FinTech startup StashAway has secured $2.15 million in pre-series A round from the Singapore-based office Rozario family. The startup plans to utilize the inflow of funds to “continually innovate the platform, and further advance the underlying investment strategies.”
Francis Rozario is the Founding Chairman and CEO of Asia Capital and Advisors Pte Ltd. He has served Citibank for over 28 years and was appointed by sovereign wealth fund Temasek Holdings, to lead its newly formed financial services subsidiary, Fullerton Financial Holdings. He will be seen joining StashAway’s Board of Directors, further strengthening the leadership team.
The total funds raised by the company now amount close to $2.71 million (S$3.78 million). Prior to this, StashAway had secured $516K (S$780K) in a seed round of funding led by its founding team and a few angel investors.
Founded in 2016 by Michele Ferrario (CEO), Freddy Lim (CIO), and Nino Ulsamer (CTO), StashAway intends to redefine wealth management, by combining an innovative institutional-level investing strategy with advanced technology. With the platform, it aims to provide an efficient, low-cost, and intelligent digital investment engine to empower individuals of all net worth to build their wealth. The company is planning to launch this summer with management fees ranging between 0.2% and 0.8%. It does not require a minimum balance before using the platform and the user can make unlimited withdrawals.
StashAway’s CEO and Co-founder, Michele Ferrario, in an official press statement, said,
The financial backing and partnership from Francis Rozario and his family supports us in our pursuit to build and scale StashAway powerfully and meaningfully in Singapore, and soon throughout APAC.
On a special note, this round, which is expected to close this week, also fulfills minimum capital requirements specified by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to obtain retail fund management license. The startup has already received in-principle approval for its Capital Market Services License for Retail Fund last month.
The proceeds from the round, which will close this week, will fulfill MAS’s regulatory capital requirements of SGD 1 million for StashAway’s retail fund management license, as well as go towards launching the investment service in Singapore, continually innovating the platform, and further advancing the underlying investment strategies. Also, the transaction and Rozario’s role as a director has been approved by MAS.
