The second quarter of 2018 was a busy one for robo-advisors. Hedgeable announced its impending closure, WorthFM became history and LearnVest notified customers it was discontinuing its planning and online investment services.
During the same quarter, US Bank and Fifth Third Bank launched their robo-advisor platforms and SoFi, a fintech lender with a robo product, introduced checking accounts with debit cards, further blurring the lines between banking and digital advice. And U.K.-based Wealth Wizards, an independent digital advisor with AI capabilities, is exploring a talking robo-advisor.
"Closings are to be expected," said David Goldstone, research analyst at Backend Benchmarking, which publishes The Robo Report. "The robo-advisor market is maturing. The big expansion phase is slowing down but incumbents will continue to roll out robos."
Goldstone said he's still waiting on rollouts from Goldman Sachs through its Marcus by Goldman B-to-C operation and from JPMorgan. He's also expecting more consolidation among the smaller independent robos, who are dependent on funding for their staying power along with profitability, which remains uncertain. WiseBanyan appears vulnerable because "it hasn't achieved scale," Goldstone said.
The Robo Report compares the performance of robo-advisors for the second quarter, year to date, one year and two years — all through June 30 — for taxable accounts split 60/40 stocks and bonds held by investors in high tax brackets and for tax-deferred equity IRA accounts.
