ASX-listed micro-investing platform Raiz Invest has crossed a significant milestone, surpassing $2.04 billion in funds under management and welcoming a new chief executive as the company positions itself for its next phase of growth. The figures arrive against a challenging economic backdrop, suggesting everyday Australians are increasingly turning to automated investing tools to steadily build wealth in the background of their daily lives.
Platform growth defies tough economic conditions
With 347,354 active customers now on the platform, Raiz has demonstrated that its round-up model — which funnels spare change from everyday purchases directly into exchange-traded fund portfolios — continues to attract and retain users even as cost-of-living pressures weigh on household budgets. Active customer numbers grew 4.7% in the third quarter, a modest but meaningful gain given the cooling sentiment among retail investors more broadly.
The standout performers during the period were the platform's Kids and Plus portfolios, which posted returns of 26.3% and 22.4% respectively. Kids portfolio numbers rose 26.4% year on year, a result that signals growing appetite among parents seeking to instil financial habits in younger generations through simple digital tools.
The core mechanic underpinning Raiz's appeal is straightforward: when a user makes an everyday purchase — a morning coffee, a grocery run — the app rounds the transaction up to the nearest dollar and redirects that spare change into a diversified investment portfolio. The strategy is reinforced by dollar-cost averaging, meaning money flows into the market at regular intervals regardless of conditions, automatically buying more when prices are low and less when they are high, gradually smoothing the average cost over time.
New CEO Craig Keary steps in with a clear mandate
Having steered the company through its formative years and its ASX listing, outgoing chief executive Brendan Malone handed over the reins after a six-year tenure. His successor, Craig Keary, officially took the chief executive role on 1 June, bringing with him a substantial background across major financial institutions including Westpac, HSBC and AMP Capital.
Keary most recently served as chief executive of online broker Selfwealth, where he guided the platform through its takeover by international digital wealth and micro-investing player Syfe. His appointment signals the Raiz board's intention to scale operations and accelerate product development from a position of financial stability.
Keary has articulated a philosophy closely aligned with the platform's existing model: that long-term wealth accumulation works best as a quiet, automated process running in the background of everyday life. He argues that removing emotion from investing is not just a financial discipline but a wellbeing strategy, helping users sidestep the panic-driven decisions that tend to be most costly when markets turn volatile.
Teaching the next generation to invest automatically
A central pillar of Keary's incoming agenda is deepening the platform's reach among younger users. He views automated micro-investing as a practical vehicle for financial literacy — a way of teaching children and young adults to save, invest and develop a healthy relationship with money through straightforward digital habits rather than complex financial education.
The strong growth in Kids portfolios suggests this approach is already resonating. By embedding investing into daily routines at an early age, Raiz is betting that the habits formed now will translate into long-term customer loyalty and compounding funds under management for years ahead.
What comes next for Raiz
With its finances now on solid profitable footing and a leadership team rebuilt for scale, Raiz appears well-placed to push further into the Australian market. Keary's mandate encompasses both streamlining internal operations and rolling out more advanced product offerings, with the overarching goal of making automated investing the default financial habit for a new generation of Australians — one rounded-up transaction at a time.
