A newly launched Seattle-area startup is setting out to bring sophisticated portfolio strategies, once accessible only to hedge funds and ultra-wealthy investors, into the hands of everyday traders.
Plutus, founded earlier this year, operates a marketplace where users can browse curated, thematic portfolios created by independent research providers, select those that align with their goals, and have them replicated automatically in their brokerage accounts.
The company is led by veteran engineers Shashank Chiranewala and Mitren Chinoy, who previously co-founded and sold the digital form startup Formloge earlier this year for an undisclosed sum. Chiranewala, who has experience as an investment banker and program manager at Microsoft and Meta, said his frustration stemmed from the fact that high-level investment strategies often require multimillion-dollar minimums. At the same time, he saw “a growing ecosystem of independent research firms serving institutional clients but lacking the technology to bring their portfolios to the mass market.”
Managing such complex strategies without automation, he explained, can be a “Herculean software engineering effort,” which is why Plutus serves as a bridge between investors and providers such as Citrini Research. The platform offers thematic strategies, ranging from AI and technology to global clean energy, and provides automated rebalancing alongside potential tax benefits.
Unlike ETFs or mutual funds, these portfolios operate on a subscription model, with Plutus taking a percentage of the fees set by each provider. The company has chosen to initially integrate with Interactive Brokers because of its global reach and competitive interest rates.
Though still in its early stages, Plutus is already generating revenue from a small roster of clients, including hedge funds and family offices, and its software currently manages more than $35 million in assets. The startup recently secured $452,000 in funding from angel investors and now employs five people. Chinoy, the CTO, previously worked as a senior software engineer at Snowflake and Microsoft.
