Page 12 - Investment Advisor April/May 2023

INDUSTRY INSIGHTS

By Timothy D. Welsh

Orion Event Showcases Integration, Inspiration

Advisors who have integrated most of their technology have 30% more
assets than those who don’t, says CEO Eric Clarke.

dvisors say their number-one
pain point with technology is its
A lack of integration. Eric Clarke
and the fast-growing Orion Advisor
Solutions platform are doing all they
can to address this challenge.
At the recent Orion Ascent confer-
ence — which took place at Orlando’s
ginormous Marriott World Center
resort — 1,600-plus attendees gathered
to hear details on how Orion is bring-
ing together what’s needed for a “most
in one” technology and investing stack.
(See highlights via the #OrionAscent
hashtag on Twitter.)
Through a series of strategic acquisi-
tions, Orion is now one of the largest
advisor technology and investing plat-
forms in the independent wealth space.
Its platform has some $3.7 trillion in of TownSquare Capital for outsourced According to Clarke, “Advisors across
assets under administration and serves chief investment officer (OCIO) services. various sizes and styles that have at
more than 100,000 advisors. “The typical advisor is using five least 75% of their technology integrated
In his opening remarks at Ascent, components of software, with a third of garner 30% more [assets] than their
Clarke showcased the timeline for [advisors] looking to add more” technol- peers who don’t.”
that explosive growth spree, begin- ogy, Clarke said, citing industry research He also said Orion’s strategy is to have
ning with the 2018 purchase of the FTJ that points to advisors’ desire for better a “most in one” philosophy and design
FundChoice turnkey asset management integration as their businesses grow and approach, as advisors want to be able
program, followed closely by the acqui- become more complex. to customize their service delivery and
sition of Advizr financial planning soft- To meet this challenge, Orion is cre- prefer not to have all their technology
ware in 2019. ating an organizational framework to components sourced from one platform.
Fresh off those two deals, Orion then combine all this technology and its relat- As a result, Orion is dedicated to open
went shopping for an even larger TAMP ed investment platforms. architecture, enabling other vendors to
and found it in 2020 with Brinker Known as the “fiduciary flywheel” — integrate into its ecosystem.
Capital, which brought a number of new or the client journey from prospect to
capabilities. From there, Orion picked planning, investing and achieving — the PARTNERSHIPS GALORE
up several more entities in 2021, includ- components that Orion has built, merged More than 100 integration partners
ing BasisCode for compliance, Pantenix and acquired are now coming together in had their technology on display in
for alternative investments and Hidden various integrated bundles. Orion Stacks Ascent’s exhibit hall, and the conference
Levers for risk profiling and portfolio include several technologies for advi- featured dozens of breakout sessions
stress testing. sors, which are offered with a preferred from partner firms.
Of course, the biggest deal for Orion pricing plan and integrated user experi- One of the most widely attend-
was its Redtail CRM acquisition last ence and highlight the flexibility and ed sessions — “Fully Digital Account Adobe Stock
year, followed closely by the addition customization of the firm’s platform. Opening in Under 5 Minutes” — led by

10 INVESTMENT ADVISOR APRIL/MAY 2023 | ThinkAdvisor.com