The findings in this blog post come from our annual survey of over 1,600 registered investment adviser (“RIA”) firms that was conducted in the first quarter of 2020. This proprietary RIA in a Box study is paired with publicly accessible data provided by the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). The goal of our annual study is to understand different options that comprise each firm characteristic, and to determine whether specific characteristics impact the growth, size, or operational efficiency of an RIA firm. In this blog post, we will explore our survey results in response to portfolio management and reporting (“PMR”) systems used by RIA firms.
RIA Adoption Rate of Portfolio Management and Reporting Systems
According to our recent annual technology survey conducted in the first quarter of 2020, 49% of RIA firms utilize portfolio management and reporting systems. Besides a slight dip in 2017, portfolio management and reporting software adoption has remained relatively stagnant in recent years. Portfolio management and reporting systems are often one of the more expensive technology solutions within an advisor’s technology stack, but the right solution can deliver a tremendous return on investment by utilizing available integrations and automated features to help enhance the client experience and streamline operations.
RIA Portfolio Management and Reporting System Adoption by Firm AUM Size
Like many technology solutions utilized by RIA firms, portfolio management and reporting systems generally show higher adoption rates as a firm’s assets under management (“AUM”) increase. New or emerging RIA firms, such as firms with less than $5 million in AUM, are the least likely to adopt a PMR system. We have observed the disparity between adoption rates and AUM continue to grow year over year as adoption rates increase yearly for firms with over $100 million in AUM and decrease for firms with under $100 million in AUM.
The Top RIA Portfolio Management and Reporting Systems
Unlike some of the other investment advisor technology categories, the competitive landscape of the portfolio management and reporting sector remains fairly fragmented. Morningstar holds the largest market share at 25% with its Office product, followed closely behind by Orion and Black Diamond. Although we have not observed much movement in the adoption rates of the leading portfolio management and reporting systems, Morningstar, Orion, and Black Diamond (a division of SS&C Technologies) continue to improve and distance themselves from the crowded competitive landscape.
Morningstar Office has continued to grow and remain nimble, offering a wide selection of bundled offerings for small to mid-sized RIA firms. Orion and Black Diamond continue to lead the market for serving larger investment advisory firms. We continue to see a steady stream of new emerging entrants in this category and expect the innovation race to continue for years to come as technology providers continue to identify opportunities to cater to RIA firms of all sizes.
Portfolio management and reporting solutions can often be one of the most important pieces of technology for advisors to implement to help guide clients to long-term financial success. The most challenging part is deciding which portfolio management and reporting solution is the right solution for an advisory business given the wide array of benefits and available integrations. RIA in a Box integrates with Morningstar Office, Black Diamond, and Orion to provide real-time updates on compliance and registration needs, eliminating the time-consuming demands of tedious manual entry processes.
This post is the third of five blog posts that will focus on the core technology solutions available to investment advisory firms with our most recent prior post centered on financial planning software adoption. In the coming weeks, we will further explore the top document storage and portfolio risk management software solutions.