Stockbit Acquires Online Mutual Fund Marketplace Service "Seeds"

Stock investment app stockbit announced the acquisition of a majority stake in the service marketplace Seed's online mutual fund with an undisclosed value. Seeds are Stockbit's way of capturing potential mutual fund investors from all walks of life, especially millennials.

"We believe that mutual funds are the right product for Indonesians to start investing. Currently we are the majority holder in Bibit," said Stockbit Founder and CEO Wellson Lo to DailySocial.

Wellson added that his party is looking at the mutual fund market because of the many questions asked by Stockbit users, one of which is related to how to start investing. He believes that the majority of Indonesians are still new investors.

Bibit has obtained a license from the OJK at the end of 2018 as a mutual fund selling agent. Previously run by Juvenco Pelupessy, William Anwar, Hendy Djuarto, and Harry Dinata. Seeds are also supported by angel investors Christopher Angkasa for initial operations.

The founders are still at Bibit, but managing the application has now been completely handed over to Stockbit. Seed users are said to have touched 5 thousand people.

Seeds business model

Seeds are claimed to be different from similar services. The most highlighted from Seed is the use of the principles of Modern Portfolio Theory to design an optimal portfolio specifically for investors.

This principle was introduced by economist Harry Markowitz which has been proven and accepted by professionals and academics as a standard best practice for portfolio management.

"We are not just supermarket funds. But we also combine elements financial adviser and finance planning for all people."

According to him, this technology can dynamically adjust investor portfolios based on their individual personalities. Such as age, income, risk level, targets, and life goals.

Investors will also receive a portfolio consisting of low-cost mutual funds that have been diversified into deposits, bonds and stocks. The portfolio will be automatically rebalanced over time, so the investment will always be in line with the investor's goals.

Because it aims to encourage investors who come from all walks of life, Bibit opens up mutual fund investment opportunities starting from Rp. 10 thousand without commission fees. The registration process can be completed in minutes, without any physical documents.

Wellson emphasized that for monetization the company did not quote from customers, but from investment managers. However, Wellson is reluctant to reveal the target customers targeted for this year.

Currently, Bibit has collaborated with several investment management companies (MI), including Avrist Asset Management, Majoris Asset Management, Pinnacle Investment, and Sinar Mas Asset Management.

The company will continue to increase cooperation with MI companies so that customers have more choices. However, Wellson ensures that the MI that will be selected remains curated based on returns, expense ratio, AUM, and its reputation. This is intended to help customers start investing in mutual funds without having to choose again.

"We will continue to add MI partners. At the end of February, we are targeting 3-4 new MIs to join us."

Stockbit Plan

Regarding Stockbit's plan, Wellson said Stockbit has gathered 150 stock investors after entering its fifth year. The company will continue to add partnerships with securities companies from now on with Sinarmas Sekuritas only.

"It is possible for us to cooperate with other securities. We are still talking to others, about 15 maybe additional partners."

In the Stockbit application, users can discuss and analyze stocks, get data real-time related to stock trading, news from the stock market, monitoring the stocks being targeted, and so on.

Users can also buy and sell shares online. Stockbit quoted commission fees start at 0,15%.

Wellson was reluctant to explain about Stockbit's presence in Indonesia Malaysia. According to him, the team is still in the exploration stage and is being studied, so it is not considered the right time to be exposed.