Start-up robo-advice service launched

A fintech start-up has released a hybrid robo-advice service that it says will be able to compete with traditional financial institutions.

Start-up robo-advice service launched

Eliot Hastie

Last Updated: 21 March 2019 Published: 21 March 2019

Maqro, a technology company for investors, has created a solution that will allow access to systematic algorithmic investment strategies online and is complemented with understanding and advice from a real person.

Co-founder Conrad Song said the innovation was ground breaking because robo-advice's strength in not having a person was also its weakness.

"For investors, it's a transparent, cost-effective way to get high-quality, unbiased advice delivered by a real human," he said.

"For advisers in a rapidly changing and increasingly competitive marketplace, it's an innovative solution they can white-label and scale to suit their business."

Maqro is hoping to enter the $500 billion robo-advice market and is currently seeking to raise $2.2 million in investment funds to help expand its offerings and products.

Mr Song said that robo-advice was a rapidly growing market and was one of the most exciting applications to come out of AI.

"By being able to gather huge amounts of information together more effectively than a human adviser - such as years of market movements, fund performance, product features and more - robo-advice is one of AI's most exciting applications," he said.

The firm has already raised $500,000 through investors and is run by Mr Song and Hue Frame, who have been joined on their advisory board by experts on the market who have worked at places like CommBank and JP Morgan.