Dealflow | June 22, 2018

Grove raises $8 million to democratize financial planning

Jessica Pothering
ImpactAlpha Editor

Jessica Pothering

The San Francisco-startup wants to improve the accessibility and incentive structure of financial advising. Customers on its platform pay a flat $600-per-year fee to work with an advisor that can talk them through major financial decisions like buying a house or saving for retirement.

The company is looking to cater to customers who can’t or don’t want to pay thousands per year for a financial advisor, and whose needs aren’t met by free, chat-based services. Its current roster of clients also includes a number of professional athletes, TechCrunch reports.

  • Where AI falls short… Amid the surge in fintech startups relying on data and artificial intelligence, Grove isn’t the only financial startup reverting to a people-based model. Albert, a money management app that allows customers to chat with real financial advisors, recently raised $5 million.
  • One round, then another… Grove’s $8 million in funding was raised from Defy Ventures, Tusk Ventures, Bullish and Winklevoss Capital. It follows on the heels of a $2.1 million raise announced in February.