Investment advisory startup Fountain secures seed funding

Fountain​​ ​was​ ​launched​ ​only​ ​a​ ​few​ ​months​ ​ago​ ​by​ ​former​ ​Citigroup​ ​traders​ ​Dann Bibas​ ​and​ ​Nishil​ ​Parekh​ ​with​ ​a​ ​vision​ ​to​ ​digitize​ ​the​ ​advisory​ ​process​ ​and​ ​offer bespoke​ ​investment​ ​plans​ ​that​ ​revolve​ ​around​ ​people’s​ ​goals.​ ​​They​ ​will​ ​use​ ​this​ ​seed​ ​round​ ​to​ ​invest​ ​in technology,​ ​growth​ ​and​ ​work​ ​towards​ ​their​ ​FCA​ ​license

The​ ​idea​ ​came​ ​to​ ​life​ ​after​ ​various​ ​community​ ​events​ ​in​ ​cafes​ ​and​ ​co-working​ ​spaces​ ​about​ ​investing. Time​ ​and​ ​time​ ​again,​ ​people​ ​in​ ​their​ ​20s​ ​and​ ​30s​ ​reiterated​ ​that​ ​they​ ​wanted​ ​investment​ ​advice​ ​that would​ ​help​ ​them​ ​reach​ ​their​ ​goals:​ ​the​ ​keys​ ​to​ ​a​ ​first​ ​home,​ ​a​ ​dream​ ​wedding,​ ​or​ ​the​ ​trip​ ​of​ ​a​ ​lifetime.

Fountain​​ ​is​ ​tackling​ ​an​ ​important​ ​problem​ ​that​ ​was​ ​addressed​ ​by​ ​the​ ​FCA​ ​in​ ​2016,​ ​where​ ​the​ ​UK regulator​ ​identified​ ​the​ ​need​ ​for​ ​personalised​ ​advice​ ​to​ ​encourage​ ​retail​ ​investors​ ​to​ ​invest​ ​into​ ​ISAs, LISAs​ ​and​ ​Pensions.​ ​The​ ​FCA​ ​has​ ​coined​ ​this​ ​term​ ​as​ ​the​ ​​“financial ​ ​ advice ​ ​ gap” ​ ​ ​and​ ​believes​ ​new technologies​ ​can​ ​solve​ ​this​ ​consumer​ ​challenge.

The​ ​investment​ ​round​ ​was​ ​led​ ​by​ ​Patrick​ ​Day,​ ​chairman​ ​of​ ​​ ​Day​ ​Cooper​ ​Day,​ ​a​ ​specialist​ ​pensions provider.​ ​Commenting​ ​on​ ​the​ ​seed​ ​round,​ ​Patrick​ ​Day​ ​said: “Current​ ​financial​ ​advice​ ​offerings​ ​have​ ​struggled​ ​to​ ​keep​ ​pace​ ​with​ ​the​ ​rapidly​ ​changing​ ​needs​ ​of​ ​the smartphone​ ​generation.​ ​Fountain​ ​will​ ​bring​ ​a​ ​leap​ ​forward​ ​in​ ​the​ ​market.”

Other​ ​investors​ ​included​ ​Charlotte​ ​Street​ ​Capital​ ​alongside​ ​an​ ​impressive​ ​lineup​ ​of​ ​angels​ ​with experiences​ ​from​ ​Goldman​ ​Sachs,​ ​Societe​ ​Generale,​ ​Citigroup​ ​and​ ​Deutsche​ ​Bank. The​ ​amount​ ​raised​ ​cannot​ ​be​ ​disclosed​ ​at​ ​this​ ​point​ ​in​ ​time.

Dann​ ​Bibas,​ ​co-founder,​ ​is​ ​excited​ ​about​ ​the​ ​road​ ​ahead​ ​and​ ​commented​ ​“The​ ​future​ ​looks​ ​very​ ​bright​ ​for Fountain,​ ​we’re​ ​simplifying​ ​investing​ ​at​ ​a​ ​time​ ​when​ ​the​ ​UK​ ​consumer​ ​is​ ​embracing​ ​new​ ​technologies​ ​to grow​ ​their​ ​hard​ ​earned​ ​money”.