Acorns Australia, the micro-investing app, has reached a milestone of over a $100 million funds under management (FuM), highlighting the appetite among Australians for new ways to save and invest.
Since its launch in February 2016, Acorns Australia has steadily increased in popularity and now reaches approximately 1.25 per cent of the Australian population, with more than 300,000 users.
Beyond a simple savings app, Acorns Australia has added a number of new features over the past year including My Finances, which allows users to track spending habits, and the Emerald Portfolio, which provides a sustainable investment option.
George Lucas, Managing Director, Acorns Grow Australia said, “At Acorns Australia, we continue to listen to our users and consistently added new features to respond to their needs. This breadth of new tools, which provide a holistic overview of each individual’s financial journey, has driven rapid adoption of our app in the 18 months since our launch. We’re proud to be celebrating this milestone of $100 million FUM as it speaks to the impact Acorns is having on the lives of everyday Australians.
According to the EY FinTech Adoption Index, Australia is a world leader in the adoption of Fintech, well ahead of other markets such as Hong Kong, Singapore and the United States.
Acorns charges no brokerage fees and has one of the smallest minimum investment amounts in the industry. It is able to keep costs low because of the volume of Australians coming together to invest in the app.
Lucas said, “We are a customer-focused business and it’s because of our 300,000 strong Acorns community that we have been able to provide a service with zero transaction, switching or brokerage fees and keep our minimum investment extremely low. In turn, this creates greater access for all, democratising the power of wise investments.”
Acorns Australia’s steady growth in users and FUM has been largely driven by millennials, a demographic that takes to new technology quickly and apparently find it difficult to save, although this is not the case among Acorns Australia’s user base
Since inception, the average Acorns user has made 10.5% p.a (end of July 2017) on their investment after fees but before the $1.25 monthly subscription fee.
“This type of return goes a long way for our user base, who are finding it is the extra cover they need for short-term, medium-term and long-term savings goals,” Lucas added.