Asset management

Whether measuring performance against the market or a client’s own goals, the industry needs accountability.

Rising stock markets have encouraged individual investors to add to their holdings.

The industry is imagining more vibrant, more agile and more inclusive processes that deliver results, says Confluence CEO Mark Evans.

Rapid developments in financial technology are among the industry’s top operational challenges, asset managers say.

Model marketplaces carry major potential for the industry, and experts from BlackRock and Envestnet say they’ve only just begun to make their full impact.

Michael Kitces, Moderator, Partner and Director of Wealth Management, Pinnacle Advisory, Hollie Fagan, Managing Director, BlackRock, Estee Jimerson, Managing Director – Head of Asset Manager Distribution & Engagement, Envestnet, Kunal Kapoor, CFA, Chief Executive Officer, Morningstar, Inc., Natalie Wolfsen, EVP and Chief Solutions Officer, AssetMark, Inc.

Envestnet sees asset management as poised for major changes as broker-dealers move to fee-based business.

The firm’s equity-trading business head Ted Pick, promoted to lead its division of investment bankers and traders, is one possible successor.

The firm plans to expand access to its line of low-cost funds to roughly 1,800, including those from BlackRock, Schwab and SSgA.

The funds, which account for roughly 1% of the $3.5 trillion of assets in ETPs, “pose real risks to American families.”