A San Diego company is taking automated advice to the next level and it could be good for independent advisors.
A San Diego company is taking automated advice to the next level and it could be good for independent advisors.
Stronghold Financial, a partnership between Tony Robbins’ financial advisor, Ajay Gupta, and HighTower Advisors, a Chicago-based ultra-high-net-worth RIA, has created Portfolio CheckUp, a service that takes the automation process of robo-advisors and combines it with real recommendations of independent advisors who’ve agreed to Portfolio CheckUp’s “Bill of Rights.”
What exactly is their “Bill of Rights”?
Well, it states that advisors must provide a legal fiduciary standard of care to their clients which requires that they do what’s in the best interests of the clients at all times. Advisors do not make commissions on any products used in client portfolios, they will not sell any proprietary products, they must have a clean regulatory record, and most importantly, they must not charge more than 1 percent for annual investment fees.
Transparency is key.
Interested clients enter some information about themselves, link all their investment, 401(k) and IRA accounts to Portfolio CheckUp and it spits out a personalized analysis of your investments including a comparison of your current allocation with a target allocation highlighting the fees saved using their allocation instead of your own.
Sure, it’s fairly boilerplate when compared to other robo-advisors on both sides of the border, but that’s not the point.
#pb#
What’s relevant for independent advisors here in Canada is that a service like Portfolio CheckUp takes the negative aspect of automated advice (you’re losing a client or potential client to an online advisor) and turns that on its head by recommending that client to you who then implements the actual advice.
What’s it cost advisors?
According to Investment News, Portfolio Check Up has 100 advisors in its network at the moment who pay 25 percent of the advisory fees related to each referral.
Portfolio CheckUp’s been open for business since mid-November. In just four months it has landed more than 500 accounts and $4 billion in assets under management.
It’s not for everybody but the platform is certainly winning some support in the independent advisory community.
”It's a great first step,” says Scott Bell, founder of RIA firm GDP Wealth. “It has a lot of the key elements needed for a compelling online experience while also using a real world adviser.”
What’s not to like?
Stronghold Financial, a partnership between Tony Robbins’ financial advisor, Ajay Gupta, and HighTower Advisors, a Chicago-based ultra-high-net-worth RIA, has created Portfolio CheckUp, a service that takes the automation process of robo-advisors and combines it with real recommendations of independent advisors who’ve agreed to Portfolio CheckUp’s “Bill of Rights.”
What exactly is their “Bill of Rights”?
Well, it states that advisors must provide a legal fiduciary standard of care to their clients which requires that they do what’s in the best interests of the clients at all times. Advisors do not make commissions on any products used in client portfolios, they will not sell any proprietary products, they must have a clean regulatory record, and most importantly, they must not charge more than 1 percent for annual investment fees.
Transparency is key.
Interested clients enter some information about themselves, link all their investment, 401(k) and IRA accounts to Portfolio CheckUp and it spits out a personalized analysis of your investments including a comparison of your current allocation with a target allocation highlighting the fees saved using their allocation instead of your own.
Sure, it’s fairly boilerplate when compared to other robo-advisors on both sides of the border, but that’s not the point.
#pb#
What’s relevant for independent advisors here in Canada is that a service like Portfolio CheckUp takes the negative aspect of automated advice (you’re losing a client or potential client to an online advisor) and turns that on its head by recommending that client to you who then implements the actual advice.
What’s it cost advisors?
According to Investment News, Portfolio Check Up has 100 advisors in its network at the moment who pay 25 percent of the advisory fees related to each referral.
Portfolio CheckUp’s been open for business since mid-November. In just four months it has landed more than 500 accounts and $4 billion in assets under management.
It’s not for everybody but the platform is certainly winning some support in the independent advisory community.
”It's a great first step,” says Scott Bell, founder of RIA firm GDP Wealth. “It has a lot of the key elements needed for a compelling online experience while also using a real world adviser.”
What’s not to like?
