by RAHIMI YUNUS/ pic by StashAway.com.my

ONLINE trading investment platform StashAway has raised US$12 million (RM49.5 million) in a Series B funding led by Eight Roads Ventures.

Asia Capital and Advisors Pte Ltd, the private equity firm led by Francis Rozario and Aaron Rozario, who have invested in the company’s Pre-Series A and Series A funding, also participated for the third consecutive round.

This latest financing has brought StashAway’s total funds raised to US$20.4 million to date.

Co-founder and CEO Michele Ferrario said the support from Eight Roads Ventures will boost the company’s product development and will be used to enter new markets.

“The financial backing from Eight Roads Ventures, alongside the continued support of Asia Capital and Advisors, will accelerate additional investment product development for our clients in Singapore and Malaysia, while also supporting new market entry expansion throughout the Asia-Pacific region and doubling down on financial education content development and distribution,” Ferrario said in a recent statement.

StashAway country manager for Malaysia Wong Wai Ken said the company will further invest in technology to offer more features such as the direct debit function that allows Malaysian investors to make automatic recurring deposits.

Singapore-based StashAway was the first robo-advisor in Malaysia to be awarded the Capital Markets Licence by the Securities Commission Malaysia in October 2018.

Eight Roads Ventures managing partner for Asia Raj Dugar said the South-East Asian market offers great potential to low-cost digital investment managers.

“StashAway is a regional pioneer in this sector, and we are impressed by the management team’s vision and execution. Their transparent pricing, robust investment methodology and ease of use make for a compelling customer proposition,” Dugar wrote in a statement.

He said the venture capital firm is looking forward to supporting StashAway to improve the way individuals manage money and build wealth.

StashAway said Dugar will join the company’s board of directors, bringing over 15 years of leadership experience, including tenures at The Carlyle Group and Goldman Sachs Group Inc.