Actifunds Launches Comprehensive Investment Club Platform for Brokers and Financial Communities
February 5, 2001 -
New platform connects financial institutions to passionate new customers
while empowering personal investors to build and manage online investment clubs
CAMBRIDGE, MA, February 5, 2001 -- Actifunds Corporation (
www.actifunds.com), the leading provider
of software products for investment clubs, today announced the immediate
availability of its comprehensive online management platform for investment
clubs. Using iClub, Actifunds' patented platform, online brokers and other
financial communities can lower their customer acquisition costs, as well as
increase customer retention efforts and strengthen relationships with existing
customers.
There are currently over 1.25 million U.S. investors who are part of
investment clubs, a number that has quadrupled in the past decade. Total
securities holdings for club members currently exceed $300 billion.
As the first financial community to adopt the iClub platform, The Financial
Cafe, an e-brokerage destination that offers a free trading platform for online
investors, will integrate the iClub tools into their product offerings. iClub
provides The Financial Cafe with a
solution for low-cost customer acquisition, as well as the ability to increase
customer retention efforts and strengthen relationships with existing customers.
iClub lets personal investors leverage the Internet to communicate and
collaborate with others on investing decisions, making group investing easier
and more profitable. Using the iClub tools, investment club members gain
access to portfolio tracking, extensive accounting capability, public and
private discussion forums, and secure voting and automated tallying.
In addition to serving The Financial Cafe, Actifunds provides the official
investment club platform for National Association of Investors Corporation
(NAIC). The NAIC is a 637,000 member non-profit organization that has been a
principal source of educational and accounting products for investment clubs
and individual investors for the past fifty years.
"Investment clubs have become a preferred method of online investing and
clearly one of the fastest growing segments of the investing public," said
Robert Brooker, CEO of Actifunds. "But despite their dramatic growth,
investment clubs have been an underserved market. For some brokers and online
financial communities, the cost of acquiring investment club customers can be
anywhere from $100 to $400 per customer. The Actifunds platform is a secure
infrastructure that connects brokers with a large and active community and
gives them the ability to seamlessly and cost-effectively market to new
audiences with their own customized site."
About iClub
iClub is a suite of online tools that enable portfolio tracking and accounting,
public and private discussion forums, and secure voting and automatic vote
tallying. The platform simplifies and automates all aspects of investment
club administration, enabling investors to form partnerships, invite new
members, pool money together, discuss and make decisions democratically, and
perform tax accounting. iClub's intuitive user interface makes creating and
managing investment clubs simple. Since iClub is accessible via the Internet,
members can participate in clubs regardless of location and schedule. The
iClub tools automate administration and accounting, requiring minimal effort
from club members with no compromise of club security.
"It's important for investors to have easy access to investment products
that enables them to complete their financial transactions anytime, anywhere,"
said Andrew Koslow, The Financial Cafe's Chief Operating Officer. "The
seamless integration of Actifunds' iClub tools with our trading platform gives
our customers direct access to the financial organizational services they need
to be more successful and profitable."
About The Financial Cafe.Com LLC
The Financial Cafe.Com LLC (
www.thefinancialcafe.com) is a subsidiary of One Financial Network, Inc.
The Financial Cafe.Com is a new category of e-brokerage offering premium
financial services and free electronic market orders on all stock transactions
without requiring a minimum balance. The company also offers excellent customer
service, high quality products, and content provided through a network of
alliances with major financial media companies. The Financial Cafe.Com is a
member of the NASD and SIPC.
About Actifunds Corporation
Actifunds is a leading provider of group financial products to financial
institutions and online communities. iClub, Actifunds' online site for
investment club services, enables personal investors to leverage the Internet
to communicate and collaborate with others on investing decisions, making
group investing easier and more profitable. Over 36,000 clubs already use
Actifunds products to manage their investment dollars, including members of
the National Association of Investors Corporation (NAIC), a 637,000 member
non-profit organization for investment education for investment clubs and
individual investors. Founded in February 2000, Actifunds is based in
Cambridge, MA.
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