We only take on 4 clients per month. Join our June cohort. 1 spot left.
Conversation
Highlights
Welcome to another episode of Category Visionaries, the show that explores the future of tech with innovative B2B founders. In today’s episode, we’re speaking with Rafael Loureiro, CEO and Co-Founder of Wealth.com, a digital estate planning platform that has raised $16 million in funding.
Key topics discussed in this episode:
- Rafael’s journey from growing up in Brazil to moving to the US in 2001 as a software developer, working with four different startups before co-founding Wealth
- The lessons learned from Reid Hoffman, including the importance of doing things that don’t scale, pivoting when necessary, and learning from early customer experiences
- The origin story of Wealth, born from the personal experience of a team member struggling with the outdated, pen-and-paper process of estate planning after a liquidity event
- Wealth’s unique solution, which combines asset aggregation and real-time updates to keep estate plans always current, reacting to life events and providing intelligent recommendations
- The company’s B2C go-to-market approach, focused on employee benefits and financial advisors, targeting the underserved “mass affluent” segment of 64 million Americans
- The potential challenges and criticisms of digitizing estate planning, and the four major shifts driving the need for modern solutions: COVID-19, the great wealth transfer, evolving state legislation, and the rise of fintech and diverse asset classes
- The competitive landscape, with Wealth differentiating itself through real-time updates and intelligent recommendations, as opposed to one-time document generation
- The challenges of launching a startup in the current financial environment and navigating remote work and culture-building in the post-COVID era
- The three-year vision of building an intelligent platform that provides data-driven suggestions, helps with retirement planning, and balances B2B2C and direct-to-consumer revenue streams
Actionable
Takeaways
Look for Opportunities in Outdated Industries:
Identify sectors, like estate planning, that are stuck in the past and have yet to fully embrace digital transformation. These areas often present significant opportunities for innovation and growth.
Leverage Personal Experiences to Drive Product Innovation:
Draw from the pain points and frustrations encountered by your team members or customers to inspire new solutions that address real-world needs.
Target Underserved Market Segments:
Identify customer segments, such as the "mass affluent," that are not well-served by existing solutions and tailor your product and go-to-market strategy to meet their specific needs.
Differentiate Through Real-Time Updates and Intelligence:
In industries like estate planning, differentiate your solution by providing real-time updates, intelligent recommendations, and seamless integrations with users' financial lives.
Embrace Remote Work While Fostering Culture:
Navigate the challenges of building a startup in the post-COVID era by leveraging the benefits of remote work (e.g., global talent pool) while actively investing in strategies to create culture, facilitate collaboration, and avoid zoom fatigue.
Recommended Founder
Interviews
Kevin Hart
Founder and CEO of Green Check Verified
Kevin Hart, Founder and CEO of Green Check Verified: $16 Million Raised to Power the Future of the Cannabis Business
Olga Chin
CEO and Founder of InterPrice Technologies
Olga Chin, CEO and Founder of InterPrice Technologies: Over $10 Million Raised to Build the Future of Capital Markets Treasury Management
Brendan Playford
CEO of Pngme
Brendan Playford, CEO of Pngme: $18 Million Raised to Support Financial Inclusivity and Unlock Economic Potential Across the Developing World
Daniel Grunstein
CEO and Co-Founder of Crowded
Daniel Grunstein, CEO and Co-Founder of Crowded: $6.4 Million Raised to Transform Nonprofit Financial Management
Stephany Kirkpatrick
CEO and Founder of Orum
Stephany Kirkpatrick, CEO and Founder of Orum: Over $85 Million Raised to Build an API integration for Instant Payouts
Jonathan Sukhia
CEO and Co-Founder of Topkey
Jonathan Sukhia, CEO & Co-Founder of Topkey: $7 Million Raised to Build the Future of Financial Management for Short-Term Rentals
Jonas Overgaard
CEO of Anyday.io
Jonas Overgaard, CEO of Anyday.io: $4M Raised to Transform the Buy Now Pay Later Market
Ben Goldin
CEO and Founder of Plumery
Ben Goldin, CEO and Founder of Plumery: $4.5 Million Raised to Power the Future of Digital Engagement for Banks
Nik Talreja
CEO & Co-Founder of Sydecar
Nik Talreja, CEO & Co-Founder of Sydecar: Over $16 Million Raised to Make Venture Deal Execution a Frictionless Process
Kalpesh Kapadia
CEO and Founder of Deserve
Kalpesh Kapadia, CEO and Founder of Deserve: $50 Million Raised to Build the Future of Credit Cards
John Lunn
CEO and Founder of Gr4vy
John Lunn, CEO and Founder of Gr4vy: $27 Million Raised to Build the Future of Payments Infrastructure
Ron Benegbi
CEO & Founder of Uplinq
Ron Benegbi, CEO & Founder at Uplinq: Over $5 Million Raised to Transform SMB Lender’s Existing Credit Evaluation Process
Arik Shtilman
CEO of Rapyd
Arik Shtilman, Rapyd: $15 Billion Valuation (Unicorn Builders)
Jack McDonald
CEO of PolySign
Jack McDonald, CEO of PolySign: $50 Million Raised to Power the Future of Digital Assets
Fady Hawatmeh
Founder and CEO of Clockwork
Fady Hawatmeh, Founder and CEO of Clockwork: Nearly $3 Million Raised to Make Financial Modeling and Cash Flow Forecasting Easy
Thibaut Sahagian
CEO of Multis
Thibaut Sahagian, CEO of Multis: $9 Million Raised to Build a New Category of Software Designed to Meet the Needs of Web3 Organizations
Ahmad Ibrahim
CEO of NeoTax
Ibrahim, CEO of NeoTax: $13 Million Raised to Build the Future of Tax Automation
Chris McCall
CEO & Co-Founder of Valid8
Chris McCall, CEO & Co-Founder of Valid8: $14.8 Million Raised to Build the Future of Financial Intelligence
Julio MartÃnez
Co-Founder and CEO of Abacum
Julio MartÃnez, Co-Founder and CEO at Abacum: $40 Million Raised to Build the Future of FP&A
Shamir Karkal
Co-founder and CSO of Sila
Shamir Karkal, CEO of Sila: $20+ Million Raised to Build the Money API For Fintech
Brian King
CEO of LODAS Markets
Brian King, CEO of LODAS Markets: $8.5 Million Raised to Power the Future of Alternative Investments
Ankit Ratan
Co-Founder and CEO of Signzy
Ankit Ratan, Co-Founder and CEO of Signzy: Over $38 Million Raised to Build the Future of Digital Onboarding Infrastructure
David DeWolf
CEO & President of Knownwell
David DeWolf, CEO & President of Knownwell: $2 Million Raised to Build the Future of Commercial Intelligence
Laura Kornhauser
Co-Founder and CEO of Stratyfy
Laura Kornhauser, Co-Founder and CEO at Stratyfy: $10 Million Raised to Power the Future of Financial Inclusion
Ben Borodach
Co-Founder and CEO of April
Ben Borodach, Co-Founder and CEO of April: $40 Million Raised to Embed Intelligent Tax Experiences
Reed Switzer
CEO of Hopscotch
Reed Switzer, CEO of Hopscotch: $10M to Build the Future of B2B Payments For SMBs
Felix Rodriguez
CEO & Founder of Finally
Felix Rodriguez, CEO & Founder of Finally: $110 Million Raised to Power the Future of Finance Automation
Swapnil Shinde
CEO and Co-Founder of Zeni
Swapnil Shinde, CEO and Co-Founder of Zeni: $47+ Million Raised to Build the Finance Operations Category
Rodney Reisdorf
Co-Founder & CEO of Co-Founder & CEO
Rodney Reisdorf, CEO of Verivend: $3 Million Raised Transform Private Capital Transactions
Florian Wimmer
Co-Founder & CEO of Blockpit
Florian Wimmer, Co-Founder & CEO of Blockpit: $15 Million Raised to Power the Future of Crypto Tax Management
Bob Suh
CEO of OnCorps
Bob Suh, CEO of OnCorps: $18M Raised to Help Large Financial Institutions Solve Operational Problems with AI
Don Muir
CEO of Arc
Don Muir, CEO of Arc: Over $180 Million Raised to Empower Startups with a Better Cash Management Experience
Steve Pomfret
Steve Pomfret, CEO & Founder of Cygnetise: $8 Million Raised to Build the Future of Signatory Management
Steven Greene
CEO of Standard Practice
Steven Greene, CEO & Co-Founder of Standard Practice (Previously Nibble Health): $8 Million Raised to Bring the Fintech Revolution to the World Healthcare Payments
Wade Arnold
CEO and Founder of Moov
Wade Arnold, CEO and Founder of Moov: $77.5 Million Raised to Build the Future of Embedded Payments
Dan Beck
Dan Beck, CEO & Co-Founder of 401GO: $14 Million Raised to Build the Future of Retirement Benefits for Small Businesses
Sohaib Zahid
CEO and Co-Founder of Railz
Sohaib Zahid, CEO and Co-Founder of Railz: $15 Million Raised to Build to Accounting Data as a Service Category
Eric Velasquez Frenkiel
Founder and CEO of Pomelo
Eric Velasquez Frenkiel, CEO of Pomelo: $70 Million Raised to Build the Future of Remittance