by Krystal Scanlon
The Drawdown (TDD): What does Freyda do and how does it work?
Danielle Lawrence (DL): Freyda is a SaaS platform which helps asset allocators and service providers to eliminate manual data entry and unlock portfolio insights. We achieve this by automating data extraction from their high volume and highly complex documents.
Our solution uses machine learning to understand documents in the same way humans do. Unlike OCR tools, for example, our algorithms can analyse, extract and normalise thousands of data points from complex private investment reports. These include quarterly financial statements, call and distribution notices, capital account statements and so on.
We consider ourselves the most powerful solution available today, as we’ve proven our technology processes data up to 75x faster than other automation solutions. This saves clients up to 90% of their costs and frees up their time to focus on high-value, high-impact work. These are the levels of performance and tangible outcomes that are fundamental for us. Freyda stands for Free Your Data and our mission states: We want to free your data so it can fly.
TDD: Your career started at Goldman Sachs’ Alternative Investments followed by positions at JRJ Group and Elysian Capital. What attracted you to the service provider side of the industry and to create a new product?
DL: I valued my time as an investor in those traditional private markets firms. It gave me a strong foundation to understand the nuances of the industry, the pain points, challenges, what was working and what wasn’t.
I also learned through personal discovery that I was seeking an environment which would allow me to continuously learn, grow and rapidly adapt. For that, I think you need to be a creator at heart and I simply discovered I wanted to build something that was innovative and impactful in the financial services industry. Starting my own business was a way to create and accelerate the change I felt the industry needed and wanted.
TDD: Lots of new startups are aiming to help PE firms, asset managers and the wider financial services industry manage and harness their data. What sets Freyda apart from its competition?
DL: We are seeing lots of innovation, which I think is great because the industry has fallen behind other financial sectors when it comes to digitalisation and harnessing the power of data. However, this also makes it more difficult for clients to sort through the noise.
Many providers claim to have the perfect solution for clients, but what sets us apart is two-fold. Our best-in-class tech and fiduciary approach with clients. We’re the first platform to fully analyse, extract and normalise private market data from documents, end-to-end. Unlike other platforms, we eliminate the post-processing for our clients so they have consistent, high quality outputs. We also leverage APIs so their data can flow freely and flexibly between systems. For us, that was really important as it’s something lots of other systems don’t currently do. We’re also the only solution which can handle underlying asset information at speed. For example, we’ve processed more than 2,500 data points from one GP report in under five minutes. It’s this level of performance, the rapid data processing and transparency we’re unlocking for clients.
The other side is our team’s expertise across private market data and operations globally. We implemented technology solutions, partnered with offshore providers and brought all of that knowledge and experience to our clients, and understood them. Ultimately we built Freyda because we felt no one else was doing it well, with integrity and the clients’ best interests at heart.
TDD: You recently received backing from the Google for Startups’ Black Founders Fund. What relationship will you have with Google going forward?
DL: It’s exciting to have Google’s backing and support. Having such a renowned tech firm believe in Fredya validates the work we do and what we’ve built so far.
We will work closely with Google throughout this year, mainly focusing on engineering and product. Google is one of few firms which have the expertise to collaborate on the innovation and bleeding edge approaches we use at Freyda. We also have access to mentors, products and partners, which is really valuable.
TDD: Some of Google’s investment capital will be used to fine tune the platform. Can you tell me more about this?
DL: We have our big mission: to help clients free their data, and we have a pretty ambitious roadmap to go with it. The investment itself will help us to accelerate our product rollout and new features, including optimising user experience, accuracy and insight detection.
TDD: The industry is currently focusing on managing/harnessing data, to gain insights and better decision-making. What do you think is the next step for data (and/or technology) once this has been achieved?
DL: I think improved reporting and transparency is becoming table stakes for the industry. You’re expected to have appropriate technology and great processes in place which allow your organisation to focus on high impact work.
For me, the next step is insight driven. It’s great that all of this data is now organised and accessible to you, but so what? It’s the ‘so what?’ that comes next. It’s better understanding portfolios to improve decision-making and get that edge over your peers. It’s understanding service agreements so you can spot possible issues for clients before they arise. It’s numerical information but also textual information too where lots of insight is still trapped and underutilised.
I think it’s a natural transition. From having zero data to having access to big data, then moving to insights which can set you apart from others in the market and move your goals forward, whether you’re a manager, an asset allocator or a service provider.
TDD: What are your key focuses over the next six to 12 months?
DL: There are three things we’re focused on. First, continuing to build out and deliver great client solutions and products. Second, we’re looking to expand the team to support that ongoing growth. And third, we’re also looking to expand our presence. We’ve been working with a few clients across Europe, the UK and the US and will continue to grow our presence in those markets.
This article is courtesy of The Drawdown, read the original article and the latest PE news and analysis here: https://the-drawdown.com/article/5-minutes-with-danielle-lawrence-freyda