Chasing Returns chases growth with vital UK sandbox approval

13 Jul 2018

Chasing Returns chair Ivan Fox with CEO Ann Hunt. Image: Chasing Returns

Irish fintech closes funding round and gets accepted into UK ‘sandbox’.

Risk management platform Chasing Returns has closed a funding round and has also been accepted into the UK’s regulatory fintech sandbox.

The investment for an undisclosed sum coincides with the company, a recent Siliconrepublic.com Start-up of the Week, being accepted to test its new product, PlayMaker, as part of the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) regulatory sandbox in the UK.

‘The technology developed by Chasing Returns has proven how a systematic approach to psychology is critical to any successful trading strategy’
– IVAN FOX

The regulatory sandbox allows firms to test innovative offerings in a live environment, and fintechs apply to participate twice a year.

Chasing Returns, a previous NDRC participant, is one of only a few Irish companies to have been selected since the sandbox launched in 2016.

Last week we reported how Trezeo, also an NDRC accelerator participant, became the first income-smoothing service to receive authorisation from the FCA.

Making investing an emotionally intelligent game

Chasing Returns has developed a risk management platform for financial traders and it has been adopted by more than 20,000 traders, including a large deployment with Canadian FX broker Oanda.

Set up in 2014 by Ann Hunt, Chasing Returns’ technology analyses performance history to help traders understand their individual psychological strengths and weaknesses and turn it to their advantage. Its new product aims to help traders stay on track by teaching them trading discipline as they trade in real time.

“It’s one thing to develop and launch a product you really believe in, but to see it working successfully at such a large scale worldwide is highly rewarding. Traders who previously lost money due to psychological biases or lack of discipline are now trading smarter and making more money thanks to our technology.”

On being selected to take part in the FCA’s sandbox programme, Hunt added: “82pc of traders in the UK currently lose money, according to the FCA. Sandbox will enable us to test how much PlayMaker can improve this metric. PlayMaker promotes better trading discipline and money management. It is aimed at helping traders in the new regulatory environment where leverage is limited and appropriate risk levels are key to success.”

Before establishing Chasing Returns, Hunt spent 10 years on Wall Street working for JP Morgan on risk management platforms, and another five as an independent trader.

Chasing Returns chair and investor in the company, Ivan Fox, said: “The technology developed by Chasing Returns has proven how a systematic approach to psychology is critical to any successful trading strategy.

“This is why its products are being received so enthusiastically by the broker and trading community. They work and they work really well.”

John Kennedy is a journalist who served as editor of Silicon Republic for 17 years

editorial@siliconrepublic.com