CASUAL TRADING APP BUX RAISES $6.9 MILLION TO FURTHER ACCELERATE IMPRESSIVE GROWTH
Berlin / Munich based Holtzbrinck Ventures invests in FinTech startup that aims to open up the financial markets to everybody
London - February 17th, 2016: BUX, the trading app that makes trading and investing in the financial markets accessible to everybody, has closed a third financing round of €6 million to further accelerate its impressive growth across Europe.
Since launching over a year ago, BUX has welcomed over 350,000 users and is available in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Germany and Austria. In these countries the company has managed to open up the financial markets to an entirely new audience: 60% of “BUXsters” are younger than 34 years old, and 78% of them have little to no previous trading experience*. Therefore first time traders begin trading with virtual money in order to allow them to discover the stock market in a risk-free way. After that, they can choose to convert to real money. In total BUX has processed €2.7 billion in total trade value.
Lead investor of this round was Berlin / Munich based Holtzbrinck Ventures, one of the leading independent European funds for startup businesses. They have played a key role in helping successful Internet startups like HelloFresh, Groupon, Audible and Seatwave grow.
Holtzbrinck Ventures’ participation endorses BUX’s mission to disrupt and re-invent traditional brokerage for a new generation:
“BUX provides access to the financial markets to a generation that grew up in the age of growing distrust of financial organizations. They’re currently disengaged with the traditional concept of investing and trading. BUX successfully appeals to these ‘Millennials’. They do so by making share trading extremely straightforward, by adding social and game elements to make trading more attractive and educational and by offering trading in a very responsible way.”
Nick Bortot, CEO of BUX explained:
“Entering the German market is an important step in our European expansion. That’s why we’re very excited to have top tier German Venture Capital firm, Holtzbrinck, on board as one of our main shareholders. In addition to the European roll out, the funding will help us further improve our customer experience. Since launch, the BUX app has grown beyond trading and has turned into a social platform where users share thousands of tips and tricks every day. We plan to continue to add new and improved trading and social features for our community.”
Other investors participating in this round are FinTech VC Orange Growth Capital and Velocity Capital, who both have already participated in earlier BUX funding rounds.
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About BUX
WHAT IS BUX?
BUX is a trading app that makes playing the markets super easy and relatively safe for everybody. You can now experience the excitement of the stock exchange, even if you don’t have tons of trading experience or wads of cash to spend. BUX brings the fun into finance and makes stocks trading accessible for everyone.
WHY DID WE START BUX?
Most people think the world of finance is super-complicated and mind-numbingly boring. But at BUX we know that the financial markets are, in fact, the most important, the biggest, the most influential and the most exciting game in the world. The financial markets are inseparably connected to international business, politics and our world economy, which makes trading stocks actually something super-interesting to do. But go and try to get this point across over a few drinks at a party: before you’ll know it, you’re the one standing in the corner, all by yourself, sadly trying to maintain a posture by nibbling on a party snack. We feel this needs to change. Now, finally, technology enables us to create an app which opens the markets for everyone and makes trading stocks as easy as liking a post on Facebook. Whereas traditional finance is as boring and elitist as classical music, BUX rocks the world of finance and let’s everyone experience how exciting trading stocks actually is. Enjoy the party!
ABOUT THE COMPANY
Four Dutch entrepreneurs founded BUX: Egbert Pronk, Nick Bortot, Robbert Bos, and Joost van de Wijgerd. BUX’s CEO Nick Bortot co-founded BinckBank, with over 550 employees, the largest online discount broker in the Netherlands, listed on the Euronext stock exchange. From the headquarters in Amsterdam, BUX sets out to rock the global world of finance. The team currently consists of 35 employees that have rolled out BUX in the Netherlands, United Kingdom, Germany, Austria and Italy, with plans to expand globally. BUX has received the honour of being listed in the Fintech50 2015 – the annual list of Europe’s most promising fintech start-ups. Holtzbrinck Ventures, Orange Growth Capital, Velocity Capital and Initial Capital have funded BUX. BUX’s trading partner is Ayondo Markets Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and is covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).