The robo-adviser believes that investing should be straightforward.
The robo-adviser believes that investing should be straightforward.
As one of the first robo-advisers in Europe, Moneyfarm keeps it simple, from fees to explaining investment portfolios.
Co-founders Paolo Galvani and Giovanni Daprà felt that the traditional wealth management industry was not meeting the needs of most people. It was first launched in Daprà’s native Italy as a way to combine modern technology with the old school world of wealth management. Daprà, who used to work at Deutsche Bank AG, is the CEO while Galvani serves as the chairman.
The firm has raised nearly $30m since it was founded in 2011.
The guiding principle of Moneyfarm is that investing should be simple and easy for families. That’s part of the reason the firm doesn’t charge any fees for investments under £10,000. Management fees over that vary from 0.60 per cent to 0.40 per cent per annum.
Financial services giant Allianz holds a minority stake in the platform and also has a robo-advice service for its UK employees through Moneyfarm. Other partnerships include Uber, which offers discounted ISA and pension products from Moneyfarm.
Launched in the UK in February 2016, the company also has offices in Milan and Cagliari. The company does not reveal how much it has in assets under management but nearly 70 per cent of its clients have increased their portfolio investments, Daprà said. Its customer base has grown an average of 16 per cent month-over-month.
Depending on how much customers invest, portfolios have either seven or 14 funds. Portfolios contain a mix of asset classes across various geographies and currencies. Like most robo-advisers, it invests in a variety of Exchange Traded Funds and are monitored by a team to make sure portfolios stay on track to meet investors goals and are rebalanced when necessary. The firm chooses ETFs based on the lowest annual expense ratios, minimal tracking error and liquidity.
Users can have a regular investment account or invest in an Individual Savings Account (ISA). The firm plans to offer a private pension plan or SIPP by the end of 2017.
This post is part of a series of articles on some of the top robo-advisers in the UK and Europe.
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