Matt Wilson, Head of Business Strategy for Envestnet MoneyGuide, joined Julie Cooling, Founder and CEO of RIA Channel, at Envestnet Elevate 2026 to discuss how technology is reshaping financial planning.
Wilson notes that a recent MoneyGuide study found that financial planning fees have increased. However, the increase largely reflects greater pricing transparency as planning fees are now being separated from traditional advisory fees rather than embedded within them. He explains that advisors can justify the value of comprehensive financial planning by demonstrating meaningful increases across areas such as Social Security income, tax savings, and Medicare premium savings.
As client expectations continue to expand, Wilson explains that MoneyGuide’s financial planning software has evolved to support more comprehensive services and deeper client engagement. He notes that creating a financial plan requires a significant time commitment, causing many firms to limit planning services to only a portion of their client base. To address this challenge, MoneyGuide introduced Dash, a modern, scalable planning platform that allows advisors to guide prospects and clients through a personalized planning journey. With the click of a button, consumers gain access to a personalized financial dashboard with pre-built retirement, healthcare, travel, and spending goals. The information is automatically transferred to the advisor through the MoneyGuide platform, streamlining and expediting the planning process.
Wilson also highlights MoneyGuide’s AI initiatives, explaining that the firm is developing native AI tools to reduce friction throughout the planning process. These capabilities are designed to automate data gathering, surface planning insights, and enable advisors to build financial plans through conversational chat and voice interactions, allowing them to spend more time focused on client relationships.
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