Stash is fresh off a $37mn series D that will see the company double in size and expand into other banking products; the company helps customers invest on behalf of their kids; the typical Stash customer is 29 and makes $50k a year, they help them get more control of their financial lives and invest; “We offer education for these users to help them build the right financial habits from day one, and that doesn’t just stop at investing,” said founder and president Ed Robinson to TearSheet. “Our mission is to help our users throughout their whole financial lives.” Source.
Stash is now letting customers invest in single stocks as it looks to broaden their product offerings; the company allows customers to by portions of shares for a minimum of $5; the new offering allows investors to invest in single companies as opposed to single strategies as they have with themed ETFs; the average investor on Stash is 29 years old and has a household income of $45,000 a year. Source.
The Wall Street Journal reports a new fundraising round led by DST Global will value the company at more than $5bn; the last valuation was about $1.3bn in 2017; popularity in the app has since jumped when it expanded to include cryptocurrencies bitcoin, ethereum and litecoin; since launching they have reached more than 4 million users and the new valuation will put them in the top 15 of highest valued private tech companies in the U.S. Source.
Betterment is looking to cater to their wealthier clients as they make portfolios more personalized; they launched the Betterment Flexible Portfolio which allows customers to shoes how assets weights are allocated; the typical Betterment client uses the asset weights set by the robo advisor, but this feature is meant to personalize the wealth clients portfolio; the move will try to help the company to position themselves as a full service firm that can cater to different levels of clientele, not just the younger investor. Source.
A new report by CB Insights shows European banks are placing strategic bets across wealth management, lending, payments, regulatory technology and also blockchain. The data was compiled from from 2012 to Q2 2018. Source.
One of the key pieces to the new MIFID II regulations is more transparency around investment fees; robo advisors have made their products more transparent and less complex, seeing that traditional advisors are now forced to be more transparent robo advisors might begin seeing business headed their way; before MIFID II investors incurred costs which were not required to be disclosed for buying and selling of shares, taxes, custody, slippage and more; implementation has been slow as incumbents try to adjust to the new regulatory requirements. Source.
Digital investment startup M1 Finance drooped their assets under management fees to zero in December; the company plans to make money through back end services and charges fees fopr paper statements, wire transfers and transferring to another brokerage; “It’s taking a similar approach to how the rest of financial services works,” CEO Brian Barnes said to TearSheet. “Banks make money on cash, assets, transaction revenue and the ability to cross sell — the more users, the more assets, and the more money M1 will make.”; the company current holds more than $100mn assets under management. Source.
Microinvesting fintech app Blast has come up with a new way for individuals to save money, video games; unlike past attempts where a bank has created a savings game, Blast’s idea is to use existing games like League of Legends or Counter-Strike: Global Offensive where players are rewarded for tasks completed; this new style of gamification is not trying to change the user but instead it looks to use the framework of a customers existing life; they are currently starting with a savings account but are seeking partnerships with financial institutions. Source.
UK based Pia, personal investment assistant, is testing their new aggregator platform to help people find the best digital wealth advisor; “We spent time speaking to people who said we need to launch a product that’s far more accessible, interesting and engaging for somebody that doesn’t have a lot of investing experience and don’t know where to start,” said co-founder James Mackonochie to TearSheet; the difference between Pia and a typical aggregator site is they will use an AI powered chatbot to customize the user experience. Source.
Bank of America’s digital investment product, Merrill Edge, has seen their assets under management grow with the help of branches to serve clients; Merrill Lynch has plans to add 600 new investment centers within Bank of America branches to help with this strategy; the combination of using technology and human advice for high net worth clients is a growing trend among bigger banks as they compete with new robo entrants. Source.