UCL startup demystifies finances for women and non-binary people

Set up by a UCL alumna and her sister, the financial education app Your Juno already has over 65,000 users and has raised over £2.5 million in investment.

Dubbed 'the Duolingo of money’, Your Juno is helping to educate women and non-binary people on the topic of finances. The platform, which consists of hundreds of online courses, covers everything from how to make your first investment to how to do your taxes. 

The business was launched in 2021 by Margot de Broglie (UCL Economics, 2019) and her sister Alexia, after Margot began looking into the world of investing. 

“I realised that despite having a background in economics, I didn’t actually understand that much about personal finance. And when I started digging into it, a lot of the resources didn’t seem that trustworthy; they were often sales pitches for financial products,” says Margot.

Margot and Alexia could also see a stark difference between the financial knowledge of their male and female friends. “A lot of guys already had crypto portfolios and their stocks were performing well. Whereas a lot of our female friends, like me, felt that the topic of investing was a boys’ club that they didn’t have access to.”

So Margot and Alexia set about developing Your Juno, a financial education app specifically for women and non-binary people. Users can sign up and work towards their financial goals, choosing from over 300 lessons, and earning points as they build their confidence and knowledge. There’s also a big community element, where users can anonymously ask money-related questions that they might feel uncomfortable asking elsewhere. 

A business that’s having a real impact

With 70,000 users having now signed up, Your Juno has been described by the Financial Times as having “revolutionised access to financial knowledge”. 

The rapid growth and success of the business led to the sisters making last year’s Forbes 30 under 30 List. They’ve also raised over £2.5 million in investment, to grow Your Juno further.  

“It’s fantastic to receive this kind of validation, but for us what’s most important is the stories of our community members,” says Margot. 

“92% of people who have used our app longer than a week have reported it has increased their financial confidence. A lot of other members have built up emergency funds, or made their first investments, or improved their financial situation. For us, that’s our biggest success metric.

“Whether we like it or not, money still plays a really big role in the way we live our lives and the choices that are available to us. And especially for young people, if they’re able to make informed financial decisions from a young age, it can set them up on a completely different life trajectory.”

Entrepreneurship support through UCL

Margot and Alexia received support with Your Juno through the Hatchery incubator programme at BaseKX, UCL’s dedicated entrepreneurship hub in King’s Cross. As well as access to free office space, they were matched with mentors and received tailored business support.

As for what’s next, the De Broglie sisters are now looking at expanding Your Juno into Europe and the US. They’re also building partnerships with several banks who are interested in using Your Juno to educate their customers. 

Margot is keen to encourage other budding entrepreneurs to tap into UCL’s support. “There’s a brilliant community here, and a lot available to help you with your business ideas, so if you’re thinking of setting up your own thing, make sure you tap into that. We made some brilliant contacts and connections, many of whom we’re still in touch with now.

“My other piece of advice is to not get stuck in paralysis analysis. Just get started and start small. You don’t need to start with an app straight away. You can launch a Tiktok page or an Instagram instead. All of these tools are easily available and free. And then you can track, and see if there’s demand, and build from there.”

Links

Find out more about:

• how UCL is transforming lives through collaboration and knowledge exchange
• Your Juno
• UCL Economics
• The Hatchery startup incubator within BaseKX
• Innovation and enterprise support for UCL students

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Photo © Your Juno