Portfolio management systems are becoming the true anchors of the advisory business model. Historically, advisor workstations were developed in the proprietary shops of wirehouses, creating ever increasing investment management functionality for their captive audiences. The functional elements of the wirehouse platforms were unleashed into the broader market by the migration of advisors to the independent channel who sought equally sophisticated investment technology. The demands of these wirehouse advisors in the early 2000s helped shape a proliferation of fintechs and the progress of advanced portfolio management tools.

Exciting developments still lie ahead for portfolio management. New products, asset classes, computer algorithms, and the growth of client intelligence are driving platform providers to leverage new technology to make sense out of a sea of competing investment variables. Winners will ultimately help registered investment advisors to deliver highly customized client solutions positioned at their fingertips. Although the advancements in technology are impressive, pain points among RIAs still exist. In some cases, application development and industry consolidation have outstripped providers’ ability to integrate.

Key questions discussed in this report:

• What are the drivers of growth for portfolio management applications?
• What is the RIA market share of leading portfolio management providers?
• What are the developmental opportunities for portfolio management?
• Do RIAs still have functional pain points?

Companies Mentioned: 

Addepar, Advent, AdvisorPeak, AssetMark, Bank of America, BehaviorQuant, Black Diamond, Blaze Portfolio, Bloomberg, BNY Mellon, Capitect, Charles Schwab , CircleBlack, Envestnet, Fidelity Investments, FP Alpha, FundCount, Interactive Brokers, InvestCloud, MoneyGuide, Morningstar, Orion Advisor Solutions, SEI, Smartleaf, SS&C, Tamarac, TD Ameritrade, Thinkorswim, TradeStation, VestMark, VISE