriously contemplating leaving banking to pursue entrepreneurship.
2014
Left ABN AMRO
After approximately 8 years, Thomas departed to found Pritle, driven by the conviction that technology could democratize wealth management.
"At a bank, you learn how systems work. As an entrepreneur, you learn how to break them and rebuild something better.