Betterment IPO a Distant Future?

is betterment a good investment

Betterment, one of the robo-advisor firms, raised an additional $70 million in financing this month (July 2017), according to Bloomberg and others. This values the company at $800 million, although such valuations on pre-market companies are largely meaningless. (Mental note: Write article about the so-called valuations of pre-exit startups.) Is this additional Betterment investment a good idea? It all depends on if they can shove a Betterment IPO down unsavvy investor throats. Check out how Betterment works at this Betterment review. According the article, the company has nearly $10 billion under management, which begs the question why they need to raise more money. Update: There is a new CEO. Is the new CEO’s purpose to get the company to an IPO? Check out my Digit app review. A money management company with $10 billion under management should be profitable. The need to raise another $70 million suggests the company is not profitable, and that begs the second question. At what level CAN the company be profitable? An can a Betterment IPO happen fast enough? If you’re interested in Betterment vs Wealthfront vs Robinhood vs Acorns vs Stash I have that here. Can Stand Alone Robo-Advisors Survive? Obviously, as an add-on …

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Groupon IPO Better Hurry UP

Not long ago, news that Groupon had spurned Google’s $6 billion takeover bid was released and I couldn’t help but thinking that maybe Groupon had succumbed to pop-star diva mentality, where everyone except you and the flatterers you surround yourself with know that your future at the top is shaky at best. Later reports suggested that Groupon was worried that the deal might eventually be blocked by regulators and that the company would be left holding the bag after spending over a year in waiting mode. That makes more sense, but I still thought the clock was ticking. After that, reports suggested that Groupon raised more money to buy out early investors who wanted to cash out. Looks like I’m not the only one worried about the future. The main issue with Groupon is that the barrier to entry, or the so-called economic moat, around its business model is virtually non-existent. Sure, other small VC-funded startups might have trouble taking on the deal of the day website, but a well funded competitor would have no problem replicating what the company does quickly. Yesterday slammed home just how urgent the Groupon IPO is. Living Social, one of the Groupon competitors that …

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