With the rise of asset servicing solutions providers that handle everything from fund administration and middle and back-office operations in addition to the continued evolution of investment technologies, the asset management industry has more tools at its disposal than ever. These positive developments, though, can herald the arrival of negative ones, such as investment outfits’ increased vulnerability to cyberattacks
Forging firewalls
Clients and their investors now demand continuous online access to their data and reports; Campden Wealth, for instance, notes an increased interest in mobile investment data applications among family offices. As a UBS executive in the report mentions, however, such technology renders them more vulnerable to security breaches.
Asset managers surveyed by the Investment Association reported that due to concerns about online information breaches, they are dedicating significant resources towards boosting the cybersecurity features of their IT infrastructure. The safety of client data is paramount in the industry, and expenses related to shoring up the technological firewalls keeping potential hackers out are considered money well spent.
Solutions that safeguard data
Asset servicing solutions providers are aware of the need to provide top-notch cybersecurity and investment software technology in addition to their extensive suite of fund administration, middle and back-office support, and tax reporting services. The most advanced companies offer a comprehensive package of technology features that enable asset managers to not only access their data and reports anytime and everywhere but to be able to do so as safely as possible.
One example of multi-manager solutions is a cloud-based data core that gives clients and their investors consistent and wide-ranging portfolio reporting, all accessible via a secure Internet connection. Having a single source for all data eliminates errors and simplifies report production and dissemination. The multi-manager platform’s other advantages include analysis capacities, an investor dashboard (giving access to financial statements, capital calls, tax reports, and other investor-specific documents), and complete document management – all very much customizable to the clients’ needs.
The single manager solution proposes a platform that facilitates portfolio management, portfolio aggregation, accounting, reporting, and data warehousing and gives precise, fully integrated reporting spanning many products and markets. It offers multi-currency and multi-asset class capability, transaction and tax lot level data, and data integrity and dependability across all portfolios.
Authorized third parties can access the necessary information, and reports can be wholly tailored according to a manager’s specifications. Finally, global remote connectivity ensures that a manager will always have the required information at hand.