Underscore VC along with Marc Benioff & Ashton Kutcher Invest in LearnLux
Today we are excited to announce Underscore VC’s investment in LearnLux a Financial Wellness solution for the modern workplace. Our conviction in LearnLux’s co-founders, Rebecca & Michael Liebman, and our interest in solutions that smartly address the growing income inequality in the United States, has led us to contribute to LearnLux’s $2M seed financing. The team is fortunate to also have the support of prominent co-investors such as Salesforce chief executive Marc Benioff, Ashton Kutcher at Sound Ventures, and the former CEO of Wealthfront, Adam Nash.
Why Financial Wellness?
Traditionally, the financial wellness space has been built around programs that provide one-on-one financial advice and follow-on investment management services targeted at large, mature companies — But what’s to become of those that don’t fall into this small subset of the population? That’s the multi-billion dollar question.
A large segment of American families don’t feel financially secure and that financial insecurity can affect the workplace in absenteeism, distracted workers and high-stress levels. Financial stress costs US employers up to $250 Billion annually because a huge population of Americans don’t have the right information when it comes to their finances. The financial concerns of employees differ widely, depending on their personal circumstances. Some employees are focused on addressing immediate financial stability, while others are ready to work on building long-term financial security.
Source: Mercer – 2017 Financial Wellness Survey
In today’s connected and mobile world, there is a multi-billion dollar opportunity to provide digital-based financial wellness tools to the broad market of employees and their families who have been traditionally underserved by financial planning institutions.
In making this financial technology investment, we were attracted to this particularly important market issue and the bold and brave LearnLux Co-founders who are determined to tackle it.
Why LearnLux?
We first met Rebecca Liebman, Co-Founder & CEO of LearnLux, 3 years ago when Learnlux was a nascent idea and we stayed in touch. We were struck then by her assertive style coupled with a charming demeanor — we knew right away that there was a recipe for future success.
Rebecca & Michael, her brother, are an impressive and dynamic duo — They compliment each other incredibly well and their entrepreneurial background and unique upbringings have provided the drive to build a financial wellness platform that connects with both millennials, as well as a more mature audience. The proof is in the numbers — They have garnered over 55,000 Learnlux users during their journey and attracted numerous industry luminaries to their mission.
More over, they are all in when it comes to correcting our education systems shortcomings in the area of financial literacy and providing the tools to control one’s personal finances. They take it personally because it is personal.
When Rebecca & Michaels father was laid off in 2008, they understandably took an interest in their families finances. And when the two of them later joined the professional workforce, with Michael working in a bank and Rebecca in an MIT lab filled with Ph.D. students, they began to take notice of how few around them knew how to open a retirement account.
This is a real problem and Rebecca & Michael empathize with the needs of their users, which is why they’ve brought together educational resources in an easy to understand and relatable way. This enables LearnLux users to get comfortable with the topic of finance and, for example, learn how to refinance student loans, build their credit score or get connected with financial institutions.
Needless to say, we are honored to be Learnlux investors and to support the team on their Financial Wellness mission.
