Stereo Scope

About Stereo Scope

Stereo Scope, Inc., the parent company of Kapitall, operated an online investment platform designed to demystify the stock market for a new generation of investors. Founded in 2008 by Gaspard de Dreuzy, a video game entrepreneur, and Serge Kreiker, a financial technologist, the New York-based firm aimed to make investing more accessible and engaging. Their combined expertise sought to merge the mechanics of gaming with financial education. The company's mission was to transform investing from a necessity into a desirable activity, particularly targeting the 85 million individuals in Generation Y.

The platform's core offering was a gamified trading experience that allowed users to learn about the market, research stocks, and manage virtual and real brokerage portfolios. A key feature was its visual interface, which replaced traditional ticker symbols with recognizable company logos and utilized a drag-and-drop mechanism for trading. This approach was intended to lower the barrier to entry for novice investors. Kapitall provided free practice portfolios, enabling users to build skills with virtual money before committing real capital. The platform also had social features, allowing community members to share ideas and compete. By 2013, the community had grown to over 170,000 registered members. Revenue streams were based on a commission and subscription model. In 2012, former E*TRADE President and COO, Jarrett Lilien, joined as CEO to accelerate growth and profitability.

Kapitall secured significant financial backing to support its development and expansion. In December 2010, its parent company, Stereo Scope, closed a Series A round, raising $7.3 million in new cash and converting over $5.5 million in notes. This was followed by a Series B round in February 2014, which raised $13 million, bringing the total funding to nearly $25 million with investors like Linden Venture Fund and Bendigo Partners. Despite its efforts to revolutionize retail investing, the company eventually ceased operations and was noted as being deadpooled, with a merger/acquisition event occurring in September 2019.