Scoop: Assure, a fintech for startup investing, is shutting down

Assure, a popular fintech platform for administering special purpose vehicles (SPVs), on Tuesday night informed clients that it is shutting down, Axios has learned from multiple sources.

Why it matters: SPVs, or investment pools designed to invest in a specific company, have boomed in popularity over recent years — being used not only by individual deal sponsors, but also by institutional investors like venture capital firms.

Details: Salt Lake City-based Assure was founded in 2012, to handle back-office tasks for both SPVs and traditional private equity funds. It claims on its website to have completed more SPVs and private transactions than any other such administrator.

• Assure did not provide users with a reason for the shutdown, which takes effect at the end of the year, beyond writing: "The industry has evolved considerably over the decade since we founded our company.  Current market conditions have resulted in Assure evaluating its business model."
• It also provided users with information on how to handle existing cash distributions, open bank and brokerage accounts and crypto-related SPVs. Assure also is working with a rival company called Allocations, to provide ongoing services to users who are interested.

The bottom line: Assure's website homepage and social media don't reflect the shutdown, but the company did create a transition information page that it shared in its user communication.