FLiP - Erste Financial Life Park

What FLiP - Erste Financial Life Park does

FLiP - Erste Financial Life Park is a Vienna-based non-profit organization (FLiP GmbH Gemeinnützige Gesellschaft zur Förderung finanzieller Bildung) founded in October 2016 to provide free, barrier-free financial education in Austria. It is wholly owned by Erste Social Finance Holding GmbH (51% ERSTE Foundation, 49% Erste Group Bank AG) and operates from the Erste Campus in Vienna with regional locations in Linz, Graz (CoSA), Klagenfurt, and Düsseldorf (Germany). All offerings — physical tours, mobile bus visits, digital learning content, and downloadable teaching materials — are provided free of charge to schools, students, families, and the general public.

FLiP's product surface combines four delivery channels: (1) physical interactive exhibitions at FLiP locations with stations such as Konfigurator, Reality Check, Tresor, and Arena; (2) FLiP2Go, a mobile financial education bus that visits schools across Austria and Germany; (3) digital channels including the FLiP App / FLiP Challenge (flipchallenge.at), FLiP Digi Tour webinars, and the "Erklär mir die Welt" podcast co-produced with journalist Andreas Sator; and (4) downloadable teaching content including Unterrichtsmaterial, Geld im Griff (for A2+ language learners), Taschengeldleitfaden, and a financial glossary. ECOMANIA, a proprietary computer-supported economic simulation, enables participants to role-play government, corporate, and union roles with aggregated macroeconomic outcomes visualized on a game board. Sub-brands include FLiP2Go, ECOMANIA, FLiP App, and FLiP Digi Tour.

FLiP has no commercial revenue model; the organization is funded institutionally through its parent holding company. Go-to-market is event- and content-driven: schools book visits via an online booking platform, FLiP2Go is dispatched to schools, and awareness is generated through earned media, a podcast, an annual Jugendbericht research publication, social media, and a Youth Advisory Board. The primary customer segment is Austrian school students aged 10+; secondary segments include university students, company apprentices, migrants and German-language learners, and the general public. Since April 2023, FLiP has expanded geographically through a social franchise model that licenses its brand and methodology to partner operators, including RSGV in Düsseldorf. Content objectivity is maintained by an independent International Advisory Board including academics from WU Vienna, OECD, Stanford/Hertie, and the University of Vienna. FLiP has won multiple awards, including Red Dot, FAMAB, IFTE Entrepreneurship Educator of the Year, the eAward 2025, and certifications including AWS Verified Social Enterprise and a Quality Seal for Learning Apps from the Austrian Federal Ministry of Finance.

Name

FLiP - Erste Financial Life Park

Legal name

FLiP GmbH Gemeinnützige Gesellschaft zur Förderung finanzieller Bildung

Website

https://financiallifepark.at

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

FLiP is an Austria-based non-profit that delivers free, barrier-free financial literacy education to school students, families, migrants, and the general public through interactive exhibitions in Vienna and four franchise locations (including Düsseldorf), a mobile bus, a digital learning app, and proprietary simulations like ECOMANIA, fully funded by Erste Social Finance Holding.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Financial Literacy Education

NAICS

Educational Services (611)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDAMAHAE

Financial Literacy, Budgeting & Personal Finance

Education/Supplemental & Enrichment Programs (Arts, STEM, Language)/Entrepreneurship & Business Enrichment

SECONDARYFSAGADAH

Financial Education & Coaching (Digital Programs, Tools)

Financial & Insurance/Financial Technology (Fintech)/Personal Finance & Financial Wellness (PFM)

SECONDARYEDAAAJAA

Budgeting & Cash-Flow Management

Education/Adult & Continuing Education/Financial Literacy & Consumer Education

Keywords

• Financial literacy education
• Interactive learning exhibits
• Economic simulation games
• Youth financial education
• Social franchise education

Headquarters

HQ city

Vienna

HQ country

Austria

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Foundation / Parent Company Funding: FLiP GmbH is a non-profit organization wholly owned by Erste Social Finance Holding GmbH (100%). Erste Social Finance Holding is 51% owned by ERSTE Foundation and 49% by Erste Group Bank AG. The organization provides free educational services funded by these institutional stakeholders. No commercial revenue model is pursued.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

FLiP - Erste Financial Life Park operates Austria's most prominent financial education project, delivering free, ad-free, and academically independent financial literacy programming through interactive physical exhibitions, a mobile education bus (FLiP2Go), digital tools (FLiP App and FLiP Digi Tour webinars), and the proprietary ECOMANIA economic simulation software. The offering serves school children, youth, families, language learners, and corporate apprentices across multiple Austrian locations and a German franchise site.

Product overview

FLiP (Erste Financial Life Park) is Austria's most prominent financial education project, operated by FLiP GmbH (a non-profit entity owned by Erste Social Finance Holding GmbH). The offering is a multi-format platform combining physical and digital touchpoints. At its core is the FLiP Tour — an interactive guided learning experience at the Vienna location — supplemented by FLiP Thementouren (thematic focus tours on debt, investment, jobs, and retirement), FLiP2Go (a mobile education bus visiting schools), and FLiP Digi Tour/Digi Thementouren (online webinar versions). The FLiP App delivers financial challenges for classroom use, while ECOMANIA provides an economic simulation board game. Supporting educational content includes Unterrichtsmaterial, Geld im Griff (teaching materials for A2+ language learners), Geld und so, Taschengeldleitfaden, and a Lexikon. The Erklär mir die Welt podcast extends reach through expert conversations. The social franchise model has expanded FLiP to Linz, Graz (CoSA), Klagenfurt, and Düsseldorf. All offerings are free of charge, ad-free, and academically independent.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ECOMANIA: An economic simulation game where participants take on roles of government members, company board members, and trade union representatives to experience macroeconomic concepts interactively.
• FLiP2Go
• FLiP App
• FLiP Digi Tour

Products and services

• FLiP Tour Guided interactive learning path that teaches important knowledge about money and finance through play, developing financial literacy and explaining the significance of finances for personal life planning. Targeted at school classes and groups visiting the Vienna exhibition.
• FLiP Thementouren (Focus Tours) Topic-specific FLiP Tours covering poverty in old age, jobs, debt, investment, and capital markets, available in German with four different thematic focuses. Targeted at students and groups seeking deeper exploration of specific financial topics.
• FLiP Digi Tour Online webinar providing an interactive journey through the world of finance, enabling remote participation in FLiP's financial education content for schools and individuals who cannot attend in person.
• FLiP Digi Thementouren Topic-specific webinars covering future planning, money, debt, investment, and capital markets, delivered in digital format for remote audiences.
• FLiP2Go Mobile financial education bus that visits schools throughout Austria and Germany, bringing FLiP programming to locations where an in-person visit to the exhibition is not possible. Targeted at children and youth aged 10 and above.
• FLiP App (FLiP Challenge) Mobile application providing financial education challenges for classroom use, featuring multiple FLiP Challenge modules that teach finance topics interactively including budgeting, savings, debt, and investment.
• ECOMANIA Economic simulation game where participants take on roles of government members, company board members, and trade union representatives. Group-based experiments and their macroeconomic impacts are simulated using proprietary software, with aggregated effects visualized on the game board. Targeted at upper secondary students (11th grade and above).
• Unterrichtsmaterial (Teaching Materials) Free downloadable teaching materials on financial and economic topics for pupils aged 10 and over, designed to complement and prepare for FLiP tours.
• Geld im Griff (Money Matters) Teaching materials for schools and German language courses for language level A2+ onwards, covering financial and consumer competencies including a 'Mein Konto' (My Account) topic. Available as free download and printed copies by mail.
• Erklär mir die Welt Podcast Podcast developed in cooperation with FLiP, where journalist Andreas Sator invites experts to explain important financial topics in accessible episodes covering inflation, debt, financial planning, globalization, and AI economics.

Quantifiable outcome

• 49,000 students reached in a single livestream event
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Zweite SparkasseminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorZweite Sparkasse (Second Sparkasse) operates at Am Schweizer Garten 1 in Vienna and offers FLiP financial education programs as part of its community outreach. Serves a specific audience within the FLiP network.
• International Advisory BoardcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAn independent international expert advisory board reviews and approves all FLiP content to ensure objectivity and independence from Erste Group. Members include Christoph Badelt (Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien), Sue Lewis (OECD/UK), Gyöngyi Lóránth (University of Vienna), Johanna Mair (Stanford/Hertie School), and Leonore Riitsalu (Financial Well-being Expert).
• CoSA Graz (Centre for Social Innovation)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFLiP Graz is hosted at the Joanneumsviertel as part of the Centre for Social Innovation (CoSA), a multidisciplinary research and education center in Graz. This partnership enables FLiP's presence in Styria.
• RSGV Düsseldorf (Regionaldirektion)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorFLiP2Go in the Rheinland region of Germany is operated by RSGV (Regionaldirektion) Düsseldorf at Kirchfeldstraße 60, serving schools in the Düsseldorf area.
• Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien (WU Vienna)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWU Vienna is a partner institution providing academic credibility and content expertise for FLiP's educational programs, including through advisory board representation.
• Technische Universität Wien (TU Wien)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTU Wien is listed among FLiP's partner organizations, contributing to the network of Austrian academic institutions supporting financial education.
• Erste Bank der oesterreichischen Sparkassen AGminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerErste Bank is part of the Erste Group ecosystem and provides data processing and operational support services as listed in the data protection information.
• Wiener Börse (Vienna Stock Exchange)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWiener Börse is a partner organization supporting FLiP's mission to promote financial literacy, particularly around investment and capital markets education.
• AWS (Austria Wirtschaftsservice)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAWS is Austria's promotional bank and service provider that has certified FLiP as a Verified Social Enterprise, providing credibility endorsement.
• iconomixminorStrategic or Co-development Partnericonomix is a Swiss financial education foundation operating as a partner organization supporting FLiP's cross-border financial literacy mission.
• ERSTE Foundation / Erste Group / Wiener Börse / OEVAT / SENAminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFLiP operates as part of a broader Austrian financial literacy ecosystem, with ERSTE Foundation, Erste Group, Wiener Börse, OEVAT, and SENA as supporting institutional partners. The site footer also shows logos for KARDEA, NECE, NGO Academy, Stiftung Wirtschaftsbildung, Three Coins, Civics, Youth Start, and ovos media as part of the partner network.
• Andreas Sator / Erklär mir die Welt PodcastminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJournalist Andreas Sator co-produces the 'Erklär mir die Welt' (Explain the World to Me) podcast in cooperation with FLiP. The podcast covers financial and economic topics with expert guests and is one of Austria's largest podcasts.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Greenlight: US fintech offering a debit card and financial literacy app for kids and teens. Compares on the financial literacy-for-youth dimension and combines education with a digital product, but unlike FLiP is a commercial product with subscription fees rather than a free public-good platform.
• National Financial Educators Council (NFEC): US-based financial education organization providing curriculum, certification, and advocacy resources for financial educators. Compares on mission-driven financial literacy and educator-training focus, though positioned more as an enabler of educators than a direct-to-student platform.
• Money Savvy: Producer of Money Savvy Kids financial literacy curricula, books, and tools for schools and families. Comparable as a free, mission-driven youth financial education provider, but operates primarily through curriculum licensing rather than experiential learning.

Broad incumbents

• Junior Achievement (JA Worldwide): Global nonprofit delivering financial literacy, work readiness, and entrepreneurship education to K-12 students. Comparable in mission, school-based delivery, and corporate sponsorship model, but operates on a much broader global scale with thousands of local chapters.
• Practical Money Skills (Visa): Visa's global financial literacy program providing free personal finance educational resources, lesson plans, and tools for educators and consumers. Comparable as a corporate-funded free financial education platform, but embedded within a payments network rather than a bank holding company.
• Khan Academy (Personal Finance section): Major free online education platform with a personal finance curriculum co-developed with Bank of America. Comparable as a free, ad-free, school-aligned digital financial education resource, but operates at vastly broader scale across all subjects and geographies.

Direct peers

• MoneyMuseum: Swiss museum of money and financial history offering interactive exhibits and educational programs for schools and the public. Closely comparable to FLiP's interactive exhibition model in Vienna, with similar museum-as-classroom delivery.
• FoolProof: Financial literacy curriculum provider for schools focused on consumer protection and avoiding financial pitfalls. Directly comparable as a school-targeted, ad-free, mission-driven financial education provider, though US-based and curriculum-licensed rather than experience-led.
• iconomix: Swiss financial education foundation providing free, classroom-ready financial literacy content for Swiss schools. Directly comparable to FLiP as a non-commercial, central-bank-affiliated financial education provider targeting youth, and is already an FLiP partner organization.
• MyBnk: UK-based charity delivering financial education programs for young people aged 5-25 through direct workshops in schools. Comparable in mission, school-booking delivery model, and free-of-charge positioning, though UK-focused and without the museum/exhibition format.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC_GCehxfqCnj8SMSEzP3pig
• Facebookfacebook.com/financiallifepark
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/flip-erste-financial-life-park
• Instagraminstagram.com/financiallifepark

Compliance7 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about FLiP - Erste Financial Life Park