The founders of the Alinea investment app, Ms. Eve Halimi and Ms. Anam Lakhani, have created a platform to educate young adults about the nuances of investing.  The Alinea app became popular through social media and provides unique ways for younger investors to explore financial strategies.  Senior and Women in Finance (WIF) Club leader Elsa Latrille commented on her experience with the app and how she believes it can influence young women interested in the financial industry.

Before Ms. Halimi and Ms. Lakhani founded Alinea in 2020, they studied at Columbia University.  While at the university, they noticed hesitancy among their peers about investing.  Together, Ms. Halimi and Ms. Lakhani decided to create Alinea, a community that focused on supporting and encouraging young people to learn more about investing and the financial industry.  As the Alinea community grew at Columbia University, Ms. Halimi and Ms. Lakhani took their project further and started their development of the Alinea app, according to alinea-invest.com. 

With Alinea’s resources, users gain access to a community and company website that offers financial and investment advice.  Whether users are interested in learning more about the ins and outs of investing, catching up on weekly stock insights, or looking for ways to start their investment journey, Alinea’s website offers articles to help them find useful resources and strategies.  When paired with Alinea’s unique approach to stock playlists, the app allows users to strengthen their knowledge and diversify their investments, according to alinea-invest.com.  In an interview with Frederick Daso for Forbes, Ms. Halimi and Ms. Lakhani discussed their hope to debunk the stigma around investing and cater to a broader audience through their app, according to forbes.com. 

“The most common underlying stereotype we’ve seen is that many Gen-Z’s don’t feel like investors because, for so long, investing in the stock market was essentially marketed to and created for a specific population,” Ms. Halimi and Ms. Lakhani said, according to forbes.com.  “Even today, the loudest group fits a certain mold, as we’ve seen with the Wall Street Bets saga.  […]  On the Alinea app, we’ve built features to address all three of these concerns.”

After receiving feedback from community members and users, Ms. Halimi and Ms. Lakhani developed a new approach to appeal to younger investors.  With the option to create stock playlists on the Alinea app, users can invest in a portfolio of stocks linked through a common theme that caters to users’ interests.  This feature not only maintains the interest of Alinea users, but also focuses on stock diversification, preventing a limited investment and promoting the efficient use and safe-keeping of one’s money, according to alinea-invest.com.  Elsa commented on her experience with the app and how this approach to investing will help young adults invest, especially those who are members of the WIF Club. 

“As a women who looks to break into the financial industry in the future, I knew learning how to invest was a necessary tool that could aid in my progression,” Elsa said.  “Yet, I honestly had no idea where to start.  Today, social media dominates discussion around so many topics, including the topic of financial investment.  So when I discovered Alinea through a friend, I immediately signed up.  I loved that it was created by women who wanted to make investing accessible and fun for young people.  I think it is one more resource that can help many girls in Sacred Heart’s WIF Club learn more and ease into this male-dominated industry.”

With popular accounts on TikTok and Instagram, Alinea creates content with investment tips, promotional advertising, and user reviews to draw people in.  The Alinea app also includes features such as a “For You” page and the ability to share activity with friends and other users.  These opportunities allow for community support, communication, and connection, further supporting the app’s goal of fostering an accessible resource focused on cumulative growth around understanding the financial world.  Ms. Halimi and Ms. Lakhani discussed the benefits Alinea could provide its users as its resources for discussion remove societal preconceived opinions and promote the accumulation of new ideas, according to forbes.com. 

“When you talk about investing with friends, it removes both the taboo of talking about money and the intimidation of getting started,” Ms. Halimi and Ms. Lakhani said, according to forbes.com.  “You are also more likely to learn something from these conversations and explore different industries and ideas.”

Featured Image by Zara Black ’23