TD Ameritrade says registered investment advisors can now access third-party investment models through its Model Market Center. The center is part of its iRebal trading and portfolio platform and includes products from State Street, Goldman Sachs, WisdomTree, Russell Investments and four other firms.
"There's been so much interest since our soft launch on Oct. 31. We've had more than a third of advisors using the iRebal sign up for this, or 1,000-plus advisors," said Danielle Fava, director of product strategy and development at TD Ameritrade Institutional, in an interview with ThinkAdvisor.
"The tool means advisors do not have to create portfolios from scratch, representing an important time savings for them," Fava explained. "And this is only the beginning. Model Market Center is an open-architecture platform, and we expect to add more providers and models over time."
Like iRebal, TD Ameritrade's trading and portfolio management technology, the Model Market Center "is a clear differentiator for us," and represents "a big cost efficiency" for advisors who use it.
"It's another reason to love iRebal and gain more efficiencies … and thus sets us apart," Fava said. "It's an Amazon-like shopping center of third-party models for advisors looking for [portfolio] strategies to offer clients."
Advisors seem to be coming on board.
"One of the top concerns we hear from advisors is they don't have the time to create their own models, and yet SMAs can be expensive. So, we like the Model Market Center concept: It's a good, low-cost alternative, particularly in investment areas where margins are thinner," said Chuck Ballweg, co-owner of Prosperity Financial Group in San Ramon, California, in a statement. "I'm pleasantly surprised by the lineup of managers in the program: it's very impressive."
Game Changer?
