Stockbit raises Series A funding led by East Ventures

• Joining the round are Convergence Ventures, FreakOut, and several angel investors
• Is an app that integrates stock trading, information aggregation, and social networking

STOCKBIT, a stock investing app for millennials in Indonesia, announced on May 7 that it has secured an undisclosed amount of Series A funding led by East Ventures.

Joining the round are Convergence Ventures, FreakOut, and several notable angel investors. Existing investors including 500 Startups, Ideosource and Braavos Ventures also participated in the round. The investment will accelerate Stockbit mission to democratise capital market investment in Indonesia.

Founded in 2013 as a social network for stock investors, Stockbit has evolved into an app that integrates stock trading, information aggregation, and social networking.

Stockbit recently launched Bibit, a robo-advisor app that helps people build a personalised portfolio and invest in an optimal way. The apps also enabled investors to invest starting from as low as US$1 (RM4.13).

Stockbit chief executive officer Wellson Lo, commented, “Despite its lucrative return, first-time traders in Indonesia are still intimidated about making an investment in the capital market due to the lack of knowledge, lack of access to high-quality wealth managers, and high fees of professional advisory services. They often face difficulties in navigating around the fast-changing nature of the stock market. With Stockbit, we aim to make investment easy and optimal for everyone.”

“Previously, only the top 1% had access to good financial services. The industry unfortunately still lacks transparency and convenience for smart investing. With our technology, we provide high-quality financial products and services to everyone, no matter where they are or how much they make” said chief technology officer Johny Susanto.

According to chief operating officer Sigit Kouwagam, “As Indonesians improve their income and financial literacy, making the right investment has become increasingly important to reach their financial goals. Hence, reliable guidance and information becomes key for their investing journey, and our product works for investors like a GPS/Google Maps for travellers.”

According to IDX data, the number of retail investors in Indonesia grew 40% year-on-year in 2018. This growth was contributed mainly by the millennials, where 70% of the new investors in 2018 came from 21s-40s age group. Despite this rapid growth, only less than 1% of Indonesians have participated in the stock market so far.

East Ventures partner Melisa Irene, says, “Stockbit has successfully established its position as an important player in the capital market industry by creating a platform that consolidates important information required for investment decision-making. By doing so, Stockbit helps to reduce the information asymmetry between the market, professional traders and also newcomers.

“We are confident that the Stockbit team will be able to execute its mission to help Indonesia achieve higher participation of individuals to the capital market, in a way that helps them maximise their profit.”