8 Securities

About 8 Securities

8 Securities was a Hong Kong-based financial technology company that positioned itself as a mobile-first investing service for a new generation of investors in Asia. The firm was founded in 2012 by Mikaal Abdulla and Mathias Helleu. Both founders brought extensive experience from the online brokerage world, having previously managed the international business for E*TRADE across 14 countries. This background gave them deep insights into the shortcomings of traditional brokerage models, particularly the complexity and high fees that often deterred individual investors.

The company's mission was to simplify the investment process, making it more accessible, affordable, and transparent for retail clients, especially millennials. 8 Securities distinguished itself by being one of Asia's pioneers in several key areas: it launched the region's first mobile-only investing service, the first robo-advisor, and eventually, the first zero-commission brokerage. The business model focused on leveraging technology to strip away unnecessary costs, such as commissions, platform fees, and custodian fees, which were common among traditional banks and brokerages. Its primary market consisted of users in Hong Kong, mainland China, and Singapore.

The platform allowed users to trade over 15,000 U.S. and Hong Kong stocks and ETFs. A key feature of their service was a social trading component, which enabled members to follow the portfolios of top-performing users, providing insights into community-wide trading activities and trends. In 2016, the company launched a robo-advisor app named "Chloe," which provided automated, goal-based investing in diversified global portfolios of ETFs. This service was designed to be highly accessible, with no fees for smaller accounts.

Over its lifetime, 8 Securities successfully raised approximately $70 million in venture capital from investors including Nomura, Velocity Capital, and Full Global Investments. The company's trajectory culminated in its acquisition by the U.S. personal finance company SoFi in April 2020 for an undisclosed amount. This acquisition marked SoFi's first international expansion and led to the rebranding of 8 Securities to SoFi Hong Kong. The existing team was retained, and the founders, Helleu and Abdulla, took on senior roles to lead SoFi's international business.