Wall Street alum Sallie Krawcheck just raised $34 million for her investing platform — here's what it's like to use it

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Investing — when done right — is one of the best ways to make your money work for you, and it's critical for retiring comfortably.

But the uncertainty and risk that comes with the markets is very often a major deterrent, especially for women, who invest at a much lower rate than men in the US.

To combat this, former Wall Street executive Sallie Krawcheck launched Ellevest in 2016, a digital investing platform that puts female investors' money in low-cost ETFs based on a pick-and-choose set of goals, like starting a business, buying a home, having children, and retiring comfortably.

This week, the startup announced a new $34.6 million round of funding, led by Rethink Impact, the largest US venture capital impact fund with a gender focus. Jenny Abramson, the VC firm's founder and managing partner, will join Ellevest's board.

Tennis superstar Venus Williams, who is a champion of equal pay and opportunity for women both on and off the court, was among Ellevest's first investors.

Women tend to be less concerned with beating the market — the focus of much of the modern investment industry — and more interested in assuring that their money won't disappear completely, according to Sallie Krawcheck, who is also the founder of Ellevate, a global network for professional women.

Just 28% of women are willing to take on high risk to get a good return on their investment, compared to 45% of men, according to a 2015 report by BlackRock.

Beyond helping women prioritize financial goals, Ellevest takes into account the established facts of how women's financial experiences differ from men's: longer lifespans, different salary arcs, and the possibility of extended time off from work. This specificity alone differentiates the platform from an emerging crop of startup robo-advisors, including Betterment and Wealthfront.

Business Insider took a test drive of Ellevest's new software. Below, check out the simple (and surprisingly fun) process of setting up an account and creating an investment plan via Ellevest's website (the platform is currently available on mobile devices, but not yet in the app store).

(Note: Business Insider used a hypothetical situation and figures for this demonstration.)

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