Allianz Group’s digital investment unit, Allianz X, and Power Financial have agreed to co-invest CAD100m (£58.8m) in Wealthsimple, a Canadian fintech firm that offers online investing service and commission-free trading app.
Image: Allianz X, Power Financial to invest £59m in Wealthsimple. Photo: Courtesy of Peter Fertig/Pixabay.
The Canadian fintech firm is set to use the capital to deepen its customer relationships by strengthening its existing services and new product offerings, along with evolving its B2B platform for advisors and institutions.
After being launched in September 2014, Wealthsimple claims to have made investing more accessible via low fees and digital tools, including its Wealthsimple Invest, a managed portfolio service, and Wealthsimple Trade, a $0-commission trading app.
Allianz X invests in digital companies around the world and its portfolio includes firms such as Lemonade, micro-insurer BIMA, and ride hailing companies GO-JEK and SafeBoda.
Allianz X CEO Nazim Cetin said: “As a digitally-enabled financial services provider with a strong customer focus, Wealthsimple can complement Allianz’s business in a number of areas.
“This investment underlines our commitment to truly digital companies and is an excellent addition to our portfolio. We look forward to collaborating with Wealthsimple in our digital wealth management ecosystem.”
Wealthsimple chairman Paul Desmarais III said: “Bringing Allianz into this investment round is a landmark transaction in Canadian Fintech. The partnership between Wealthsimple, Portag3 Ventures and the Power group since the founding of the company in 2014 is unique.
“We believe the coming together of large incumbent companies that understand how to build global asset managers with innovative, digital-first companies is the future of financial services.”
Recently, Allianz X announced that it will acquire Finanzen.de, a European B2B online marketplace for high-value consumer traffic in insurance and financial services sectors.
The Berlin-based fintech uses a proprietary platform that connects lead generators and buyers in real time. It will also act as an online broker for some insurance products in Germany and Switzerland.
In February, Allianz X received additional funding which increased its fund to €1bn (£881m). The funding will be used for investing in digital companies across the globe that are strategically relevant for Allianz Group.