Binckbank (AMS: BINCK), a Dutch-based online bank and broker, is the latest asset management giant to jump onto the robo-advisor bandwagon through the purchase of a digital advice firm. The third-largest online bank in France today acquired Amsterdam-based robo-advisor Pritle for €12.5 million ($13.50 million), of which €7.5 million is in cash and €5 million is in Binckbank shares.
Dutch Fintech company Pritle is an online wealth manager which helps users to define and track their financial operations through automatic portfolio re-balancing and personalised recommendations. The service is a Cloud -based platform operating on Amazon Web Service. It constructs for its clients a portfolio, which consists of 16 funds provided by seven asset managers.
BinckBank, which has also a significant presence in the Netherlands, Belgium and Italy, said that the acquisition provides the momentum for the firm to expand its digital wealth management activities and geographic reach. As an online broker, BinckBank offers access to all major financial markets worldwide, and supports its customers with online asset management services.
Vincent Germyns, chairman of BinckBank, commented: “Together with Pritle, we bring a ‘state of the art’ online portfolio management, platform and a driven entrepreneurial team in-house. The addition of Pritle enhances BrinckBank’s online ‘discretionary portfolio management, with robo-advisory alongside existing discretionary management services. With the acquisition, BinckBank becomes one of the frontrunners in the wealth management industry in Europe.”
Thomas Bunnik, CEO and founder of Pritle, added: “I’m very proud of the achievements and drive of our international team since the launch of Pritle. This combined with the substantial client base of BinckBank gives us the opportunity to accelerate the expansion of our online wealth management services in Europe.”
