Kristal.AI, a digital private wealth management platform based in Singapore, has raised over $10 million for its pre-series B funding round.
The latest funding round has seen continued participation from the founders, existing investors such as Chiratae Ventures, Sanadhya family, Desai Family Office and brings in new investors such as Stride Ventures and other HNWIs, bringing total funding to date to more than US$27 million, Kristal.AI said in a statement.
According to the statement, this is incremental to its previous funding round of $6.3 million back in March 2021 and reflects growing investor confidence in Kristal and its plans to become a global player.
The new tranche of funding will be used to support expansion into newer markets and drive product and platform innovation to deliver wealth-management solutions at scale.
This latest milestone caps what has been a dynamic period of growth for Kristal.AI and follows another recent significant achievement of the firm, where it tripled its assets under management (AUM) to cross the $1 billion mark in August 2022 and grew its user base year-on-year by
over 50 percent.
“We are excited to announce this fresh funding round, which is a display of investor confidence in our business”, said Asheesh Chanda, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Kristal.AI.
“The mass affluent and emerging high-net-worth individual (HNWI) investor class in Asia continues to grow exponentially, with total financial assets in Asia set to hit $68 trillion by 2025,
“This funding round will be crucial in helping us continue to innovate, digitalize, and tailor our solutions for current and prospective clients,” he added.
He also said the firm remains committed to elevating the service delivery of its hybrid investment advisory that combines the high tech of artificial intelligence and the high touch of human experts, and with the new capital infusion.
Alongside this funding announcement, Kristal.AI also announced its application for an ADGM license for expansion into the United Arab Emirates. The license is subject to approval by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA).
“We are thrilled to have initiated our journey in the Middle East with the application for an ADGM license,” said Gaurav Rustagi, Chief Growth Officer, Kristal.AI.
“The region has at least $35 billion AUM and is home to a large population of mass affluent and HNWIs. Over the years, the UAE has steadily built its reputation as a wealth management hub bolstered by factors like an open economy, strict compliance and governance, progressive regulatory environment, a welcoming environment for businesses and an abundance of talent,” he added.
Kristal is a digital-first private wealth advisory and fund management group, serving mass affluent clients globally. The firm specializes in advising clients on highly personalized investment portfolios.
It has one of the most comprehensive investment product suites comprising over 200 premium funds such as private equity/ venture capital funds, structured notes etc., bringing institution-grade products to individual investors.
Some of the most difficult to access products, such as pre-initial public offering (IPO) deals, are made available by Kristal private market, a platform for both demand and sell sides to enable direct and exclusive deals. Accredited investors can access them at a fraction of the investment minimums required by private banks.
Other offerings by the group include discretionary mandate, digital family office, variable capital company, and robo-advisor portfolios.
Established in 2016, Kristal.AI has grown to be a 180+ strong team of professionals located across Singapore, Hong Kong, India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
It is operating in Singapore under a Capital Markets Services license regulated by the MAS. It is also licensed and operational in Hong Kong and India.
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