LearnVest was an American financial planning company founded by CEO Alexa von Tobel. It sells personal finance software.

History

Alexa von Tobel entered

Harvard Business School Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate business school of Harvard University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top business schools in the world and offers a large full-time MBA p ...

in the fall of 2008, but took a leave of absence and launched LearnVest. Her inspiration for LearnVest started while she was a senior at

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

in 2006. LearnVest's headquarters are in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, and they have an Expert Hub in Phoenix. LearnVest was selected as a

TechCrunch50 TechCrunch is an American online newspaper focusing on high tech and startup companies. It was founded in June 2005 by Archimedes Ventures, led by partners Michael Arrington and Keith Teare. In 2010, AOL acquired the company for approximately $ ...

2009 Company and debuted in September 2009 at the

conference in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

. On March 25, 2015, Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co., based in

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee is ...

, announced it would acquire LearnVest. Financial terms of the deal weren’t disclosed. LearnVest will continue to operate as a separate unit under founder and Chief Executive von Tobel. The deal has been viewed as the latest attempt by traditional financial services firms to adapt to new digital technologies. Northwestern Mutual expects the technology will encourage more adviser-client interaction and ultimately create a more rewarding experience for the customer and adviser. By adding LearnVest’s technology to the insurer’s existing planning platform, those advisers can devote more time to working with customers on carrying out their recommendations. The arrangement also puts customers in more frequent contact with those advisers. On May 3rd, 2018, LearnVest discontinued its financial planning offering for consumers, as well as its LearnVest@Work program for businesses.

Services

The LearnVest Program focuses on behavior change and “takes you from cutting expenses to budgeting for goals to investing your money.” Clients work with LearnVest Planners to make progress on their money. There are “three tiers of access to financial plans” The LearnVest Program was featured in von Tobel’s New York Times Bestseller, ''Financially Fearless''.

Money Center Tool

The Money Center is an online tool that lets users track their spending, visualize their budgets and financial goals. In addition to the built-in budgeting system, full goal tracking, full trends and analysis, and a financial inbox, Money Center allows live co-viewing of user’s account and dashboard between the user and his or her LearnVest financial planner.

LearnVest Planning

LearnVest Planning, a subsidiary of LearnVest Inc., is a

Registered Investment Advisor A registered investment adviser (RIA) is a firm that is an investment adviser in the United States, registered as such with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) or a state's securities agency. The numerous references to RIAs within the Inves ...

through which LearnVest employs Certified Financial Planners nationwide. As a registered SEC financial advisor, LearnVest is able to offer portfolio recommendations and general investment advice.

iPhone and iPad apps

LearnVest released free iPhone and iPad apps that help users track their spending and their financial goals. The LearnVest app was featured as an iTunes App Store New & Noteworthy pick.

Investment and finances

LearnVest raised a $4.5 million Series A round, a $19 million Series B round, a $16.5 million Series C round, and a $28 million Series D round. Investors include Accel Partners, Northwestern Mutual,

American Express American Express Company (Amex) is an American multinational corporation specialized in payment card services headquartered at 200 Vesey Street in the Battery Park City neighborhood of Lower Manhattan in New York City. The company was found ...

Ventures, Claritas Capital, Ed Mathias of

The Carlyle Group The Carlyle Group is a multinational private equity, alternative asset management and financial services corporation based in the United States with $376 billion of assets under management. It specializes in private equity, real assets, and pri ...

, and Todd Ruppert of

T. Rowe Price T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. is an American publicly owned global investment management firm that offers funds, subadvisory services, separate account management, and retirement plans and services for individuals, institutions, and financial inter ...

Events

The company hosted its first live event, LearnVest LIVE, in New York City in October 2012, featuring lectures by fashion designer Cynthia Rowley,

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editor and Project Runway mentor Joanna Coles, Top Chef judge

Gail Simmons Gail Simmons (born May 19, 1976) is a Canadian-American food writer and cookbook author. She has served as a permanent judge on Bravo's Emmy-winning series ''Top Chef'' since the show's inception in 2006. Simmons was previously the head critic on ...

and

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cofounder Alexandra Wilkis Wilson. LearnVest has since held LIVE events in Los Angeles, Boston and San Francisco. In 2014, LearnVest CEO Alexa von Tobel kicked off a 20-city book tour for Financially Fearless. The book tour focused on going across the country to help people make progress on their money.

Press and awards

2009 *Forbes's Top 100 Websites for Women *Business Insider's Digital 100 List *Time Magazine's annual list of 50 Best Websites *FinovateFall Best of Show 2011, 2012, 2013 *Most Influential Content 2014

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:LearnVest Financial services companies of the United States American companies established in 2009 Financial services companies established in 2009 2015 mergers and acquisitions 2009 establishments in New York City