PlatformMay 7 2019

Investors back pension comparison app

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Investors back pension comparison app

Age Wage, a new defined contribution comparison service, is en route to double its funding target after receiving £305,600 from more than 400 investors.

On March 18 the fintech company launched a crowdfunding campaign through investment platform Seedrs to raise £175,000 to create the infrastructure around the DB comparison product, with the technology behind it already in place.

Henry Tapper, chief executive of Age Wage, announced yesterday (May 6) that the company has almost doubled its target after it raised more than £305,000.

The crowdfunding campaign is still open and is set to continue for a few more days, Mr Tapper added.

Age Wage plans to launch an app which will allow savers to receive a score for their pension and switch to another provider if they’re not happy with their results. 

It will score pensions by calculating an internal rate of return for each pot, which will then be compared to a benchmark.

This will consist of a portfolio of allocations of total return indices, which vary over time. The portfolio will be rebalanced annually to reflect changes in weights, the fintech company stated.

Mr Tapper, pensions expert and founder of the pension Playpen, created the company alongside Chris Sier, chairman of the institutional disclosure working group at the Financial Conduct Authority.

Mr Tapper said: "What we've established is that people love the idea of Age Wage enough to make us a solvent company with time to get things right. The hardest bit is the first bit, but we can't stop for a moment."

Age Wage's business model will rely on charges to providers once savers switch their pension pots to these companies.
This will average £100 and be paid by the pension provider the consumer transfers funds to.

The service is expected to be up and running next month (June 2019).

amy.austin@ft.com