Indonesia's retail investor boom sends Pluang into another US$55m round, led by Accel
JUST 4 months after announcing a US$55 million fundraise, Indonesian investing platform Pluang on Wednesday (Jan 12) said it has raised another US$55 million in a follow-on round led by global venture capital (VC) firm Accel.
VCs have been pouring money into these digital platforms amid the rise of retail investors in Indonesia. Online stock trading platform Ajaib in October last year became the fastest startup in the country to hit unicorn status. The company is already the second-most active brokerage in Indonesia, according to 2021 data from the Indonesia Stock Exchange.
Pluang pulled in several individuals based outside of Indonesia in its latest round. Its backers now include Trung Nguyen, Andy Ho, Aleksander Leonard Larsen and Jeffrey Zirlin - the co-founders of Vietnam's Sky Mavis, which developed the popular play-to-earn blockchain game Axie Infinity.
Jannick Malling and Leif Abraham, the co-CEOs of Robinhood rival Public.com, also joined the round, as did UK neobank Monzo's chief operating officer Sujata Bhatia, Mexican neobroker Flink's CEO Sergio Jimenez, crypto platform FalconX's CEO Raghu Yarlagadda, Learnvest founder Alexa von Tobel, and Daniela Binatti, the co-founder of Brazilian banking and payments platform Pismo.
Other investors include Mantis, the early-stage venture fund of pop duo The Chainsmokers, BRI Ventures, Gold House, and existing investors Square Peg, Go-Ventures, UOB Venture Management and Openspace Ventures.
Pluang began by allowing Indonesian retail investors to put micro-investments in gold, then broadened its offerings to mutual funds, global stock indices and cryptocurrencies. The company is launching a feature that allows users to invest in fractional US single stocks.
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"This trend of mobile-first investors trading across multiple asset classes is one of the most exciting global fintech trends Accel has been investing behind," said Accel partner Andrew Braccia in a statement.
Claudia Kolonas, who founded Pluang in 2019 with co-CEO Richard Chua, believes its multi-asset class platform sets it apart from its competitors. Ajaib's core offering is in stocks trading, while Bibit and Bareksa are mutual funds platforms.
"I cannot emphasise enough how important diversification is for reducing risk, especially when you are a beginner or first-time investor," Kolonas told The Business Times. Pluang's users "can seamlessly choose and switch between different products not only to reduce risk but also improve the risk-adjusted returns to support their financial goals," she added.
The company said more than 4 million people have registered on its platform - it did not disclose how many are active users - and that from January 2020 to November 2021, monthly transacting users grew 22 times and the number of users with an active balance grew 28.5 times.
Over 80 per cent of Pluang's users are under the age of 30, with an even balance between males and females. Kolonas said many users are first-time investors, but did not give a specific figure.
The platform does not charge its users but makes money from spreads and the management fees it charges for the mutual fund offerings, she added.
Similar to its peers, the startup has tapped the wide distribution network of Indonesia's consumer tech unicorns. Users can access Pluang's products through integrations on Gojek, Tokopedia, Bukalapak and e-wallet Dana.
READ MORE: Indonesian investment platform Pluang closes US$55m round
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