Cat Davies, CEO of Innovayte, joined Julie Cooling, Founder and CEO of RIA Channel, to discuss the needs of emerging advisory firms.
Davies notes that financial markets businesses, including RIA and custody firms, are cyclical. The firms that had $250 million under management in 1998 have over $5 billion today. The scale of firms continues to grow as larger firms continue to make acquisitions. Davies notes that firms with under $1 billion under management require much more support than larger firms. This support includes compliance, technology, and service.
Between the great wealth transfer and succession planning of advisors, there is an ongoing shift of assets. While larger RIA firms are served by large institutional custodians, Innovayte started a clearing and custody firm that serves smaller and startup advisors. Innovayte serves 120 firms with a total of $3.4 billion in AUM. Innovayte remains independent, with no debt or private equity investment*.
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* As of February 2025