Atomic Updates
Atomic Updates: Building the Optimal Wealth Tech Stack, Part 4 – Beyond the Essentials
March 17, 2025
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We have covered a lot of ground in the first three installments of “Building the Optimal Tech Stack”, roughly in priority order in terms of identifying and understanding the solutions that are critical to a firm’s survival, as those who have built an RIA or family office probably noticed.
These foundational elements, including custodians, sub-advisors, asset movement solutions like Atomic Insights, portfolio reporting tools, and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems, form the backbone of any robust financial advisory practice.
As we move forward, our focus shifts to the "nice to have” tools and technologies that, while not always essential, can significantly enhance the client experience, as well as operational efficiency. These include investment research platforms, compliance support systems, and financial/estate/tax planning software, each tailored to the specific style and focus areas of the advisor.
I’ll do a separate installment to discuss general business tools such as HR/Payroll, finance and accounting support, etc., which while necessary to the success of any enterprise, are not unique to RIAs and family offices.
When it comes to investment research tools, family offices and RIAs have a wide range of options, each catering to different needs, budgets, and levels of expertise. Below is a comparison of five leading platforms—Bloomberg Terminal, YCharts, Capital IQ, Backstop, and Morningstar—highlighting their strengths, weaknesses, and suitability for various use cases.
While Mayor Bloomberg did not have much of a third act as a Presidential candidate, he sure did build a heck of a financial services platform in his first act. The Bloomberg Terminal is the undisputed leader in financial data and analytics, offering real-time access to global market data, news, and trading tools. Its unparalleled fixed-income database and instant messaging network make it indispensable for institutional investors and large RIAs/family offices that have an orientation toward investment research and/or trading. However, its steep price—$27,660 per year per license—positions it firmly out of reach for most smaller firms.
• Best For: Institutional investors, asset managers, and RIAs/family offices requiring comprehensive data and sophisticated communication tools.
• Strengths: Real-time fixed-income data; vast market coverage; Bloomberg IM for trader communication.
• Weaknesses: Prohibitive cost; steep learning curve.
YCharts provides an attractive, lower cost alternative to Bloomberg, particularly for smaller firms. Its intuitive interface offers powerful stock and fund screeners, customizable scoring models, and economic data analysis. Pricing starts at $3,600 annually for the Standard plan and $6,000 annually for the Professional plan.
• Best For: RIAs focused on equity and fund analysis with a smaller budget.
• Strengths: User-friendly interface; robust stock screener; customizable scoring models.
• Weaknesses: Limited depth compared to Bloomberg; no real-time trading features.
Capital IQ excels in providing granular financial data on both public and private companies. With over 60,000 public companies and 685,000 private companies in its database, it is ideal for deep financial modeling and sector-specific analysis. Pricing is highly variable but generally starts at $30,000 annually per license.
• Best For: Analysts requiring detailed company-level data for fundamental analysis.
• Strengths: Extensive private company coverage; Excel integration; customizable screening criteria.
• Weaknesses: Expensive for smaller shops.
Backstop is tailored for firms managing alternative investment portfolios and/or funds of funds. It offers tools for performance benchmarking against 22,000+ hedge funds, due diligence tracking, and portfolio stress-testing. Pricing ranges from $12,000 to $18,000 annually.
• Best For: Mid-sized RIAs or family offices with a focus on alternative assets.
• Strengths: Specialized tools for alternative investments; cloud-based accessibility.
• Weaknesses: Less suited for traditional equity or fixed-income research.
Morningstar focuses on fundamental analysis and value investing, offering research on over 620,000 investments including stocks, mutual funds, ETFs, and bonds. Its X-Ray tool helps advisors ensure balanced portfolios by analyzing sector or country exposures. Pricing is highly affordable at $199 annually for the Premium plan.
• Best For: Advisors emphasizing low-cost investments and overall asset allocation.
• Strengths: Affordable pricing; actionable analyst reports; portfolio X-Ray tool.
• Weaknesses: Limited to fundamental analysis; lacks advanced technical charting tools.
The compliance department is often the section of the firm that nobody likes to visit, but the compliance folks are the heroes when a regulator comes knocking. And even at larger RIAs with fully built out internal teams, the head of compliance has outsourced resources to draw upon because the regulatory landscape is so vast and complex to navigate. As with so many other areas of Fintech, financial advisors and RIAs have several options in the compliance arena, each catering to different needs, budgets, and levels of expertise. Below is a comparison of four leading providers—ACA Group, Comply, Smarsh, and Global Relay—highlighting their strengths, weaknesses, and suitability for various use cases.
ACA offers a wide range of compliance services and technology solutions. Initial RIA registration costs between $12,000 to $40,000 as a one-time fee, depending on firm size. Ongoing consulting is priced at $630 per hour for a senior consultant, with an annual retainer minimum of $11-15k. ACA’s compliance software for tracking personal trading, quarterly attestations, etc. is called ACA Compliance Alpha, and is available at $600 per month per user. ACA stands out for its deep regulatory expertise and customized solutions, making it best suited for larger firms who require comprehensive compliance support.
• Best For: Larger firms requiring comprehensive compliance support.
• Strengths: Deep regulatory expertise; customized solutions.
• Weaknesses: High costs; best suited for larger firms.
Where ACA throws bodies at problems, Comply focuses on automating compliance processes and managing regulatory requirements via software. The company offers two subscription options: Comply Pro and Comply Premium. The main features include registration assistance and ongoing consulting, similar to ACA, but with less support and at a much lower cost than ACA Group. Comply is ideal for young firms looking to streamline the registration process while also having acceptable levels of ongoing support.
• Best For: Newer, less complicated RIAs
• Strengths: Automations; benchmarking; lower price
• Weaknesses: Not as comprehensive as other solutions
Smarsh: Cloud-Based Archiving and Compliance
Remember when advisors used to send lots of text messages back and forth with their clients? Those days are long gone, and the SEC has handed down some hefty fines to penalize non-compliant firms. Those who have avoided scrutiny would do well to learn from the experiences of others who have not. In that vein, Smarsh provides cloud-based archiving, compliant text messaging, and compliance solutions, starting at $75 per month. Features include chat and voice recording, message archiving, and e-discovery capabilities. Smarsh has a strong focus on data privacy and security, making it well-suited for financial services firms and government organizations needing robust electronic communications management.
• Best For: Financial services firms and government organizations needing robust electronic communications management.
• Strengths: Strong focus on data privacy and security; affordable pricing.
• Weaknesses: Limited to electronic communications management.
Global Relay also offers archiving and text solutions with a focus on regulatory compliance. Features include robust search functionality, efficient eDiscovery, and centralized management. Global Relay utilizes advanced encryption and access controls, making it particularly strong in maintaining data integrity and facilitating quick information retrieval during legal proceedings.
• Best For: Firms needing robust search functionality and eDiscovery capabilities.
• Strengths: Advanced encryption and access controls; efficient eDiscovery.
• Weaknesses: SMS Text functionality can be fickle.
The origin story of a firm often drives its expertise areas and its need for additional, specialized tools. For example, firms with roots back to Goldman, Morgan Stanley or to a “buy side” firm, tend to launch independent firms that hold themselves out as being “investment gurus”, while firms that trace their lineage back to accounting or law firms tend to focus much more on financial and estate planning. This latter group will often purchase additional tools to help provide insights and analysis in those areas.
Financial planning tools vary widely in their approach and resulting functionality. Below is a comparison of three leading platforms—MoneyGuidePro, eMoney Advisor, and Hidden Levers—highlighting their strengths, weaknesses, and suitability for various use cases.
MoneyGuidePro: Goals-Based Planning
MoneyGuidePro focuses on goals-based planning with over 75 prebuilt life goal modules. It is best suited for client-facing discovery sessions and is priced between $3,500 to $7,000 per year. MoneyGuidePro's new AI-powered "Elite" tier now challenges eMoney's traditional cash flow dominance.
• Best For: Client-facing discovery sessions.
• Strengths: Prebuilt life goal modules; AI-powered planning.
• Weaknesses: May lack advanced cash flow optimization features.
eMoney Advisor: Cash Flow Optimization
eMoney Advisor excels in cash flow optimization with a Goals Based bent and offers a client portal with budget tracking. It is ideal for collaborative planning meetings and is priced somewhat higher than MoneyGuidePro at $4,200 to $9,000 per year. eMoney Advisor's direct Roth IRA conversion modeling is a standout feature.
• Best For: Collaborative planning meetings.
• Strengths: Cash flow optimization; client PFM portal.
• Weaknesses: Higher price point compared to MoneyGuidePro.
Hidden Levers: Risk Analytics Engine
Hidden Levers is known for its risk analytics engine and offers over 200 economic shock scenarios to help clients quantify the upside and downside risks in their portfolios. Hidden Levers is more suited to portfolio risk management than to the goals-based approach taken by both eMoney and MoneyGuidePro, but the ultimate purpose of helping clients understand risk v. return are the same. Hidden Levers costs approximately $6,000 to $15,000 per year.
• Best For: Quantifying portfolio risk.
• Strengths: Risk analytics engine; economic shock scenarios.
• Weaknesses: Higher price point; may be overkill for smaller firms.
More and more firms are hiring in-house estate planning counsel these days, and so even firms that don’t have roots back to traditional law firms are providing substantial amounts of “strategy and education” on legal matters. Clients love this service, because very few of them recall the various and sundry details of their estate plans and (for better or worse) they are often reluctant to ask their attorneys for help. As a result, Advisors are often stepping in to fill the void. When it comes to estate mapping tools to aid in this endeavor, financial advisors and RIAs have several options, each catering to different needs, budgets, and levels of expertise. Below is a comparison of two leading platforms—Vanilla/Addepar and Everplans—highlighting their strengths, weaknesses, and suitability for various use cases.
The Vanilla/Addepar partnership creates a unique synergy for estate planning. Features include automatic daily sync of Addepar account data, visual family tree mapping with asset allocation overlays, and probate cost simulations using actual portfolio values. Vanilla's dedicated estate workflow reduces summary document preparation time substantially.
• Best For: Advisors seeking a comprehensive estate planning solution with seamless data integration.
• Strengths: Automatic data sync; visual family tree mapping; probate cost simulations.
• Weaknesses: As with all things Addepar, it requires some in-house experts to make full use of the system and the tool is much less useful for non-Addepar customers.
Everplans offers a comprehensive digital estate planning solution that focuses on organizing and securely storing important documents and information. Features include a digital vault for storing wills, trusts, and insurance policies, as well as tools for creating and sharing emergency plans and end-of-life wishes. Everplans is designed to be user-friendly and accessible, making it ideal for clients who want to ensure their loved ones have easy access to critical information.
• Best For: Clients looking for a user-friendly digital estate planning solution.
• Strengths: Comprehensive digital vault; user-friendly interface; tools for emergency plans and end-of-life wishes.
• Weaknesses: Does not offer the same level of financial modeling and integration as Vanilla/Addepar.
Firms with roots in the accounting profession often provide bill pay, as well as tax planning, and tax compliance services to their clients. Where that is the case, these firms often employ tax planning tools offering varying levels of automation and precision. Below is a comparison of two leading platforms—Holistiplan and Number Cruncher—highlighting their strengths, weaknesses, and suitability for various use cases.
Holistiplan dominates the advisor market with its OCR-powered tax document analysis, processing documents in 45 seconds. It is best suited for generalist advisors and is priced between $1,200 to $2,400 per year. Holistiplan's client-friendly visualizations make it easy for advisors to present complex tax scenarios to clients. However, some users report that Holistiplan has limitations in handling multi-state issues, complex partnership allocations, and certain self-employment tax calculations.
• Best For: Generalist advisors.
• Strengths: OCR-powered analysis; client-friendly visualizations.
• Weaknesses: Limitations in handling complex tax scenarios.
Number Cruncher solutions like BNA and Planner CS offer robust tools for calculating expected tax liabilities under a variety of income and charitable gift scenarios. These tools are ideal for tax-centric firms and are priced between $4,000 to $8,000 per year. While they require a highly trained user to employ them, they are noted for their technical precision.
• Best For: Tax-centric firms.
• Strengths: Complex scenario analysis.
• Weaknesses: Non-tax professionals need not apply; higher price point.
Key Comparisons
When choosing a tax planning tool, consider factors such as your firm's focus, the complexity of your clients' tax situations, and your budget. Generalist advisors may benefit from Holistiplan's user-friendly interface and quick document processing, while tax-centric firms might find Number Cruncher's precision and manual override capabilities more suitable.
While the foundational elements of an RIA or family office's tech stack are crucial for survival, the addition of specialized tools can significantly enhance both the client experience and operational efficiency, allowing firms to thrive. By carefully evaluating each option based on your firm's specific needs, budget, and long-term goals, you can create a tech stack that not only meets your current requirements but also positions you for future growth. The right combination of these "nice to have" tools based on your firm’s focus areas and unique expertise can provide a competitive edge in the market. Remember, the goal is to build a tech stack that supports your firm's unique value proposition and helps you deliver exceptional service to your clients.
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