London-based Synthera, a fintech company leveraging generative AI to transform financial market analysis, has raised $1.86M (approximately €1.77M) in a pre-seed funding round.
Led by Motive Ventures, the round also saw participation from Entrepreneur First, Transpose Platform, KDX (led by Stanford Professor Ashby Monk), BuenTrip Ventures, Robin Capital, and Angel Invest.
Angel investors, including a former Citadel Portfolio Manager and experienced asset managers, further showed confidence in Synthera’s approach.
Michael Hock, Partner at Motive Ventures, says, “Synthera is solving a fundamental problem in the financial industry: the inability of historical data and traditional models to account for the realities of today’s markets.”
“By leveraging cutting-edge generative AI, they are creating a product that addresses a critical need for financial institutions looking to improve risk management and portfolio outcomes. We’re proud to back such a visionary team.”
What does Synthera offer?
Synthera claims to leverage generative AI to address flaws in traditional financial forecasting methods like Monte Carlo simulations. According to the company, these conventional approaches often overfit historical data, fail to account for dynamic market changes, and miss non-linear correlations, increasing investors’ exposure to risks.
By generating synthetic market data, Synthera enables investment teams to forecast risks, including rare tail events, identify non-linear correlations for better diversification, and stress-test portfolios using bespoke forward-looking scenarios.
The platform’s AI-driven models simulate realistic market conditions across yield curves, equities, FX, and other financial factors, providing deeper insights and precision in portfolio optimisation and risk management.
Synthera was founded by Mariana Barona, a Cambridge graduate and former Goldman Sachs Asset Management specialist, and Lukas Schreiner, an AI and quantitative finance expert with experience at LPA and Swiss Quant.
Oxford Professor Rama Cont, an expert in quantitative finance and risk management who serves as Synthera’s scientific advisor, advises the team.
Co-founder and CEO Barona says, “By bridging the gaps in traditional approaches, Synthera provides financial institutions with the tools to anticipate and navigate market complexities in ways that weren’t possible before. This fresh funding allows us to bring our solution to market and help investment teams unlock better, data-driven decisions.”
Capital utilisation
Synthera will use the funds to accelerate product development, expand its team of engineers and data scientists, and collaborate with financial institutions to pilot its technology.
The company aims to help hedge funds, asset managers, pension funds, and banks improve insights and enhance risk-adjusted returns.
Barona says, “Our technology is not just about improving what exists—it’s about redefining how investment teams think about data and risk in a dynamic market environment.”
01
From port to startup fort: How Lars Crama is ‘Making it Happen’ in Rotterdam