Welcome to 2025 in wealth management and technology. We’re already kicking it off with aggressive new hires and investments in expanded services. Here are five January headlines that got our attention:
Hiring Arun Anur is another clear move for Orion to become far more than a technology platform, moving toward an investment platform that is more competitive with Envestnet. We expect this to be a continued growth area in terms of providing the technology for business management and growth as well as investment and client solutions. We think it’s generally good to have successful companies add new capabilities, but the downside to this move is that the dollars to invest in innovation and advisor-enhancing tech are limited. As Orion broadens into the investment and TAMP arena, they will need to balance tech/advisor experience innovation vs investment marketplace and servicing. No firm has been able to do both without sacrificing something along the way.
Clearwater is a compelling, deeply analytical platform but lacks the U.S. wealth management brand reputation of a firm like Black Diamond or Addepar. Still, keep an eye on Clearwater. Adding in front office capabilities and trading and portfolio management components can enhance the offering and become a solution for those seeking an alternative path. Overall, this news is exciting, with the significant caveat that they are currently doing it largely outside of the U.S. market and that very few non-US trading/rebalancing technologies have been able to make the leap into our market.
Masttro holds an interesting place in the UHNW market. They’ve always aggressively worked to be the ultimate of what advisors say they want in an all-in-one total wealth management platform. Joe is probably not the quintessential wealthtech CEO coming from his background and his tenure, so this might signal that the company is recharting its course to aggressive growth or new capital partnership. Either way, for Masttro, new blood, new direction, and new vision-setting will be good for the industry.
We think the Focus team is creating a whole that’s worth more than the sum of its parts. It is a very audacious plan that will require patience, great vision and great direction. But the end result is an entity with all the energy and component parts that will be competitive, and we’re excited to see Focus betting on its future as a material industry player.
Envestnet made a significant and bold move to bring Chris Todd, an industry outsider, in to run the company. Chris joins from the HR Management System firm, UKG and seems to have the reputation of a charismatic leader with a history of re-structuring complex organizations for growth. While Chris is unknown to many in our industry, this type of leader may be just what Envestnet and Bain need right now: Someone who can re-organize and re-energize the firm. Clearly, his lack of industry experience will need to be addressed, and we hope that he leans heavily on the industry veterans within his firm to trim the sails. We will watch the news closely over the next 90 days to see whether Todd keeps his executive leadership intact or whether his focus will be to rebuild from the top.