StashAway taps rising interest in alternative assets

Singapore

DIGITAL wealth manager StashAway has launched access to private equity (PE) deals and cryptocurrency investments on its platform, with low minimum investment sums, amid rising interest in alternative asset classes.

Venture capital (VC) and angel investment deals will also be available through the offering, called StashAway Reserve. Only accredited investors can participate.

"High net worth and ultra-high net worth individuals make up 20 per cent of our assets under management (AUM), and the demand is growing exponentially each month," said Michele Ferrario, co-founder and CEO of StashAway.

Clients can get exposure to 6 to 10 funds managed by PE and VC firms including Carlyle, KKR and Insight Partners, with investments starting from as low as US$50,000.

PE and VC minimum investment sums typically start anywhere from US$250,000 to US$1 million per fund, said StashAway.

The company has also tied up with XA Network, an angel investment network, to provide access to early-stage tech startups in South-east Asia. StashAway said clients can start angel investing from US$20,000 a year, and can expect to invest in 10 to 20 startups per year.

XA Network's members include executives from Google, Grab, Gojek, Lazada and Netflix. They have invested in companies such as plant-based food maker NextGen Foods, software-as-a-service startup Lummo (formerly BukuKas) and fintech startup Spenmo.

StashAway has also built a feature that invests between 1 and 12 per cent of a portfolio in cryptocurrency. Clients can get exposure to Bitcoin and Ethereum through 2 institutional-grade exchange-traded funds.

StashAway operates in Singapore, Malaysia, the Middle East, Hong Kong and Thailand. The company crossed US$1 billion in assets under management as at January 2021.