Beacon Venture Capital (Beacon VC), the corporate VC arm of Kasikornbank (KBank), announces Series A investment in Robowealth.
Thanapong Na Ranong, managing director of Beacon VC, said the firm focuses on investing in high-potential startups whose innovation and services can deliver real value to KBank customers through the creation of new financial products or services.
This is the first time Beacon VC has invested in a startup that already has a working relationship with KBank.
KBank and Robowealth, together with Lu International, launched the application FinVest in late 2020.
Robowealth is a startup that provides solutions for robo-advisory and mutual fund investment. The investment reinforces ongoing business collaborations that offer customers new investment tools and alternative investment products, he said.
Mr Thanapong said successful Thai fintech companies do not aim to disrupt financial institutions, but instead collaborate with them.
Chonladet Khemarattana, group chief executive of Robowealth, said the startup aims to liberalise the Thai financial industry by providing typical, efficient investment opportunities. Only 5% of Thais invest in mutual funds or stocks, he said. Robowealth wants to build a stable financial ecosystem through business-to-consumer and business-to-business schemes.
Robowealth has two applications authorised by the Securities and Exchange Commission: Odini and FinVest. Robowealth aims for every Thai to access investment opportunities, said Mr Chonladet.