As many as nine senior managers of PrimaryBid have left the retail investor tech company, jumping ship to rival RetailBook amid a ‘strategic shift’.
PrimaryBid’s co-founder, managing director, legal counsel and six others have departed the fintech after it scaled back its services to UK consumers in favour of transitioning to becoming a pure-play technology business.
Rival RetailBook, which has hired the team, is owned through a mutual structure that creates a strategic alliance among key market participants. Current shareholders include Hargreaves Lansdown, Jefferies, Peel Hunt, and Rothschild & Co.
James Deal, co-founder of PrimaryBid, said: “We are excited to be joining RetailBook where we will continue to accelerate public inclusion in capital markets.
“While there has been huge progress in recent years, there remains much to be done to realize the ambition laid out by significant regulatory change and to deliver the full benefits of retail investor inclusion to the entire ecosystem.”
“We are excited about the opportunities ahead and remain dedicated to empowering retail investors,” said Aaqib Mirza, Co-CEO of RetailBook.
“These appointments bring unique expertise and an unrivalled track record which will significantly accelerate our goal of ensuring that retail investors have the same opportunities as institutional investors.”
A PrimaryBid spokesperson told UKTN: “Last year we committed to a partner-led, tech-driven model to help large regulated institutions deliver retail access to capital markets at scale.
“PrimaryBid’s technology has turned policy into practice, powering 350+ transactions and setting new standards for investor inclusion—now gaining traction in the US and Middle East.
“We thank our UK-regulated team and wish them the best in their next chapter.”
PrimaryBid raised $190m from investors in 2022 including Japan’s Softbank and the London Stock Exchange Group.
It’s platform allows retail investors to join corporate funding events, such as IPOs, at the same time and prices as institutional investors.
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