Wikifolio Weighs Sale Amid Rush to Day-Trading Firms

(Bloomberg) -- Wikifolio, the social trading platform, is exploring a sale amid strong demand for firms that help amateur investors put their money to work in the stock market, people familiar with the matter said.

The Vienna-based company is working with Rothschild & Co. on a potential sale, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing confidential information.

Founded in 2012 by Andreas Kern, Wikifolio allows private traders to publish their investment strategies as exchange-traded products, which followers can then buy into for as little as 100 euros ($118). The products can be bought and sold through certain stock exchanges, banks and online brokers.

Its investors include Dieter von Holtzbrinck Ventures, which has ties to the Holtzbrinck publishing house that owns German business newspaper Handelsblatt. It's also backed by Speedinvest, whose other holdings include challenger bank Tide and online insurance platform Wefox.

Representatives for DvH Ventures, Rothschild and Wikifolio declined to comment, while a spokesperson for Speedinvest didn't immediately provide comment.

The potential sale would come as novice investors flock to day-trading firms. Their easy-to-use services have seen activity soar during the pandemic, when people were confined to their homes and looking to place bets on stocks for the first time.

In March, trading platform eToro Group Ltd. agreed to go public at a valuation of more than $10 billion through a merger with FinTech Acquisition Corp. V, a blank-check firm led by serial dealmaker Betsy Cohen. Last week, its rival Robinhood Markets Inc. filed for an initial public offering, which some analysts say could value it at as much as $40 billion.