Vino Vest
AcquiredFounded 2019 · 21 employees on LinkedIn · 9 known investors
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Vinovest offers a platform for building and managing personalized portfolios of fine wine and whiskey as investment assets, handling logistics such as merchants, warehousing, insurance, and export. It targets individual investors seeking alternative assets and uses data-driven strategies backed by wine and whiskey experts.
Also known as Vinovest
Founders & leadership
Vino Vest was founded in 2019 by Anthony Zhang and Brent Akamine.
Investors · 9
Company profile
researched Aug 2026Vinovest operates an online platform through which individual investors build and hold portfolios of fine wine and whiskey as investment assets. Clients share investment goals and preferences, and Vinovest's team assembles a tailored portfolio of bottles, then manages sourcing, authentication, storage in bonded warehouses, insurance, and logistics on the client's behalf. Investors track performance through the platform and, when holdings reach maturity (a stated horizon of roughly 4 to 10 years), Vinovest coordinates sales with buyers; investors own their holdings outright and may request physical delivery of bottles instead of selling.
The company was founded in 2019 and describes itself as a platform for fine wine and whisky investing. It reports 200,000+ clients, approximately $140 million of wine and whisky secured on behalf of clients (with company materials also citing over $150 million invested), and more than 1.7 million bottles in its care. Alongside its investor-facing product, Vinovest has built relationships with wineries, positioning itself as a channel through which producers reach collectors and investors in its network.
In March 2026, StartEngine, an equity crowdfunding and private-investing platform launched in 2014 and led by co-founder and CEO Howard Marks, announced it had acquired Vinovest to extend its offering beyond startup equity and pre-IPO opportunities into wine, whisky and collectibles. Financial terms were not disclosed. Vinovest continues to operate as a wholly owned subsidiary under its own brand.
Business model
Vinovest provides managed portfolios of fine wine and whiskey to individual investors, handling curation, sourcing, authentication, bonded-warehouse storage, insurance, logistics, and the eventual sale of holdings through a proprietary trading platform. Investors retain 100% ownership of their bottles and can elect delivery rather than sale.
Sources describe managed portfolio services covering storage, insurance, logistics and sale coordination, but do not specify fee structures.
Traction
Company and acquisition materials report 200,000+ clients, roughly $140 million of wine and whisky secured for clients (over $150 million invested per Vinovest's company description), and more than 1.7 million bottles under its care. Case studies on its site cite annualized returns on individual holdings ranging from about 23% to 53%.
Latest developments
StartEngine announced its acquisition of Vinovest on 24 March 2026; terms were not disclosed and Vinovest remains a wholly owned subsidiary operating under its existing brand. Brent Akamine is identified as Co-Founder and CEO of Vinovest in the announcement.
▸Full profile — market position, technology, go-to-market, history
Market position
Described in company and acquirer materials as a leading platform for fine wine and whisky investing, positioned within the broader alternative investment market, which the acquisition announcement cites as projected to reach nearly $60 trillion by 2033.
Technology
A proprietary trading and portfolio platform combining data and industry expertise to source and authenticate bottles, manage storage in bonded warehouses, and let investors track holdings' performance over time and choose to sell or take delivery.
Go-to-market
Individual and retail investors seeking alternative, uncorrelated assets for portfolio diversification, including those with limited prior knowledge of wine investing; also wineries seeking access to collectors and investors in Vinovest's network.
History
Founded in 2019, Vinovest built a fine wine and whisky investment platform serving a reported 200,000+ users. In March 2026 it was acquired by StartEngine, which had launched in 2014 and previously acquired the assets of competitor platform SeedInvest in May 2023; Vinovest continues under its own brand as a wholly owned subsidiary.
Compiled by commissioned research from 5 cited public sources — announcements, filings, and press listed under research sources below.
Key figures
latest reportedCompany-reported or press-reported figures, each dated to when it was claimed — not independently audited.
Founder mafia
3 people who came through Vino Vest went on to found or lead other companies.
Timeline · 1
launches, deals, and filingsStartEngine, a private investing platform launched in 2014, announced the acquisition of Vinovest to expand into alternative assets including fine wine, whisky and collectibles. Financial terms were not disclosed. Vinovest continues to operate as a wholly owned subsidiary under its existing brand.
Dated company events from announcements, filings, and press; legal rows summarize public dockets and regulator releases.
▸Research sources · 5
primary sources listed
- Vino Vestvinovest.co · web
5 public sources were cited for this profile; the first-party ones are listed here.
Frequently asked questions
- What does Vino Vest do?
- Vinovest is a fine wine and whisky investment platform, acquired by private-investing platform StartEngine in 2026.
- Who founded Vino Vest?
- Vino Vest was founded by Anthony Zhang, Brent Akamine in 2019.
- Who are Vino Vest's investors?
- Vino Vest's investors include 2am VC, Colopl Next, Electric Feel Ventures Llc, GFR Fund, Invariantes Fund, Noveus Capital, Oyster Ventures, Inertia Ventures and 1 more.