Tag Archives: eMoney

FPPad Bits and Bytes for February 19

Posted on February 19, 2016 by in Bits & Bytes

On today’s broadcast, Riskalyze announces its new Check-Ins feature, eMoney Advisor shows off its new client experience, Fidelity offers a preview of its new Wealthscape™ platform, and TD Ameritrade Institutional tells me when you can expect Veo One.

So get ready, FPPad Bits and Bytes begins now!

(Watch FPPad Bits and Bytes on YouTube)

Today’s episode is brought to you by eMoney Advisor, providers of a leading ADVISOR-CENTRIC wealth-planning portal.

eMoney Advisor

eMoney just introduced an enhanced client experience, incorporating many of the features investors find most compelling about digital advice platforms – like automation, intuitive design, ease-of-use, and more, helping you deliver an unmatched client experience. For more information on eMoney’s brand new client portal, visit fppad.com/emoneyadvisor

Riskalyze Introduces ‘Check-Ins’, Automated Behavioral Coaching Tools for Advisors from Riskalyze

[Last week I attended the T3 conference in Ft. Lauderdale, and I made three vlogs that you should watch, so let me give you the rundown of what I think were the best stories from the event.

Leading off is Riskalyze, as CEO Aaron Klein introduced a feature called Check-ins, which allows you to gauge your client’s sentiment of the markets with a pretty unobtrusive email. Clients answer two simple questions in a few seconds which helps you quickly identify those who have growing concerns about their financial future. Here’s Aaron Klein on availability and pricing:

Klein: Check-Ins are going to arrive in May, and we haven’t set pricing for them yet, but I can tell you it’s going to be a free upgrade for all of our existing customers.] Riskalyze, the company that has equipped thousands of advisors with the Risk Number™, today announced powerful new tools that revolutionize the ability of advisors to put the markets in context for their clients during client reviews, support client psychology between those reviews, and deliver consistent behavioral coaching that promotes long-term investing.

eMoney Launches Enhanced Client Experience from eMoney Advisor

[Another top update comes from eMoney, as Drew DiMarino took the stage to show off the updated client experience, giving a preview of the new look, showing how goals are tracked in the platform, and highlighted client collaboration features that help clients remember what tasks they should complete to meet their goals. The update is coming in March, and here’s Drew DiMarino on what you can expect:

DiMarino: The new client experience is much more personal in nature, the client can actually add images of their family, set goals with those images tied to those goals, a much more customizable experience for the end client.] At the T3 Advisor conference in Fort Lauderdale, Florida today, eMoney Advisor (“eMoney”), a leading provider of wealth-planning technology for financial professionals, will unveil its enhanced client experience.

Fidelity Reveals Plans For Multi-Custodial Advisor Technology Hub from WealthManagement.com

[And finishing my rundown is Fidelity, as the custodian revealed plans to offer Wealthscape™, Fidelity’s Total Advisor Platform that combines portfolio management, rebalancing, proposals, and fee billing with the features and functionality of the eMoney wealth portal. I caught up with Tom McCarthy, senior vice president for product development at Fidelity for a few more details.

McCarthy: So we’ve taken a hard look at the marketplace, talking to our clients, and looking at a lot of research, so Fidelity’s response to help them grow their business is the Fidelity Total Advisor Platform. The primary pieces of that are a deep integration with our new acquisition of eMoney, bringing planning to action, as well as a full suite of integrated portfolio tools wrapped in very advanced workflows.

The platform is expected to roll out at the end of 2016 with Fidelity-only data, and support for multi-custodial data is anticipated sometime in 2017.] In the escalating battle for control of the technology hub used by registered investment advisors, Fidelity Investments has a new weapon that may turn the tides.

TD Ameritrade Tells RIAs to Get Ahead of Emerging Technology, Pricing and Talent Challenges from BusinessWire.com

[Now the week before T3 I went to the TD Ameritrade Institutional National LINC conference, and I made more videos you should watch, but the biggest takeaway for me was clarification on when to expect the rollout of the Veo One dashboard.

I sat down with Chris Valleley to better understand the timeline when Veo One will be released.

[Winterberg]: So I need to be more clear that it’s not one release date, it’s all official, and it’s all done, but it’s rather graduated and it’s going to be progressive.
[Valleley]: That’s right, it won’t be a big bang rollout, it will be an iterative approach, and we’ll find the advisors with the right integrations at the right time and then onboard them into Veo One.

So, fair enough, you’re going to have to be patient for the release of Veo One, just like you’re going to need to wait and see how Fidelity’s Wealthscape evolves, too.

Fortunately, Veo Open Access now supports over 100 integrated solution providers, which means that you have options you can buy and implement today without waiting to see what the custodians promise to offer in the future.] Veo One, TD Ameritrade Institutional’s next-generation advisor technology platform, will give advisors access to all of the CRM, financial planning, portfolio management and other systems they use from one desktop.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have quite a bit of laundry to do from our trips, so for FPPad.com, I’m Bill Winterberg, see you next time!

Here are the video playlists we published from TD Ameritrade Institutional National LINC and T3:

2016 TD Ameritrade Institutional National LINC

2016 T3 Advisor

Here are stories that didn’t make this week’s broadcast:

United Capital Acquires FlexScore To Boost Financial Planning from WealthManagement.com

United Capital, the Newport Beach, Calif.-based firm, is acquiring FlexScore, a consumer-facing financial planning tool that aggregates users financial data to generate a credit-score-like number of a person’s financial health.

 

Watch FPPad Bits and Bytes for February 19, 2016

Watch FPPad Bits and Bytes for February 19, 2016

Between Sessions with eMoney Advisor at T3 Enterprise 2015

Posted on December 29, 2015 by in Between Sessions, Conferences

I met with Drew DiMarino, SVP of eMoney Advisor, between sessions at T3 Enterprise 2015 to dive into the details of what he discussed during his general session presentation at the conference.

After speculation about management changes and potential conflicts following Fidelity’s acquisition of eMoney, DiMarino used the opportunity to address the attendees and set the record straight.

“eMoney Advisor will remain an independent company. Period,” said DiMarino.

He added that the eMoney Advisor platform will continue to be accessible to non-Fidelity clients.

As of November 2015, roughly 75% of eMoney users have custodial relationships outside of Fidelity.

Another rumor DiMarino addressed is the sharing of investor information between eMoney and Fidelity.

DiMarino added, “eMoney has privacy laws against Fidelity accessing and using independent advisor data.”

After the sudden departure of eMoney founder Edmund Walters, DiMarino said that the company is currently searching for a successor CEO, and in the meantime is hiring more developers to deliver “a five-year roadmap in two years.”

On the product roadmap, DiMarino previewed a new client experience that he said will be launching in Q1 2016 that offers easy client onboarding and self registration options for investors.

2015 Tech Survey Results! FPPad Bits and Bytes for December 4

Posted on December 4, 2015 by in Bits & Bytes

On today’s broadcast, it’s survey time. Find out about this year’s winners and losers in the annual Financial Planning Magazine technology survey.

So get ready, FPPad Bits and Bytes begins now.

coverOk, this week’s coverage is all about the 2015 Financial Planning Magazine technology survey, analyzed every year by tech expert Joel Bruckenstein. This year’s survey consisted of just 600 responses, of which roughly 200 were from firms that identify themselves as independent RIAs.

Now I have to admit, this sample size is a lot lower then the peak back in 2011 when the survey collected over 3200 responses, but Financial Planning Magazine changed its survey methodology to prevent ballot stuffing, and insists that the current data is still statistically significant. So, now that we have that out of the way, you can draw your own conclusions from this year’s survey results.

Technology Spending

First up: technology spending. Survey says: Over 90% of advisors spent the same or more on technology this year. But honestly, I don’t see how spending on technology guarantees your firm will be any better in the long run, it just means you spend lots of money on technology.

I care whether you’re gaining efficiency and scalability from the technology you do purchase, which leads us to the next item. CRM software.

Top CRM Software

So what’s the top CRM in use? Survey says! None.

Seriously, none?!? Yeah. Among independent RIAs, 22.9% say they don’t use a formal CRM. Oh wait, I know what CRM they use: Cranium Relationship Management, because It’s All Right Here. Ugh.

But for those of you who DO use a CRM, top survey responses include Salesforce, Junxure, and Redtail, with Wealthbox doing a respectable job closing the gap with the top three.

Top Financial Planning Software

So what about financial planning software: Survey says! MoneyGuidePro takes the top spot, with eMoney in the runner up position for the sixth straight year. Eight other providers battle it out for the remaining solutions, with Advizr being one to watch with its quality showing after just one year in the marketplace.

Top Portfolio Management Software

And moving on, the next category is portfolio management software, with the top provider being, oh that’s right, survey says! PortfolioCenter.

Morningstar, Albridge, Envestnet and Orion round out the top five, as their numbers are fairly consistent with the tech surveys over the last few years. But, I’m fairly sure Envestnet and Orion are a lot closer to one another in marketshare than this survey shows, with Envestnet probably commanding a slight lead, so remember what I said earlier about statistical significance and sample size.

Top Online Advice Solution

Alright, we’re in the home stretch now, as the top online advice solution is: Survey says: Wealth Access? Huh.

So now I’m confused, because Wealth Access provides portfolio reporting, monitoring and aggregation services, but not online advice. So that leaves a Schwab Institutional Intelligent Portfolios™ as the true top online advice solution, with nine other providers battling it out for at least some meaningful traction among advisors. I can tell there’s a lot more work to be done here.

Top Client Portal

And finally, I’m wrapping up with the top client portal, so, survey says! Broker-dealer or custodian provided. Ugh. That’s not a portal, that’s online account access! Anyone with an account has that! Seriously.

At least with eMoney, which claimed third place, clients can securely upload documents, see all their financial assets using account aggregation, and more. If all you offer is read-only account access to client, you are not leveraging the potential of a real client portal.

I don’t know about you, but I’m a little depressed after digesting this year’s tech survey. There is a lot of work left to be done.

But here’s the silver lining: this survey covers the technology that some advisors are using up until today, but it’s not indicative of the cutting-edge solutions that have the potential to grow your business in the near future.

For that, you’re going to have to watch next week’s episode on my picks for the Best Technology of 2015.

 

Watch FPPad Bits and Bytes for December 4, 2015

Watch FPPad Bits and Bytes for December 4, 2015

FPPad Bits and Bytes for August 14

Posted on August 14, 2015 by in Bits & Bytes

On today’s broadcast, Envestnet acquires account aggregation provider Yodlee, Advizr makes two announcements to close the gap among financial planning software, and find out why automated investing services might be losing their competitive advantage.

So get ready, FPPad Bits and Bytes begins now.

(WatchFPPad Bits and Bytes on YouTube)

Today’s episode is brought to you by eMoney Advisor, host of the eMoney Advisor Summit coming October 19th through 21st in Orlando.

emoney summit

Take a deep dive into the emX strategies that help you Connect, Engage and Win with your clients. Plus, everyone watching this show can take advantage of a one hundred dollar discount off your registration, so visit fppad.com/emoneysummit15 today and use promo code FPPAD100. That’s FPPAD100.

Here are the links to this week’s top stories:

Envestnet to Acquire Yodlee from Envestnet

[This week’s top story comes from Envestnet, as the wealth management technology and service provider announced it is acquiring Yodlee in a deal valued somewhere around $660 million. Now most of you know Yodlee for account aggregation, but Yodlee really doesn’t sell services directly to advisors.

Instead, some advisors benefit from Yodlee aggregation through third-party integrations, with MoneyGuidePro being the most well know,after announcing a Yodlee integration to much fanfare last year, priced at a dollar per day. You can get more details on that in episode 120 that I linked over here.

So let’s cut to the chase: is this good or bad? If you’re an Envestnet technology user, this is really good. Aggregating clients’ held away accounts gives you better visibility on what clients actually own, how they’re allocated, and in some cases, how they manage their cash flow. This information can only make the advice you give better, and that’s a fantastic thing for everyone!

BUT, if you compete with Envestnet and/or take advantage of Yodlee aggregation today, the future isn’t so clear. It’s way too early to speculate what’s going to happen to Yodlee’s pricing and availability, but if efficient account aggregation is a cornerstone of your business, it might be time to keep alternatives like Aqumulate, ByAllAccounts, or Quovo in mind.] Envestnet, Inc. (NYSE:ENV), a leading provider of unified wealth management technology and services to financial advisors, and Yodlee, Inc. (Nasdaq: YDLE), the leading cloud-based platform driving digital financial innovation, today announced that the Boards of Directors of both companies have unanimously approved a definitive agreement under which Envestnet will acquire all of the shares of Yodlee in a cash and stock transaction valued at $18.88 per share, or approximately $660 million on a fully-diluted equity value basis.

 

Introducing: Advizr Express from Advizr

[Next up is news from Advizr, an up-and-coming financial planning software provider, who this week made two announcements. First is the introduction of a prospecting tool called Advizr Express, allowing you to attract prospects by offering a super-simple retirement readiness illustration either on your website or for use with prospects during an initial meeting. Advizr Express is in beta testing today with an official release anticipated later this month.

Advizr’s second announcement is a new integration with Orion Advisor Services to import client portfolio holdings to avoid manually entering that information by hand. This adds to an existing integration with Blueleaf, and should be a preview of what to come with connections with many of the leading custodians. Wink wink.

So while Advizr is still a ways away from offering the number of integrations found in category leaders like Advicent, eMoney, and MoneyGuidePro, updates like these should help Advizr close the gap and offer you more choice in the tools you use to deliver financial planning.]

Automation Won’t Replace People as Your Competitive Advantage from Harvard Business Review

[And finally, I want to wrap up this week’s broadcast with an article from Harvard Business Review titled Automation Won’t Replace People as Your Competitive Advantage. For two years and seventy episodes of Bits and Bytes, the chatter about automated investment services and algorithmic rebalancing has reached a fever pitch, but scroll down to the end of that article and you’ll read a striking statement:

“Once smart machines are built to solve problems in asset efficiency (or indeed any area of operations) they very rapidly spread and become pervasive across an industry. Therefore, they cease to provide a competitive advantage.”

I think this perfectly describes what’s happening today in automated investing. Sure, six years ago, Wealthfront and Betterment attracted attention because there was nothing out there like their automated services. Their exclusivity was their competitive advantage.
But fast forward to today where automated services are available from Schwab, Vanguard, Future Advisor, Blooom, and even LPL Financial having announced their own plans for an automated service. Automated investing is becoming pervasive.

But what that also says to me is that if you don’t have some kind of low-cost automated service to offer, it may actually be viewed as a disadvantage because they’re so common in the industry. It’s like telling clients you won’t communicate with them via email. It’s so pervasive, who DOESN’T use email?] Geoff Colvin’s primary argument is that there are some unique human capabilities, like empathy and storytelling, that will keep people employable even as automation chips away at the content of most jobs.

 

Watch FPPad Bits and Bytes for August 14, 2015

Watch FPPad Bits and Bytes for August 14, 2015

FPPad Bits and Bytes for June 5

Posted on June 5, 2015 by in Bits & Bytes

On today’s broadcast, Guide Financial gets scooped up by an insurance company, Fox Financial Planning Network wants to help you with your online investment service adoption, and WealthMinder raises fresh capital to give you an edge over robo advisors.

So get ready, FPPad Bits and Bytes begins now!

(WatchFPPad Bits and Bytes on YouTube)

This week’s episode of Bits and Bytes is brought to you by Total Rebalance Expert, the industry’s largest, privately owned portfolio rebalancing software provider.

trx 600

TRX now offers TRX Edge, a completely rewritten rebalancing platform optimized for the web as well as mobile devices. Sign up for a demo of TRX Edge by visiting http://fppad.com/trx

 

Here are the links to this week’s top stories:

John Hancock Acquires Software Provider Guide Financial, Inc. As Part of Companywide Long-Term Innovation Plan from John Hancock

[This week’s top story comes from Guide Financial, because while I was enjoying clam chowder in a Boudin sourdough bowl in San Francisco, the company announced it was acquired by John Hancock, the life insurance, mutual fund, and retirement solution provider. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Now if you’re a regular viewer of FPPad Bits and Bytes, you should remember I highlighted Guide Financial in episode 124 when the company announced an agreement to white-label its solution for members of the Garrett Planning Network.

That was more than a year ago, and I’m told that the adoption of the white-labeled solution was below expectations. So fast forward to today on the heels of fintech acquisitions of eMoney Advisor, Upside, NestEgg Wealth, and LearnVest and you’ll quickly realize that industry behemoths like John Hancock are eager to cater to tech-savvy customers with slick, user friendly online experiences. Guide Financial is just one of the many online startups in this space building such a platform.

In the press release, John Hancock said that Guide Financial will operate as an independent group, so I can only speculate whether or not Guide Financial will remain independent or if some financial product upselling and/or cross marketing will weave its way into the solution. So stay tuned.] John Hancock announced today that it has acquired Guide Financial, Inc., a San Francisco-based software provider for financial advisors. Guide Financial builds software that enables investors to make better financial decisions and build wealth, utilizing artificial intelligence, behavioral finance, and seamless advisor integration. Terms were not disclosed.

Fox Financial Planning Network Launches AdvisorTouch Symphony from PRNewswire

[Next up is more news regarding online investment services, as the Fox Financial Planning Network recently announced a new program called AdvisorTouch Symphony. If you missed the news because you were out riding a cable car, AdvisorTouch Symphony is essentially a turnkey roadmap you can implement to add an online investment service to your business.

Under the program, you’ll receive step-by-step guidance on how to adopt these new tools, with Jemstep Advisor Pro being the first automated investment service of choice, and you can expect several other online services to be featured in the near future.

Pricing for firms with one to three advisors is a one-time fee of $5,500, and larger firms will be charged based on their size and need for customization.

This gets you the practice management resources, but this fee doesn’t include additional compliance guidance and resources available from National Regulatory Services, or the optional cybersecurity consulting from True North Networks which were both named in an alliance with AdvisorTouch Symphony. Whew! Got that?

So if you want someone else to show you how to add an online investment service to your business, this is one resource to be sure is on your radar.] Fox Financial Planning Network (FFPN) announced today the launch of AdvisorTouch Symphony, the only program of its kind to help financial advisory firms harness the power of combining robo-technology with practice management. FFPN created this program to demystify robo-technology for advisory firms and provide a detailed road map through every aspect of the implementation process to help firms maximize the benefits of its use.

This Reston startup raised $1.45M to bring financial advisers to the masses from BizJournals.com, and

Beyond the Robo-Advisor from Financial Advisor Magazine

[And finally, this week’s broadcast wraps up with news on WealthMinder, because while I was pillaging and plundering with pirates of the “you can’t say that on YouTube,” the company announced a new round of fundraising to the swashbuckling tune of $1.45 million.

WealthMinder is, surprise surprise, yet another while-labeled advisor solution for online service, only this one goes beyond basic asset allocation recommendations by incorporating goal planning. To get a deeper look at WealthMinder, coincidentally, Joel Bruckenstein reviewed WealthMinder in his column for Financial Advisor Magazine this month.

To cut to the chase, clients and prospects log in to WealthMinder and choose goals they’re planning for, they aggregate their investment accounts using an integration from Yodlee, and WealthMinder ultimately generates an initial financial plan based on some basic assumptions, and yes, the plan can include investment recommendations, too.

For you, the advisor, you can log in to your dashboard and view all the plans that clients have created, which includes their recommended actions, and then you can proactively offer your services to help clients implement the next steps. There are a reported 26 firms using the platform today, and the pricing to advisors comes in at $10 per month per client, but you can offset the cost by collecting a monthly subscription fee from clients who want to use the WealthMinder platform.] WealthMinder, a Reston-based financial marketplace that looks to connect financial advisers with people who aren’t considered wealthy, has secured $1.45 million in seed funding led by two West Coast venture capital firms — Green Visor Capital and Signatures Capital.

Here are the stories that didn’t make this week’s broadcast:

Morningstar to Add Portfolio Rebalancing Capability for Independent Financial Advisors, Powered by Total Rebalance Expert from Morningstar

Morningstar, Inc., a leading provider of independent investment research, is working with Total Rebalance Expert (TRX) to add rebalancing functionality to Morningstar Office, the company’s practice and portfolio management system for independent financial advisors.

Vestorly Announces the Integration of Its Smart Digital Content Technology on to Pershings NetX360® Platform from Marketwired

Vestorly today announced the integration of its smart digital content technology into Pershing’s NetX360® platform.

Tech Review: New Bet on Financial Health from Financial Planning

Consumers seem to be buying into the idea that these devices can help improve their physical health, so why not create similar mobile capabilities to track financial health?

 

 

Watch FPPad Bits and Bytes for June 5, 2015

Watch FPPad Bits and Bytes for June 5, 2015

FPPad Bits and Bytes for February 20

Posted on February 20, 2015 by in Bits & Bytes

On today’s broadcast, I have explosive news from eMoney, Riskalyze, Betterment, Schwab and Orion.

So buckle your seat belt, FPPad Bits and Bytes begins now!

(WatchFPPad Bits and Bytes on YouTube)

Today’s episode is brought to you by ITEGRIA, providers of complete outsourced technology support, security, infrastructure and IT solutions exclusively for RIAs.

itegria - providing a 360-degree, comprehensive approach to financial advisor IT needs

In their new book titled Red Flags, you’ll learn how to protect your firm from cyber-attacks, disasters, and IT compliance risks. Learn more about the Red Flags book by visiting fppad.com/itegria.

Here are the links to this week’s top stories:

eMoney Reveals New emX Select Dashboard At 2015 T3 Conference from WealthManagement.com

[Now you probably know that the Super Bowl of advisor technology, a.k.a. the T3 conference, was held in Dallas last week. By last count, there were over 40 press releases made at the event, but since this is just a five minute show, here are my picks for the most important stories.

First up is eMoney Advisor, as their CEO Edmund Walters took the stage with no slide deck, no apologies, and proceeded to shock the audience with a preview of emX Select, completed by a video filled with explosions.

Awesome, right?!? On everyone’s mind was the Fidelity acquisition, so Walters told the packed ballroom eMoney “had to sell” because “this tech is expensive” and he wants to “kick the crap out of the B2C” robo advisors (implosion!).

I told you, ! No apologies.

From what I’ve seen so far, emX Select resembles the Veo One™ dashboard recently announced by TD Ameritrade Institutional (you did watch my Veo One coverage, right?) but eMoney aims to have 28 integrations by September, which beats the 11 integrations planned for Veo One, one of which includes eMoney Advisor. Interesting!] On Friday at the 2015 T3 Conference in Dallas, eMoney Advisor, recently acquired by Fidelity for $250 million, gave advisors the first look at its new emX Select platform.

CLS Investments and Riskalyze Join Forces to Launch Autopilot, Arming Advisors With the Digital Tools Needed to Neutralize Robo-Threat from Riskalzye, and

Riskalyze Reinvents the Client Meeting from Riskalyze

[Next up is Riskalyze, as CEO Aaron Klein announced a new partnership with Omaha-based CLS Investments to provide an end-to-end online investment service called Autopilot. At a high level, Autopilot is similar to Betterment Institutional, Upside, JemStep and others where clients answer an online questionnaire and can then invest directly in a recommended portfolio allocation based on their answers.

Klein also demonstrated a new tool called Meetings, a simple way advisors can conduct screen sharing with remote clients without exposing private data, embarrassing cat videos, or the random Godzilla attack (woah!) that might pop up on an advisor’s screen. Meetings comes out February 23rd, so make sure you give it a try.] Autopilot Will Offer Automated Asset Management and Risk Measurement, Embedded Into an Advisory Firm’s Existing Website.

Betterment Valued At Nearly $500 Million In New Round from the Wall St. Journal

[And let’s crush this broadcast (woah!) with a quick roundup of other news: Betterment just raised another $60 million in venture capital for a total of $105 million. What are they going to do with the cash? Betterment CEO Jon Stein says they’re going to refine algorithms to answer questions like “Am I saving enough relative to my goals?” Warning: financial planning algorithms ahead!] New York-based Betterment is closing a new $60 million round, the company is set to announce on Thursday.

Schwab tells the SEC its robo-advisor has a 30 basis-point fee and big-time cash allocations held by Schwab Bank from RIABiz.com, and

Schwab Wealth Investment Advisory, Inc. Schwab Intelligent Portfolios™ Disclosure Brochure from SEC.gov

[Schwab’s Form ADV for their Intelligent Portfolios robo-solution revealed the service is “technically” free, but they will use client cash, aka the “sweep allocation” for Schwab Bank activity where Schwab earns income on the spread, so Intelligent Portfolios discloses that most strategies maintain a higher sweep allocation than other providers designed to fully invest client cash. But hey, it’s “free” and consumers LOVE free!] The Charles Schwab Corp. will charge a fee of 30 basis points to clients of its robo-advisor, but those investors will not pay it out of pocket because Schwab affiliates will reimburse the client behind the scenes, according to SEC documents relating to Schwab Intelligent Portfolios.

TA Associates to acquire majority interest in NorthStar from Orion Advisor Services

[And finally, private equity firm TA Associates recently signed an agreement to acquire a majority interest in NorthStar Financial Services Group, the parent company of Orion Advisor Services, CLS Investments, Gemini Fund Services and six other sister companies. So you’ve been asking me, is this good or bad, specifically for Orion. I believe it’s good, and here’s why: Orion has a strong track record of growth, Orion’s leadership will remain in place, the company remains privately held, and now there’s extra cash available for strategic opportunities.] TA Associates, a leading global growth private equity firm, today announced it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire a majority interest in NorthStar Financial Services Group, LLC, and its nine subsidiary wealth management industry service providers.

 Here are stories that didn’t make this week’s broadcast:

Advicent Unveils Narrator™, a Tool for Advisors to Fight Commoditization, at T3 Conference from Advicent.com

Advicent Solutions announced at the 2015 T3 (Technology Tools for Today) Conference at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas, Texas, that it is launching a new product for the North American market—the Narrator™ application builder. The product is available to buy immediately.

Watch FPPad Bits and Bytes for February 20, 2015

Watch FPPad Bits and Bytes for February 20, 2015

Orion Advisor Services parent company Northstar to be acquired by private equity firm TA Associates

Posted on February 9, 2015 by in Portfolio Management Software

TA Associates to acquire NorthStar Financial Services Group, parent company of Orion Advisor Services

Hot off the wires this morning (thank you FiComm) is news of another acquisition in the advisor fintech space.

Today, private equity firm TA Associates announced an agreement to acquire a majority interest in NorthStar Financial Services Group, LLC.

Orion Advisor Services included in the deal

Orion Advisor Services

NorthStar has nine subsidiaries under the company, with Orion Advisor Services, LLC being the most recognizable to advisers interested in financial technology solutions for their business. Collectively, NorthStar and its subsidiaries manage and administer roughly $275 billion in assets, with Orion making up at least $180 billion of that amount (see: Orion Celebrates Fifteen Years of Serving Advisors With Record Growth from Marketwired.com)

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

This comes on the heels of two acquisitions announced last week. First, Fidelity announced a deal to acquire eMoney for a rumored amount of $250 million according to sources close to the deal, followed by an announcement by SS&C Technologies to acquire Advent Software for $2.7 billion.

With three M&A deals in one week, financial technology service providers are proving to be attractive targets for acquisition.

The Future of FinTech M&A

Looking to the future, these deals seem to validate two trends in the industry. First, independent advisory firms continue to seek ways to scale their operational efficiency, and trusted third party providers offer attractive solutions to achieve such goals. Outsourced portfolio management (Orion Advisor Services and Advent Software) and account aggregation, client portals, and streamlined financial planning (eMoney Advisor) give advisers the leverage they need to growth their business without having to add significant overhead or add to the headcount of the firm.

Second, independent advisory firms are poised to continue to attract business from clients and investors dissatisfied with traditional wirehouse and brokerage providers, which may lead to a significant shift in asset flows away from transaction- and product-oriented businesses to fiduciary advice offered by independent RIAs.

Since M&A activity has dramatically picked up in 2015, here’s my question to you:

Who’s next?