Shares - Social Stock Trading App

Introducing Shares: A Social Investment Platform

Shares is a newly established European startup aiming to integrate social networking principles into the realm of financial investment. The company has been quietly developing its platform for several months. Progress is rapid, with a team of 35 individuals assembled and $10 million secured in a pre-product seed funding round.

The Core Concept: Combining Trends

Shares has shared details regarding its trading platform and its differentiating factors. At its heart, the startup merges two significant contemporary trends within the financial landscape.

Mobile Stock Trading Gains Momentum

Firstly, stock trading is increasingly migrating to mobile devices. Several technology companies are designing user-friendly trading platforms to attract a new demographic of investors. This transition is well advanced in the United States, notably with Robinhood’s success in gaining millions of users.

Europe's Fragmented Market

However, the European market presents a different scenario. It remains fragmented, with a limited number of stock-trading applications gradually expanding their reach. Key players in this space include Freetrade, Trade Republic, Bitpanda, and, to some extent, Revolut.

Investment as a Social Activity

The second prominent investment trend is the growing social aspect of investing. The GameStop short squeeze in January 2021 serves as a prime example. Individuals are actively discussing stocks on platforms like Reddit, Discord, and Telegram groups.

Shares: Key Features and Accessibility

Shares will enable users to trade 1,500 stocks with no minimum investment requirements and zero trading fees. Fractional shares will be available, allowing investment to begin with as little as £1.00. This low entry barrier is designed to attract new investors, as a substantial portion of the population currently does not hold individual stocks.

The platform will adhere to all relevant KYC (Know Your Customer) and AML (Anti-Money Laundering) regulations.

Beyond Trading: Community and Education

The application will extend beyond a simple trading interface. Users will have the ability to engage in conversations with friends, learn from their peers, and access valuable market intelligence data. Shares will also provide educational resources covering investing, taxation, regulation, and compliance.

A particularly innovative feature will be the capacity to create customized stock indexes collaboratively with friends.

The Founding Team

The startup was co-founded by Benjamin Chemla and François Ruty. Chemla previously co-founded Stuart, a last-mile logistics company acquired by La Poste in 2017.

Funding and Partnerships

Shares has successfully raised $10 million in a seed round led by Singular. Valar Ventures, Global Founders Capital, and Red Sea Ventures also participated in this funding. Furthermore, the startup has established partnerships with strategic advisors, including André Mohamed, co-founder of Freetrade.

Looking Ahead

This represents a significant seed round for a fintech company that has yet to launch. With a team of 35, Shares demonstrates a commitment to rapid development. The reaction of online communities upon the app’s release will be a key factor to watch.

Update

(Updated September 28, 2021): A previous iteration of this article referenced “learning from experts.” It is important to clarify that other Shares users should be considered peers, not experts.

Shares has issued the following statement: “Shares App is a community powered investment platform that will facilitate users to interact with each other. The views and opinions expressed on Shares App are those of the authors and do not constitute investment advice.”