AXA IM has taken a 10% stake in mobile savings startup Dreams and will become the exclusive provider of mutual funds to the Swedish firm's millennial customer base.
The Dreams app uses artificial intelligence and cognitive behavioural techniques to encourage users to save and invest money. In the two years since launch, the company has attracted 300,000 users - the equivalent of 14% of the total 20-40 year-old target group in Sweden.
The company claims that users typically save €135 more with Dreams every month than they did with their banks; "proof that a customer-centric, behaviour-based approach to savings works", says CEO Henrik Rosvall.
The partnership with AXA IM marks the beginning of a phased roll out of the platform across continental Europe, including German, Belgian, French, Italian, Dutch, and Spanish markets.
The two companies will also run an innovation lab to conduct research on millennials’ savings and investment habits.
Joseph Pinto, global chief operating officer of AXA IM, says: “This partnership is a key milestone in our digital strategy to open up new digital distribution channels, starting with one targeting millennials - who are already today’s investors."