Challenger bank Pepper creates new app for young investors
Israeli Bank Leumi’s mobile-only challenger bank Pepper has launched a new investment app that aims to attract young people to buy fractional shares, reports Jane Connolly.
Offering fractional shares in some 100 shares of big-name companies such as Facebook, Apple, Amazon and Starbucks, traded on the Standard & Poor’s (S&P) 100 index, the app is designed to be user-friendly for over-18s with no prior knowledge or experience of capital markets.
The app is designed to be user-friendly for over-18s with no prior knowledge or experience of capital markets
Pepper Invest also hopes to appeal to those turned off by the multiple fees and commissions associated with investing. Its model is based on a uniform quarterly management fee of 0.2% of the portfolio’s value (0.08% annually), with a minimum investment amount of NIS (Israeli New Shekel) 50 ($14).
Michal Kissos Hertzog, CEO of Pepper, says: “Pepper Invest offers a unique trading experience, allowing customers to invest according to their financial abilities, without needing to purchase an entire stock. Pepper Invest represents a veritable revolution, in which technology not only changes the way we consume financial services, but also serves as a tool for financial education and empowerment of the younger generation.”
After registration, buying and selling transactions are conducted through a USD investment account that is dedicated solely to investment in foreign stocks. In the event of the USD account having insufficient funds to complete a transaction, the shortfall will be charged to the customer’s Pepper NIS current account by converting NIS to USD at the time of giving the buy order.
