"Finding good investments is like kissing frogs. Every now and then, one of them turns out to be a princess,” says Jan Sýkora, partner at WOOD & Company. Together with his partners, he has managed over three decades to transform a small brokerage into one of the most influential investment groups in Central Europe, managing assets worth €5.5 billion.
Unconventional Beginnings of a Lifelong Career
Few would have guessed that a young tour guide at Konopiště Castle would one day become a key figure in Central Europe’s financial world. Yet that is where Jan Sýkora, at just fifteen, began his professional path as a student worker in communist Czechoslovakia.
“Every Thursday and Friday I would go with the school and guide visitors at Konopiště,” he recalls of his early days. Within the walls of the historic site, in 1989, he met Richard Wood, a British banker who in 1991 founded WOOD & Company in Prague — the first firm in the region dedicated to investment banking.
“After completing my MBA, Richard Wood offered me a job. He became my first and, I hope, also my last employer,” Sýkora says today. Originally preparing to leave communist Czechoslovakia, his plans shifted after the Velvet Revolution — thanks in part to Wood’s offer to join him in building the first Anglo-Saxon style investment ‘bank’ in Central Europe.
Transforming a Traditional Brokerage House
When Richard Wood left the company in 1998, control was taken over by Sýkora together with Vladimír Jaroš, Andrea Ferancová, and Ľubomír Šoltýs. This group — later a trio after Ferancová’s departure in 2013 — of very different personalities gradually began reshaping the original brokerage into a fully fledged investment group.
Within the team, each partner brought unique strengths and areas of responsibility. While Sýkora’s domain is strategic decisions and spotting innovative opportunities, Vladimír Jaroš is known for his analytical thinking and executive management. Ľubomír Šoltýs excels at building long-term relationships and overseeing activities in Slovakia. This diversity has proven to be a significant competitive advantage.
WOOD & Company eventually evolved into what is known as the merchant banking model, inspired by the British tradition. “We introduced an approach that had been working in England for 40–50 years. It meant that the partners invested their own capital in ideas or transactions they truly believed in,” Sýkora explains.
The key element is the personal involvement of the partners in their own investments. “We never present anything to our clients that we, as partners, have not invested in ourselves,” Sýkora emphasizes. The English idiom ‘put your money where your mouth is’ captures this perfectly: if you really believe in something, commit your own money to it.
This approach creates a unique alignment of interests between the firm and its clients. “We can never guarantee outcomes 100 percent, but we can guarantee that we will do everything possible to make them as good as they can be. Our reputation and standing are at stake — and of course, so are our own investments,” Sýkora adds.
About WOOD & Company
WOOD & Company is a leading financial group with a strong position in the Central European market. Since 1991, it has been providing investment banking, asset management, and global securities trading services. Today, WOOD & Company manages assets exceeding €5.5 billion and employs around 500 people across 8 offices in Europe — Prague, London, Dublin, Milan, Budapest, Warsaw, Bratislava, and Bucharest — with additional representation in New York and Astana.
Fortune in Misfortune
The company’s history has also been marked by dramatic turns. In 2007, at the peak of the pre-crisis boom, half of the firm was sold to the Icelandic bank Straumur. “We have a great idea, we have a lot of capital, and on that island we don’t really know what to do with it,” recalls Sýkora, echoing the words of the Icelandic bankers eager to invest in Central Europe.
But when the global financial crisis struck in 2008, Iceland’s banking sector virtually collapsed. Straumur went bankrupt, yet for WOOD & Company the situation paradoxically turned into an advantage — the Icelanders had already paid for a 50 percent stake, but after their collapse the shares reverted to the original owners.
“They paid us, but then the crisis brought them down, so we simply took back that half of the company,” Sýkora explains. “With that capital, we started to rebuild our portfolio of participations.” This unexpected financial cushion allowed the firm, even amid the global crisis, to invest in a number of interesting projects ranging from medical technology to real estate funds.
Over time, WOOD & Company’s focus also evolved. From traditional securities trading and research, it expanded into IPOs, M&A advisory, the development of proprietary investment products, and private equity. The portfolio grew to include real estate funds, renewable energy funds, as well as investment tools tailored for retail clients.
A Bold Innovator in a Conservative World
Within WOOD & Company, Sýkora stands out as the representative of the firm’s more adventurous investment wing. While the company as a whole relies on conservative approaches and thorough analytics, he constantly pushes boundaries, seeking out unconventional opportunities.
“About 20 percent of my time I dedicate to venture investments, whether here in Central Europe, in the United States, or in Israel,” he explains. He describes his venture capital approach realistically: “The investment process is very simple. We choose projects where the personalities and teams behind them must impress us. They must command respect and inspire us in some way.”
Sýkora expects that around 70 percent of venture investments will eventually be written off, but believes that a handful of exceptional opportunities will generate sufficient returns to cover losses and deliver profit. “For it all to make sense, there must be many interesting plans and growth opportunities,” he adds.
Art, Technology, and Longevity
Unlike traditional bankers, Sýkora has a strong affinity for art and modern technologies. His portfolio includes investments in classic cars, valuable artworks, and 17th-century musical instruments.
“I’m very passionate about technology and longevity,” Sýkora admits, speaking of his interest in innovations that extend human life. He actively participates in Singularity University conferences and follows the latest biomedical trends.
His unorthodox approach is also evident in his investment in rare 17th-century violins, which WOOD & Company loaned to the Prague Philharmonic. “It was beautiful to see how the musicians lit up when they suddenly held an instrument they had only dreamed of,” he recalls. “Some even had tears in their eyes — it was truly moving.”
Sýkora also played a role in acquiring one of the largest collections of works by Alfons Mucha. For him, this investment brings not only financial return but also cultural and emotional depth. The collection has been divided into smaller parts and offered to select clients as an exclusive investment opportunity.
Returns Over Prestige
Under Sýkora’s leadership, WOOD & Company has embarked on several innovative projects. The best known is Portu, an online platform that democratizes investing and makes it accessible to the broader public. Unlike the firm’s main portfolio of investment products, which target qualified investors with higher capital, Portu is designed specifically for retail clients with smaller entry amounts.
“In the Czech Republic, people have 3 trillion crowns sitting idle in bank accounts. That’s essentially poorly invested money, because it isn’t invested at all. This is a tremendous opportunity for people to better manage their wealth — and for Central Europe to prosper as a result,” Sýkora argues.
Today, Portu manages assets of roughly €2 billion and has over 250,000 active clients. The results speak for themselves: Portu’s clients together have achieved returns of around €280 million.
In real estate, the group has built an impressive portfolio including Galerie Harfa, Centrum Krakov, as well as landmark properties in Bratislava and Warsaw. WOOD & Company’s real estate funds consistently deliver stable annual returns.
When building its real estate portfolio, the group rigorously applies a strategy focused on yield rather than prestige. “We don’t go after the most expensive trophy assets — we go after returns,” Sýkora explains.
This pragmatic approach has proven particularly resilient during crises: a diversified portfolio of office buildings, shopping centers, logistics, and residential properties with conservative debt levels has helped the firm weather turbulent times. WOOD & Company is also actively expanding its real estate activities through partnerships in development projects.
Currently, the firm is focusing on renewable energy and waste management, opening up new horizons. “Right now we’re completing a solar project in Romania, with a whole range of battery projects as well — the first already launched in Sweden,” he says. In Slovakia, the group is strengthening its presence in waste management, where Sýkora sees “tremendous potential.”
The Portrait of a Modern Investment Banker
Ján Sýkora represents a new type of 21st-century investment banker. On one hand, he stands firmly on the foundations of traditional investment banking; on the other, he is unafraid to experiment and explore opportunities where others see none.
His story illustrates something he often emphasizes himself — success is not about one-off gains, but about long-term vision and persistence. That’s why he is constantly searching for his “princesses among the frogs” — whether in innovative technologies, art, or sustainable energy.
And while many successful entrepreneurs today gradually step back from active professional life, Sýkora thinks quite the opposite. “I would very much like to work — or remain economically active — until the end of my life,” he says unequivocally. “And I truly wish that for everyone: to be able to do what they love.”