Family Offices Go Digital With Pershing-Arta Deal

Q&A November 22, 2022 at 10:30 AM
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RIA Arta Finance recently rolled out its digital family office platform for accredited investors. The firm is running the platform in partnership with BNY Mellon | Pershing, which provides Arta with middle- and back-office processing, clearing, custody and settlement services.

Arta's platform also works with Pershing technology to give investors access to lending, mortgages and alternative investments, according to the two firms. The firm launched the digital platform in early November after raising more than $90 million from Sequoia Capital India, Ribbit Capital, Coatue and over 140 tech and finance veterans, including Betsy CohenEric Schmidt and Ram Shriram.

The platform offers accredited investors access to AI-managed portfolios, as well as alternative assets like private equity (with a $10,000 investment minimum), venture capital, private debt and real estate. Eligible investors also can access a line of credit for expenses, such as a house down payment or tax bill, and pay for their services via performance-based pricing.

Arta CEO and co-founder Caesar Sengupta and BNY Mellon | Pershing CEO Jim Crowley shared their expectations for the partnership and the platform's impact on the wealth management industry in an interview with ThinkAdvisor via email last week.

THINKADVISOR: What is the market for digital family office services in the U.S. and worldwide? And what makes the Arta news significant for BNY Mellon | Pershing and for the wealth management industry overall?

CAESAR SENGUPTA: This is a huge market. According to industry reports, there are 681 million people globally with $100,000 to $5 million in assets who have a combined total of $272 trillion in investable wealth (based on analysis compiled from Credit Suisse's Global Wealth Report 2022 and Capgemini's World Wealth Report 2022).

This category is largely unserved today, and [those in it are] looking for holistic and comprehensive wealth management that helps them access some of the financial superpowers that the ultrawealthy have. With Arta, they can now get a digital family office that can help them grow, preserve, protect and enjoy their wealth.

How do real-world wealth managers feel about this BNY Mellon | Pershing and Arta development?

SENGUPTA: Arta is starting with direct-to-consumer, but we are open and eager to work with the industry, including RIAs, banks and other wealth managers. This is a vast space, and we believe by bringing technology and AI at scale through Arta, we'll help expand this space by bringing millions more people in and bringing incremental value to many existing players in the market.

Is BNY Mellon | Pershing already working with non-digital family office wealth managers? In other words, is it now serving a competing channel, or is this a new channel for the business? 

JIM CROWLEY: Throughout our 80-year history, our clients have been able to rely on us as a trusted resource for guidance to help differentiate their firm and stand out with the scale and cutting-edge solutions they need to grow. 

We are a business-to-business provider and dedicate ourselves to supporting each of our clients, no matter the business model or firm type — providing access to the best people and practices across our enterprise, all dedicated to our clients' success.  

How does BNY Mellon | Pershing see family office services growing within wealth management? Can more financial advisors do this work? If so, how can they expand into this sector — or is it really tough to compete with UHNW and/or HNW-focused advisors?

CROWLEY: We see this as part of a broader trend in the marketplace that is continuously shifting toward an advisory model. Across the wealth management industry, investors are demanding a more holistic approach to managing their wealth, with firms and advisors looking to differentiate themselves based on the broadening needs of their investors. 

To help our clients take advantage of this evolution, we continuously innovate to develop new tools and technologies. And we work closely with each of our clients, taking a collaborative business consulting approach to help position them for growth and realize their unique vision for success, leveraging our decades of experience serving thousands of financial firms and advisors.

We are excited about our relationship with Arta and supporting their business in much the same way as they launch their digital family office.

(Shown in photo: BNY Mellon | Pershing CEO Jim Crowley, left, and Arta CEO and co-founder Caesar Sengupta)

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