David Le, Chief Technology Officer for Beacon Pointe, joined Noam Tasch, Head of Platform Sales for BNY Pershing, to discuss the benefits of building a strong technology platform.
Le notes that technology can be a powerful driver of growth. Utilizing tools such as AI, machine learning, and process automation can drive efficiency and productivity. This can streamline or eliminate many of the manual-intensive processes that don’t intrinsically add value to the client experience. Technology can enhance the client experience by providing tools that allow clients to securely and easily access their data. Technology can also be used to reach new markets and drive brand awareness. Customized advice and technology leadership can help advisors reach the next generation, which is scheduled to receive large inheritances in the upcoming wealth transfer. Cybersecurity is crucial to all technology platforms, as it is vital for protecting customer data in the face of frequent threats.
A key strategic decision is whether to buy or build a technology platform. Key factors to consider include cost, development time, and regulatory and product risks. It is imperative for the tech stack to be integrated, with each function interacting seamlessly with other functionalities. Beacon Pointe chooses best-in-class systems and configures them to meet the firm’s needs. This is different than customization, which requires new code to be written.
Le notes that the firm’s highest return on investment (ROI) has been the development of its customer relationship management (CRM) platform. The CRM is important because it collects all of Beacon Pointe’s data, which can be used for analytics and artificial intelligence applications.
BNY Pershing’s Wove Platform automates tasks to save time that advisors would prefer to spend with clients and prospects. Wove can alert advisors to the needs that their clients and prospects are likely to have. BNY Pershing has partnered with Salesforce to build interoperable and differentiated integrations.