Mumbai-based wealth management startup Dezerv has raised $21 million in a Series A funding round led by Accel Partners with participation from existing investors Matrix Partners India and Elevation Capital.
Founded in April 2021 by former IIFL wealth managers Sandeep Jethwani, Vaibhav Porwal, and Sahil Contractor, Dezerv said it was initially invite-only platform but now it has opened access to all working professionals in the country to help them invest like ultra-wealthy people.
The startup allows working professionals to invest as low as Rs 50,000 through its online platform. The startup also said it makes expert-led investing available to professionals using its unique Integrated Portfolio Approach (IPA) which is built on decades of investing expertise and modern portfolio science.
Dezerv, which is now valued at $100 million, also offers direct bonds to its investors and deals for angel investing. The startup said it will utilize the raised capital on strengthening the user experience, introducing new investment opportunities, and growing the talent pool.
“This fundraise is one more step towards our vision of delivering real investment expertise to India’s working professionals. The need for better investment outcomes has never been felt as acutely as in the current volatile environment. The overwhelming response in our early days coupled with this fundraising further strengthens our mission,” said Sandeep Jethwani.
The startup claims to have catered to over 100,000 working professionals on its platform and has amassed assets of around Rs 800 crore. It is now targeting invested assets on the platform to hit $1 billion in the next 12-18 months.
“Indian wealthtech is at a tipping point, with an influx of new affluent investors over the last few years, who now need expert advice to navigate uncertain markets. dezerv.’s expert led platform spans across asset classes and provides custom solutions, to create a portfolio for long term investors. The team is off to a fast start, growing AuM 7x over the last 6 months”, said Vikram Vaidyanathan, Managing Director at Matrix India.
Prior to the current round, Dezerv had raised $7 million in a seed funding round in September last year, co-led by Elevation Capital and Matrix Partners India, with participation from investors such as Whiteboard Capital, Nath Ventures, and Blume Founders Fund.
Commenting on the investment, Abhinav Chaturvedi, Partner at Accel Partners said “We’re excited to partner with dezerv. in their journey to provide investment expertise to working professionals in India. As the information asymmetry increases when it comes to investing and financial products, the need for domain experts managing money and delivering sustainable returns has only increased. We believe that the team at dezerv. with decades of experience is best equipped to fill this gap that working professionals in India face.”
Notably, The startup has recently received an AIF and PMS license to broaden the investment options available to its users.
Source @Indianstartupnews
