Wealthsimple
Pre-founding
Prior to founding Wealthsimple, Michael Katchen worked for 1000Memories, a Silicon Valley–based startup. After Ancestry.com bought 1000Memories in 2012, Katchen developed a spreadsheet with tips to help his colleagues set up investment portfolios. Interest in the spreadsheet helped inspire the idea for Wealthsimple. In 2014, he returned to Toronto to launch the company.
2015 acquisition of Canadian ShareOwner Investments Inc.
In December 2015, Wealthsimple merged with Canadian ShareOwner Investments Inc., a Canadian order-execution only broker-dealer. Through the acquisition, Wealthsimple became an owner of one of Canada's 14 discount brokerages (2015) alongside other owners of discount brokerages including Bank of Montreal and Royal Bank of Canada. The acquisition of Canadian ShareOwner Investment Inc. resulted in the assets under management comprising CA$400,000,000 across 10,000 customer accounts.
Since 2016: focus on product offerings
In 2015, Product Hunt Toronto honoured Wealthsimple with its first-ever Product of the Year Award. In 2016, the 20th Annual Webby Awards named Wealthsimple its Best Financial Services/Banking website.
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