Schroders has taken a minority stake in Qwil Messenger, the first start-up to join its FinTech in-residence programme, Cobalt.
The asset manager said that the undisclosed investment “formalises” the relationship between the two firms, as well as underlines its approach to “providing innovative asset and wealth management solutions”.
Qwil Messenger provides an instant messaging platform allowing business users to communicate through one application, designed to use elements from social chat apps while adhering to corporate data privacy and protection requirements.
The start-up was the first member of the Cobalt programme which launched in April this year and has since launched a live version of its product for clients, with the platform already in use within several Schroders business lines.
Graham Kellen, Schroders’ chief digital officer who heads up the Cobalt programme and was appointed chair of the Investment Association’s FinTech accelerator advisory panel in July, said the investment is a testament to the programme’s success so far.
“Qwil has developed a product which we believe has significant potential to improve the engagement Schroders has with clients, partners and businesses,” he said. “We are excited to be taking a minority stake in Qwil, joining their board and further backing its growth.”