Singapore-based WeInvest expands to UAE

WeInvest, a Singapore-based digital wealth services and robo-advisory firm, is expanding into the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to serve the Middle East market.

A company spokesman told The Business Times that the region is seeing a digital revolution across industries and presents great opportunities for digital wealth providers.

He said: “Most banks and financial institutions have recently identified the need to provide a digital wealth experience to their customers. Thus, this is a huge opportunity for digital wealth providers such as WeInvest.”

The spokesman added that wealth penetration within banks in the Middle East has been low for private and retail banking customers. This is due to limited access to global investment products or strategies through the local banks, and the lack of investment advice which retail customers desire, he said.

WeInvest’s office will be located in the Dubai International Financial Centre.

“Our association with DIFC has been of vital importance to us and being part of their accelerator programme in 2017 only escalated our decision to expand there. The expansion into the UAE is timely with the region opening up to more business opportunities,” said Bhaskara Prabhakara, chief and co-founder of WeInvest. The company is also the only Singapore-based startup chosen to be part of the Dubai International Financial Centre accelerator programme in 2017.

WeInvest’s entry into UAE follows its expansion into Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand.

When asked about the startup’s expansion strategy, the company spokesman said: “WeInvest aims to cover the top five to six financial institutions such as banks, brokers and insurance companies, in Asia and the Middle East.”