Heading to the Brightside

Why we invested in Brightside, an all-in-one financial platform for employees

The financial needs of full-time employees in the United States continue to be underserved. Today, 71% of Americans are in poor financial health (with 17% considered financially vulnerable). Lack of access to capital — and insight on how best to allocate it — remains a clear challenge, with a few statistics highlighting it all:

• 21% of employees have a 401(k) loan outstanding
• $30 billion was paid by Americans in overdraft fees in 2020
• >$2,000 is paid to credit card companies in average annual interest

This pain point isn’t just felt by the public. 95% of employers feel responsible for the financial health of their employees. Additionally, there is now a clear ROI for employers that solve these challenges for their employees, with a lack of financial security resulting in:

• Four weeks of missed work per year
• 30% more expensive healthcare costs
• 2x more likely turnover

This equates to $4,300 per employee per year lost, all the result of poor financial health. It is now becoming an employer necessity, and Brightside is stepping up to the challenge.

Brightside is offering a suite of financial health and wellness solutions sold to employers, to be offered to their employees. Brightside acts as a tech-enabled navigator platform, presenting an array of financial health services to employees and becoming the single-source for all of an individual’s financial needs.

Once live with an employer, employees sign up for Brightside and receive a dedicated financial assistant along with an intuitive app. The financial advisor guides them through a financial wellness journey based on their current financial position, with three primary offerings: Urgent Financial Care (when people are low on cash), Primary Financial Care (helping people become financially healthy), or Financial Wellness (building wealth).

The company is run by CEO Tom Spann, who previously founded and scaled Accolade, a similar tech-enabled navigator platform designed for healthcare services, all the way to IPO.

We’re thrilled to be backing Brightside in this critical mission for so many Americans and their families.