„There is already a pipeline of additional brokerage clients“
The fintech Ginmon, which was founded in 2014 and specialises in digital wealth management, has become a fixture on the Frankfurt scene (the name Ginmon is derived from Japanese for „silver gate“, symbolising the pathway to financial independence).
Lars Reiner, who was still working for Deutsche Bank at the time, recalls in a conversation with Börsen-Zeitung that when he met his co-founder and longtime wealth advisor Ulrich Bauer, he thought „what Uli is doing with wealthy clients for their personalised investments, we should be able to do digitally as well, and make it accessible for smaller portfolios.“
The start-up was not set up as a hyperscaler, but one focused on gradual development. As a first-generation fintech, Ginmon was typically classified under the category of robo-advisors. However, Reiner points out that the term „robo-advisor“ is interpreted in various ways, and not all providers launched back then met the standards of truly delegated and automated wealth management.
„What we offer for the retail sector is a strategy that truly aligns with defined investment goals, where we actually make discretionary investments – and for that, we obtained a BaFin license for financial portfolio management after the founding“, notes Reiner. „In addition to risk optimisation, there's also a module for tax optimisation, where assets are sold via the algorithm to achieve the desired range.“
Springboard for B2B business
The in-house tech platform, Apeiron, has been continuously expanded and now encompasses all wealth management processes, including compliance, portfolio management, securities infrastructure, and wealth overview. The securities infrastructure serves as a springboard for a new B2B business: Since September, the neobank Bunq has been offering its more than 14 million customers a trading feature for stocks and ETFs, which is being rolled out in one European country after another – with Ginmon handling the brokerage and Upvest managing the custody.
There is already a pipeline of additional brokerage clients. Some knocked on the door after the Bunq partnership was announced.
Co-Pilot for wealth advisors
Reiner is proud that the offering was integrated into the Bunq app within seven weeks. „This can only work if the interfaces on both sides are functioning.“ For Ginmon, the B2B business is a second pillar that is now to be expanded. „There is already a pipeline of additional brokerage clients. Some knocked on the door after the Bunq partnership was announced. It's clear that share investor numbers are continuing to grow, and that has given investment platforms the confidence to follow up with modules for the securities business. And we, as a white-label provider, can serve this demand.“
Moreover, Ginmon aims to evolve into what Reiner calls a „personal finance coach.“ In other words, an app that will be used by both end customers and wealth advisors as a co-pilot to continuously optimize the management of personal finances and financial goals. Currently, Ginmon operates in the retail space with smaller portfolios. The company manages assets worth approximately 400 million euros, with about 25,000 customers using the platform. The revenue is in the single-digit million range. „Most importantly, we've achieved our goal of being profitable this year – after ten years in the market that should be achievable.“ Having become profitable on a monthly basis, the company now aims to sustain this.
Founders kept dilution low
Investors in Ginmon include venture funds like Passion Capital (also invested in the British neobank Monzo), family offices, and several experts from the Frankfurt banking scene. The founders and the team still hold about 50%. Advisory support comes from Wolfgang König, former Executive Director of the House of Finance at Frankfurt’s Goethe University. Reiner had developed investment concepts for the university foundation, which ultimately inspired him to venture into founding the company.
Filling the gap
According to Reiner, there is plenty of room for improvement when it comes to financial education, although digital offerings like Finanzfluss are improving the basics for self-directed investors. „But most investors don't fully stick to their strategy or haven't defined their goals sufficiently. We can fill that gap with a personalised investment strategy, by setting investment goals based on preferences and ensuring consistent implementation", he says.
Reforming the outdated company pension system could be a key way to effectively channel money for retirement.
Reiner feels disillusioned at the likely failure of the legislative package for the tax-advantaged retirement savings accounts. He believes this will be delayed by at least a year. „We could get this up and running in just a few weeks“, Reiner states. He suggests reforming the occupational pension system as well. That would be the big lever to properly channel money set aside for retirement. „I hope it works here like in the US with the 401(k) plans, where employer contributions automatically go into capital market-supported retirement savings,“ he says.
