After more than a year of testing and fine-tuning their values-based investment platform Moniflo, Georges Bock and his team release the application to the public. The founder and CEO tells us more about the company’s ambitions, use of the DLT law, and what exactly values-based investing means.
In 2022, you first opened Moniflo, a values-based investment platform, to a select pool of testers and today you’re officially launching. What were some of the most important learnings you implemented from that period?
One of our significant takeaways was the smooth functionality of our app. Launching a new project always carries the concern of potential oversights or substantial issues hindering user onboarding. Fortunately, in our case, the team performed exceptionally well, and everything ran seamlessly.
While our app proved effective, we acknowledge the pursuit of perfection is ongoing. We are committed to continually enhancing our app for our community. A noteworthy observation was the need to optimize our onboarding process promptly. We recognized the importance of making it easier and more efficient for users.
On average, if a user has all supporting documentation at hand, he should be able to onboard in 10 to 12 minutes.
Georges Bock, founder and CEO at Moniflo.
Moniflo allows users to filter funds by financial as well as sustainability, social impact, and personal values criteria. Who certifies and defines these criteria as such?
Before launching, we analyzed over 30 data providers and met with more than 15 of them in person or over the phone to gain an understanding of how they operate and to ensure that the data was as accurate and useful as possible. We decided to use the data and the methodology of Clarity AI a service provider specialised in sustainability screening of companies.
Instead of focusing on abstract notions like ESG ratings, funds are analyzed along the 16 UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) for example: Sea Protection, Clean Energy as well as 19 potential exclusion criteria like no coal or no genetic engineering. We have included the full list at the end of this article.
We maintain close contact with Clarity AI and have gained insight into their methodology and engagement. Constantly reviewing and improving the data is the focus.
Your platform is directed at the “DIY clientele” and gives them access to 200 sustainable UCITS (Undertakings for Collective Investments in Transferable Securities) funds to choose from. Why did you create the platform for them and how many users do you hope to gain by the end of 2024?
Our commitment to making values-driven investing accessible extends to everyone, without exception. Moniflo is designed to cater to both novices and experienced investors, ensuring a user-friendly experience from selecting funds to monitoring impact and performance.
We aim to simplify the entire process, recognizing that change requires collective effort and that investment opportunities should be made available to everybody. We have designed our commercial offer to align our long-term interest with the long-term investment interest of our users. We believe Moniflo has the best financial offer right now for users who are investing in actively-managed funds.
While we don’t disclose specific numbers publicly, our aspiration is to welcome as many individuals as possible to join Moniflo.
The essence of Moniflo lies in the belief that money is a potent force for economic change. The more people we have investing in companies making positive contributions to the world, the greater impact we can collectively achieve.
Georges Bock, founder and CEO at Moniflo.
What average returns can users investing in funds based on the UN’s 16 SDGs expect?
It is a myth that sustainable funds (SFRD articles 8 and 9) perform less well than “normal” funds. ESMA reveals in an annual study the performance of EU funds (UCITS). According to ESMA the the net performance over three years, from 2020-2023, of all fund types for ESG Funds is 3,5% versus only 0,8% for non ESG funds. The same is true for all Equity funds where the net retun is 6,9% for ESG Funds versus only 4% for non ESG funds.
When it comes to our platform as of today “our” funds have had on average 7,9% performance for the last three months! Of course, past performance is no guarantee for the future, but it is a very good start.
Your platform has made use of Luxembourg’s DLT law. How does this benefit its users and Moniflo?
The use of the DLT technology has been seamless for our users in practice and that was the goal we wanted to achieve. The advantage for the user lies in the fact that we take advantage of a new process design which makes investing less vulnerable to fraud and risk of loss.
Georges Bock, founder and CEO at Moniflo.
A high degree of redundancy and the multi-party collaborative process make the investor by far more independent from a failure of single participants in the safekeeping and settlement process. The technology also allows us to achieve a lower cost of production which allows us to offer safekeeping, subscription, and redemption services for free for our users.
You already have a European roadmap, starting with Germany at the end of February. What other European countries will follow this year?
First of all, the fact that we have decided to operate the app in 4 languages, including Luxembourgish, shows a strong dedication to our ecosystem, residents, and commuters. Our next target is the German market, driven by a significant demand for a platform like ours.
Without revealing too much prematurely, I want to emphasize that our approach to selecting the next market is rooted in the same level of diligence. Europe, as a whole, is witnessing an increasing demand for entities making investing more trasnparent, and this enthusiasm resonates with us. While we’re not quite ready to unveil our next market, rest assured it will be one that aligns seamlessly with the values and essence of the Moniflo brand.
What advice do you have for new investors hesitant to join Moniflo on the grounds of not being convinced by the novel approach of values-based investing?
To begin, it’s essential to emphasize that Moniflo goes beyond being solely an investment platform for values-based investing. While our product is centered around this ethos, the core of our business is an investment platform. It stands out not only for its commitment to values and transparency but also for its exceptional design – arguably one of the most beautifully crafted investment platforms available. This recognition is not just my opinion, our team has proudly garnered several awards for their design prowess.
Our platform has a large offer of investment solutions allowing everybody to find what he is looking for, along with what is important to him. Our mission is not to be the reference platform purely for nerds, but to allow the large public to enter into the space of investing giving transparency on what their money does. Every successful journey starts with the very first step. So, I highly recommend exploring the app’s unique and eye-opening filter functionality. It’s a distinctive feature that I, personally, still enjoy testing. Choosing specific criteria reveals a curated selection of funds, providing valuable insights into the investment landscape. The download allows you to see our offer without any commitment from the user’s side.
Another very good reason is that we believe that we have the most competitive offer in the market for long-term investing in actively managed funds.
You can download the app here.
