StashAway crosses US$1b in assets under management

ROBO-ADVISER StashAway has attracted more than US$1 billion in assets under management in three-and-a-half-years.

The Singapore-based fintech said it is the first digital wealth platform in South-east Asia and the Middle East and North Africa (or MENA) to reach this milestone.

In a statement on Monday, the firm said one of the keys to attracting assets has been its ability to generate "strong returns", even through the market volatility of the last few years, which include two market corrections in 2018 and a market crash last year.

As at end-December 2020, StashAway's portfolios generated annualised returns ranging from 16.5 per cent for its highest-risk portfolio to 4.3 per cent for its lowest-risk one since its inception.

In 2020 alone, the returns ranged from 3.4 per cent to 21.9 per cent for those same portfolios, which have consistently outperformed their same-risk benchmarks.

StashAway co-founder and chief Michele Ferrario noted that cash in the bank is the firm's "biggest competitor". In Asia, 46 per cent of financial wealth is held in bank deposits, compared to 14 per cent in North America.

"That's why we've always focused not only on sophisticated investment principles and a great customer experience, but also financial education to help more people understand how to better manage and grow their wealth. This relationship with our clients and the public has been a key to our fast growth," he said.

The firm has a total paid-up capital of US$36.6 million. These funds have gone towards launching an income portfolio, a cash-management portfolio, as well as new market entries in Malaysia and the MENA region.