HONG KONG, Oct. 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Magnum Research Limited ("Magnum Research"), developer of digital wealth management platform AQUMON, announces that it has completed its follow-on Series Pre-B round of funding in October 2020. This marks the largest funding deal in the Asian digital wealth management space in 2020. This latest round of fundraising attracted investors Zheng He Capital Management, Lenovo Capital, Alibaba Hong Kong Entrepreneurs Fund, Wing Lung Family Office, and government backed Cyberport, bringing the total round size to USD 30 million (HKD 233 million). Notably, the Alibaba Hong Kong Entrepreneurs Fund has participated in all previous four investment rounds after it led Magnum Research's Series A in 2017.
Although 2020 is a perilous year for many industries, it has brought tremendous growth opportunities to the Digital Wealth Management industry. As an early investor of Lufax and Ping An Good Doctor (HKG: 1833), this round's lead investor Zheng He Capital Management demonstrated unique insights into the FinTech Space. Magnum Research is thrilled to partner with Zheng He Capital to continue its mission of making algorithm-driven investment advice more accessible.
The undeniable trend of Digital Wealth Management
Amid the pandemic, Magnum Research's Robo Advisor app AQUMON has shown more than 300% growth from the same period in 2019, in key metrics such as App Downloads, Account Openings, and Fund Injections. The digital nature of the app and the transparency of its investment methodology allowed AQUMON to thrive despite this period of extreme uncertainty.
As a leading solutions provider in the institutional space, AQUMON has partnered with more than 70 financial institutions across the region, covering more than 10 million end users. AQUMON's current clients include CMB Wing Lung Bank, AIA Hong Kong, Bank of China International, Guangzhou Rural Commercial Bank, China Resources Bank, and ChinaAMC. AQUMON observed a spike in demand for its digital wealth management solutions, as the pandemic depressed offline businesses for Insurance Companies, Banks, and Security Houses. Financial institutions are also increasingly receptive to cloud based solutions as part of an effort to reduce implementation cost.
In the China market with the recent issuance of fund investment advisory licenses numerous robo investment advisory products launched such as "Bang Ni Tou" and "Yi Qi Tou" forming a new wave of robo advisory-orientated investors. Magnum Research foresees that assets that are digitally managed will rise soon from less than 1% currently to about 5% within Asia's USD 20 trillion wealth management market. Eddie Law, Managing Director of Zheng He Capital, added: "We are looking for a platform to provide every middle class investor a well trusted and reliable Robotic Financial Advisor, and I believe AQUMON is the one"'
Democratizing Wealth Management
Technology powered platforms allow AQUMON to serve clients at minimal marginal cost, making it possible to service clients who were neglected by industry incumbents. With more than 100,000 downloads and a four year robust track record, AQUMON proved that its low-cost exchange traded funds (ETFs) investment portfolios are an attractive way to achieve global asset allocation. Despite the upheavals in the financial market, AQUMON's aggressive SmartGlobal portfolio still netted 10.01% year to date return as of October 16th 2020, after an impressive 20% return in 2019. AQUMON firmly believes that a scientifically diversified portfolio of selected asset classes, which are achieved with low cost instruments, is still the best long-term investment for most people.
Cindy Chow, Executive Director of Alibaba Hong Kong Entrepreneurs Fund ("AEF"), said: "AEF is pleased to see the continuous growth of Magnum Research. We recognize their business performance in the wealth management space by making our fourth round of follow-on investment, and look forward to seeing them in a leading position in FinTech sector. With our dedicated support to startups, we hope to keep contributing to the FinTech industry and the startup community in Hong Kong."
Plans for the future
"AQUMON's progress in the past five years have attested to the growth of the FinTech industry in Hong Kong," Kelvin Lei, CEO of AQUMON said. "We are based in Hong Kong and will continue to expand to other Asian countries, where we hope to launch our Robo Advisory services," he added. As an avid fan of technology and AI, CEO of Lenovo Capital George He remarked: "Combining its financial expertise and AI techniques, AQUMON is poised to propel the industry into a new phase of automation and democratization." He stated, "We are extremely optimistic about the future of AQUMON and will provide technical and human capital resources from the Lenovo Group to assist AQUMON in fulfilling its mission."
According to Magnum Research, the proceeds from this round of funding are going to be focused on the following areas:
About Magnum Research
Founded at and incubated by the Hong Kong University of Science & Technology in 2016, Magnum Research is a leading startup in the FinTech space. Magnum Research aims to make sophisticated investment advice cost-effective, transparent and accessible to both financial institutions and retail investors via the adoptions of scalable technology and automated investment algorithms.
Magnum Research is licensed with Type 1, 4 and 9 under the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) of Hong Kong.
