Amazon.com Inc. has made its maiden investment in India’s wealth management sector, participating in a $40 million round by fintech startup Smallcase Technologies Pvt.
The Bangalore-headquartered startup said the round was led by Faering Capital Pvt and also joined by another new investor, PremjiInvest, the private investment office of technology billionaire Azim Premji. Existing backers including Sequoia Capital India and Blume Ventures also participated, bringing the total capital raised by the firm to over $60 million.
Smallcase was founded in 2015 by three friends Vasanth Kamath, Anugrah Shrivastava and Rohan Gupta, all alumni of the premier Indian Institute of Technology in Kharagpur. It’s riding an unprecedented pandemic-fueled retail investor boom in India’s equity markets and its user base has doubled to more than 3 million users in the past year.
Smallcase improves digital access to capital markets by offering weighted portfolios of stocks and exchange traded funds from in-house licensed professionals as well as access to independent investment managers, brokerages and wealth platforms. It has tie-ups with a dozen brokerages in the country, and distributes its products via broker partners, wealth advisers and offline agents.
“A new set of younger, high risk-taking investors are participating in the capital markets and they want complete transparency,” Kamath, the chief executive officer, said in a video interview. “We build simpler, low-cost investment products, each reflecting a theme, a strategy or objective.”
In the past year, Smallcase has more than doubled the volume of orders, Kamath said. It has 200 employees, with nearly two-thirds in technology and product engineering.
The capital will be used to expand its investment products in asset classes like mutual funds, global equities and bonds. The startup wants to grow its technology platform and further build its distribution network.
[More: What financial advisers can learn from Amazon]
The investment in Smallcase opens a new frontier for Amazon in wealth management. The e-commerce giant has previously invested in other fintech startups in India, including the insurance player Acko General Insurance Ltd., as well credit provider Capital Float.
The J.C. Flowers-backed investor’s latest RIA deal adds five next-gen leaders to the Massachusetts firm’s ownership ranks
Meanwhile, UBS and Raymond James talk recruiting.
Elderly clients lost about 70% after a South Carolina advisor held inverse ETFs for 798 days on average, the regulator says
The new chat feature is expected to launch in 2027.
Vanguard finds auto portability curbs cash-outs, while PensionBee data show most automatic rollover IRAs lose value within a year
Knighthead Life entered the market with a competitive MYGA. A strong launch earned advisor confidence and paved the way for FIAs.
As AI makes financial information more accessible than ever, Lana Hock explains why human judgment, trust, and empathy remain the qualities clients value most in a financial advisor
