M1
M1 is a fintech platform that offers investing, borrowing, and savings tools to retail investors. It manages over $10 billion in assets and grew from 82 to 236 employees in 2021, reaching a $1.45 billion valuation that year. about
The growth story
M1 grew from 385 to 236 employees between 2022 and 2026, raising $323M along the way, most recently a Series E in July 2021.
About
M1 provides a platform for retail investors to manage their finances, including automated investing, margin loans, personal loans, and high-yield savings accounts. Its tools aim to simplify wealth management for individual users.
The company experienced rapid growth in 2021, more than doubling its employee count and achieving unicorn status. It has raised $323 million in funding, with its latest Series E round closing in July 2021.
Founders and leadership
Engineering is the largest function at M1, with 24 employees. The company has a median tenure of 3 years, suggesting moderate employee retention.
The M1 org chart
Brian Barnes (Founder and CEO) leads 38 mapped leaders with 8 direct reports. Click +N to expand a team; names link to the person’s public profile.
Departments, and which ones grew
Headcount by function: Operations 38 (+12% YoY), Engineering 37 (-3% YoY), Finance 24 (+26% YoY), Business Development 19 (0% YoY), Information Technology 13 (-7% YoY), Marketing 9 (+29% YoY).
Talent flow
M1 hires heavily from Robinhood, Slalom, and Spantree LLC. Alumni frequently move to NinjaTrader, iSeatz, and Rocket Money. The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Purdue University, and the University of Illinois at Chicago are top talent sources.
Most common previous employers of M1 staff: Robinhood (8), Slalom (7), Spantree LLC, a Trifork Company (4), Pandera Labs (3), Acquity (3), Capital One (3). Former M1 employees most often moved to NinjaTrader (6), iSeatz (4), Rocket Money (3), JPMorganChase (3), SoFi (3), Beemo Automation (2).
Alumni worth knowing
The M1 mafia
M1 alumni have founded 8 companies, including HipVan, Sound Capital Solutions, and ComplyX. Beemo Automation and Lumitra are also notable startups founded by former employees.
8Kai Jian (KJ) Chua, was Investor & Board Director until 2023Nicholas Dalmaso, was CCO and General Counsel until 2021Ben Olsen, was Client Success Lead, Automation Lead, Senior Data Analyst until 2022Kevin Pierce, was Growth Marketing Manager until 2024Katrina Kirsch, was Editorial Lead until 2022
Kiran Rushton, was Product Manager until 2021
Richard Whaling, was Director of Data Engineering until 2025Web traffic
Traffic mix: 74% direct, 20% search, 2% social, 1% paid.
What this company is made of
Most common skills at M1: Leadership (48), Microsoft Office (36), JavaScript (35), Management (35), Customer Service (33), Microsoft Excel (31), SQL (28), Java (28).
Where the team actually sits
M1 people are concentrated in Illinois, United States (28), Greater Chicago Area (19), United States (8), New York, United States (5).
Search footprint
M1 attracts about 71,420 organic search visits a month, traffic worth roughly $242K a month if bought through ads. It gained 4,477 ranking keywords and lost 3,395 in the last period.
What employees say
- Compensation
- 3.40 / 5
- Career opportunities
- 3.40 / 5
- Senior management
- 3.20 / 5
- Work-life balance
- 4.30 / 5
Frequently asked
M1 has 236 employees as of September 2026.
M1 has raised $323M in total, most recently a Series E round in July 2021.
M1 was founded in 2015 by Brian Barnes.
Brian Barnes (Founder and CEO) sits at the top of M1's reporting structure, with 8 direct reports.
The most common previous employers of current M1 staff are Robinhood (8 people), Slalom (7 people), Spantree LLC, a Trifork Company (4 people).
Former M1 employees most often move to NinjaTrader (6), iSeatz (4), Rocket Money (3).
At least 8 companies have a founder who previously worked at M1, including HipVan, Sound Capital Solutions, ComplyX.
M1 attracts about 71,420 organic search visits a month, worth roughly $242K a month in equivalent ad spend.
The most common skills among M1 staff are Leadership, Microsoft Office, JavaScript, Management, Customer Service.
M1 staff are concentrated in Illinois, United States (28), Greater Chicago Area (19), United States (8).
M1 has about 38 people in Operations, up 12% over the past year, as of September 2026.
M1 has about 37 people in Engineering, down 3% over the past year, as of September 2026.
Computed from 97 current and 275 former M1 profiles, as of September 2026. Source: Crustdata.
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