It’s now easier than ever to set up an investment app. You just need a developer to design one that sits on top of an investment provider like WealthKernel, Seccl or DriveWealth. Then you need to get regulated, which is hard and expensive, or you can piggyback off someone elses’ regulatory status under the umbrella of a firm like Risksave or Richdale. That’s the easy part. What is difficult is succeeding. Offering investing for free is a tough business because getting customers in a saturated market is becoming more and more expensive, and you have to pay for that somehow. So, the investment apps that survive and thrive will be the ones with not just the best product, but the ones that make it easy, and have a great story to tell. Plus, have massive pockets that can keep them going until they can become profitable. One new investing app, that may have all these ingredients is Lightyear, which incidentally has not taken the above shortcut, but built its technology and infrastructure from the ground up. Lightyear was founded in 2020 by Martin Sokk, one of the first Transferwise employees and in our latest CEO interview, we discuss his plans for the business and how people can use it to become better investors.
In our video interview, we discuss:
- What is the Lightyear investment app?
- How does Lightyear help investors?
- What is wrong with the way people invest now?
- How easy is it to open an account?
- Was it difficult to get the business started?
- Where do you see Lightyear in the future?
- How does Lightyear make money?
- What sort of clients does Lightyear have?
- Do the gamification of investing help educate people?
- Will you introduce higher-risk investment derivative products like options or CFDs?
- What have been the best and worst parts of running Lightyear so far?
- How can people become better investors?
- What book should people read to become better investors?
Richard is the founder of the Good Money Guide (formerly Good Broker Guide), one of the original investment comparison sites established in 2015. With a career spanning two decades as a broker, he brings extensive expertise and knowledge to the financial landscape.
Having worked as a broker at Investors Intelligence and a multi-asset derivatives broker at MF Global (Man Financial), Richard has acquired substantial experience in the industry. His career began as a private client stockbroker at Walker Crips and Phillip Securities (now King and Shaxson), following internships on the NYMEX oil trading floor in New York and London IPE in 2001 and 2000.
Richard’s contributions and expertise have been recognized by respected publications such as BusinessInsider, Yahoo Finance, BusinessNews.org.uk, Master Investor, Wealth Briefing, iNews, and The FT, among many others.
Under Richard’s leadership, the Good Money Guide has evolved into a valuable destination for comprehensive information and expert guidance, specialising in trading, investment, and currency exchange. His commitment to delivering high-quality insights has solidified the Good Money Guide’s standing as a well-respected resource for both customers and industry colleagues.
