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Koia

Fractions (NFTs) Linked to Iconic Assets

Koia logo
1-20 employees
  • B2C
  • Marketplace
  • Investing
  • Trading
  • Blockchain
  • Community
Whitechapel, London, UK

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Company mission

Koia's mission is to break down traditional barriers and enable a fractional economy, through a fair, open and accessible platform.

Our take

Interest and investment in alternate assets has skyrocketed over recent years, with the well-documented rise of cryptocurrencies and remarkable spikes in the collectibles sector. New entrants into the latter economy, however, have long been thwarted by the hefty sums required to purchase high value collectables like fine wine, sneakers, and trading cards. Now, a flurry of startups like Koia are launching to allow fractional investments in these assets, opening up the market to smaller-stake investors.

Koia is yet to launch, meaning it’s a step behind up-and-running US competitors like Rally and Rares (who focus exclusively on sneakers). Fractional asset ownership, however, is a relatively fresh and rapidly growing wave that’s sweeping markets like the US where retail investment is showing the highest uptake globally. This could mean that there’s plenty of room for competition - the crypto market, for example, has proven substantial enough to support multiple profitable exchanges.

It will be interesting to see how Koia seeks to distinguish itself from competitors once it's launched. In this young sector, there’s certainly plenty of room for innovation.

Freddie headshot

Freddie

Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle

Benefits

  • Remote work
  • Team offsites
  • Flexible working

Funding (1 round)

Jun 2017

$7.5m

SERIES A

Total funding: $7.5m

Leadership

Richard Draper

(Co-founder)

Has extensive client facing and trading experience within asset management, having worked at Barclays, UBS, and an event driven hedge fund. Has previously advised start-ups throughout the capital raising process.

Iris ten Teije

(Co-founder)

Has an extensive background in launching and scaling startups. Before Koia, built a fintech business out of Asia as its first employee, growing a global client base and receiving backing from investors such as Visa Ventures.

Ben Riazy

(Co-founder & CTO)

Has been developing apps and leading development teams for the past decade. Has experience in building apps for startups, as well as large corporates like HSBC.