Digital wealth management solution provider FutureAdvisor recently made it big when it was acquired by investment management company BlackRock in 2015.
This week the robo-advisor announced another endorsement. The U.S. branch of RBC Wealth Management is launching a pilot program called RBC Investor Gateway that offers clients a digital advice option powered by FutureAdvisor.
The terms of the deal were undisclosed. As far as the mechanics for the agreement are concerned, RBC will act as the custodian of all of the Investor Gateway client assets and will take responsibility for producing and distributing account statement and tax documents.
RBC makes it clear that Investor Gateway is not meant to replace traditional financial advisors. Rather, the product is intended to serve as a stepping stone for budding investors to build a relationship with RBC Wealth Management as a financial advisor.
Financial Planning quotes Corporate Insight Consulting’s Sean McDermott:
“It gives RBC an opportunity to establish relationships with younger potential clients, who may be comfortable with digitally grounded advice to start, but who will eventually want a relationship with a human advisor. For FutureAdvisor, this further reinforces the brand’s legitimacy and position as a leader in the digital advice space.”
McDermott employs the phrase “further reinforces,” because FutureAdvisor has experienced plenty of recent success:
- August 2015: acquired by BlackRock
- January 2015: BBVA Compass launches FutureAdvisor-powered digital advice capabilities
- January 2015: Danish investment bank Saxo Bank launches FutureAdvisor-powered digital investment platform
FutureAdvisor’s Founder & CEO Bo Lu demoed its premium service at FinovateFall 2013.