There appears to be a tangible shift in our industry, as discussed in many of the industry conferences this year, toward adopting technology to streamline the highly manual process of raising capital.
With this shift in mind, we recently attended the IPA (Investment Program Association) OpsTech Innovation Forum in Dallas. The objective of the conference was to identify and develop a roadmap for innovation. There, attendees debated and agreed upon session topics in a larger group setting. Topics were then further discussed in three separate breakout sessions, focused on standardization, technology, and operations.
Innovations, such as broader acceptance of e-signature and automated subdocument preparation, continue to creep into areas previously untouched by technological innovation. The goal was to find what is needed to create scalable automation and transparency around direct private placements in order to achieve effective distribution into the RIA channel.
These topics have been kicked around for a few years. So, did the conference set the ball in motion for true actionable steps to address this pent-up demand? Not quite.
This may be a case of chicken and the egg. While most issuers, BDs, and RIAs agree that change is needed, each appear to be waiting for the others to take the first step. The result of this is, unfortunately, continued paralysis.
So, while the conference was successful in identifying technology gaps prevalent in our industry, we still find ourselves at a stalemate on taking action. However, there are a few firms emerging as early developers and adopters of technology to address the innovation gaps. At WealthForge, we are one of those firms that have elected to take action. Our recent video announcement gives an overview of the direction we are headed. We are excited to embark upon the next frontier in automating and removing the friction that plagues the private securities market and bridge the gaps in the RIA-to-issuer ecosystems.
The Subscription Automation Solution
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