Investtools: Vórtx fintech invests in startup that helps manage R$122 billion

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Vórtx fintech, which offers infrastructure for the financial market, has just invested in Rio de Janeiro-based company Investtools, which develops technology solutions for over 40 Brazilian management companies, totaling more than R$122 (US$22.4) billion in assets under management.

The value of the transaction has not been disclosed, but Vórtx has a 20% stake in the startup and may hold up to 25% of the business in the future. The investment comes one month after the fintech raised R$190 million from the American private equity manager FTV Capital.

Founded 10 years ago in Rio de Janeiro, Investtools has management systems that help managers such as Oceana Investimentos and Leblon Equities control the flow of assets and do background checks on clients. The company operates in a SaaS [software as a service] model and has monthly fees ranging from R$8,000 to R$30,000.

The startup’s business is in surplus and has been growing at a rate of 50% per year since 2015. Vórtx’s investment comes to leverage the operation’s growth and take advantage of business synergies. “Today, managers need to contract financial and technology services separately. With our new partnership, we will be able to offer our product within the Vórtx portal,” says David Gibbin, CEO of Investtools.

For Vórtx, being able to offer the startup’s solutions on its platform is part of its strategy of becoming a “capital markets AWS”, offering managers a complete solution for opening and managing funds.

“This is already Vórtx’s third investment in this sense, in 2019 we acquired Vorasys, formerly BCINf, integrating framing, pricing and risk functionalities into the platform, and earlier this year we made an investment in Parfin, to integrate functionalities that make it possible for its funds or managed portfolios to invest in crypto-actives,” says Juliano Cornacchia, Vórtx’s CEO and co-founder.

Launched in 2016, Vórtx has more than 50 clients, including Pátria and Credit Suisse, R$125 billion of assets under custody, and a team of about 160 employees. The exact annual revenue has not been disclosed, but it has now surpassed the R$100 million mark.

With the partnership with Investtools, the company hopes to solidify itself in the liquid market and help the investee enter the structured market. “The fund industry we are trying to revolutionize has invisible obstacles. Every day a new asset comes up, but the back office is analog. It’s like having a Ferrari running on a dirt road,” says Cornacchia.

Source: Exame

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