M1 Finance, the Chicago-based free smart money management platform for investing, borrowing and spending, has surpassed $1 billion in assets under management, according to a news release.
M1’s platform offers its more than 100,000 users free, automated investing in a custom portfolio with a fractional-share investment option; the ability to borrow against portfolios, with a base rate as low as 3.25%; and an FDIC-insured checking account integrated directly into M1, with a 1% cash-back debit card and up to 1.5% APY with an M1 Plus subscription.
M1, which launched in 2015, reached the $1 billion milestone by tripling assets managed on the platform in 2019, then accelerating that growth in January 2020, when assets grew by 21% with the addition of approximately 32,000 retail brokerage accounts—more than the approximately 25,000 retail brokerage accounts E*TRADE reported adding over the same time frame, M1 said.
The fintech firm asserts that it has not only built a better product than its competitors, but has been more capital-efficient with just $26.5 million in venture funding to date. In comparison, M1 said, Betterment, funded with $45 million, took 50 months to reach the same $1 billion AUM benchmark; Wealthfront, funded with $65 million, took 52 months; Acorns, funded with $93 million, took 48 months; and Stash, funded with $181 million, took 60 months.
“M1 Finance is built for the ‘engaged investor,’ someone who wants to manage their money and enjoys the convenience of an intelligent, automated, and low-cost platform,” said M1 Finance founder and CEO Brian Barnes. “Reaching $1 billion in assets on [the] platform so quickly validates our vision and is a testament to our amazing team’s focus on creating the smartest money-management experience.”