Singapore robo-adviser Smartly folds business

SINGAPORE-BASED robo-adviser Smartly has ceased operations after fewer than three years in the business.

It said "intense" competition in the digital advisory space has led to this "difficult" decision, according to a note seen by The Business Times on Smartly's website.

"Thank you for investing with Smartly. We are writing to inform you that we have taken the difficult decision to cease Smartly's operations in Singapore.

"As you may know, competition in the digital investment advisory space is intense and maintaining a high service standard on the platform has been challenging. Despite initially contemplating core platform improvements, strategic corporate considerations by our parent company, VinaCapital Group (VCG), ultimately guided our decision," said the firm.

Smartly is a brand of VCG Partners which is regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). The firm said VCG has notified MAS of its decision to cease Smartly's operations.

Smartly said it is targeting to return related monies to its customers' bank accounts within three to six business days, though "slight delays" may occur due to "potential high transactions volume".

It remains unclear the current size of Smartly's assets under management, or its customer base. According to its pricing plan put up online, customers pay an annual management fee of between 0.5 per cent and one per cent per year, as well as the underlying exchange-traded fund (ETF) fee charged by the ETF provider of between 0.1 per cent and 0.25 per cent per year.

It said customers with questions relating to their accounts can contact Smartly at support@smartly.sg or via telephone at 6332 9081 / 6332 9084. Calls made by The Business Times to contact Smartly on Wednesday morning were unsuccessful.