Converts SMA assets to models-based program to go along with existing Rep-as-PM program
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., August 2, 2011 – Smartleaf, Inc., a leading provider of overlay portfolio management solutions to the wealth management industry, announced today that D.A. Davidson & Co., a leading regional broker-dealer, has chosen Smartleaf’s overlay technology as the engine to convert its SMA platform to a models-based program. The initiative will give D.A. Davidson & Co. the advantages of leveraging the best ideas of the industry via third-party models, while automating processes.
In traditional SMA, managers divide each client’s assets into sub-accounts that are managed individually, which can make the portfolio management process unnecessarily complex and inefficient. With its new models-based program, D.A. Davidson & Co. will retain complete discretion over its clients’ assets while taking advantage of third-party model portfolios in order to provide a more efficient and greatly customized open architecture environment.
D.A. Davidson & Co. first implemented Smartleaf in 2008, in support of its “rep-as-PM” (portfolio manager) Paragon Program, which has grown exponentially after originally starting with just a handful of portfolio management groups within D.A. Davidson & Co.
“We are deeply committed to providing our clients with customized solutions that take advantage of some of the best intellectual capital available,” notes Cory Custer, senior vice president and director of individual investor services at D.A. Davidson & Co. “We have successfully leveraged the Smartleaf solution within our Paragon Program and are excited to expand our relationship with Smartleaf as part of our overall strategy to serve our clients with the best thinking and advice on their investments.”
“Having seen the benefits of using Smartleaf’s technology over the course of several years, we are enthusiastically embracing a models-based approach as our core strategy,” adds Joely Meighan, vice president and associate director of managed assets at D.A. Davidson & Co.
In implementing its models-based program, D.A. Davidson & Co. will also be utilizing Smartleaf’s model distribution service, which streamlines the delivery and maintenance of third-party models.
“We are very pleased to further extend our relationship with D.A. Davidson & Co., enabling them to leapfrog their competition in offering customized, open-architecture wealth management solutions,” says Smartleaf CEO Jerry Michael. “D.A. Davidson & Co. will benefit from Smartleaf’s ability to simultaneously provide centralized and decentralized rebalancing, while their clients continue to take advantage of both the firm’s own research and that of third-party model vendors.”
About Smartleaf
Smartleaf’s overlay portfolio management solution enables financial institutions to easily implement their best investment thinking and customization preferences across all client accounts, combining proprietary and third-party manager models to deliver a seamless open-architecture solution. By integrating a client’s assets into a single, customized portfolio, wealth managers using Smartleaf have achieved significant benefits in tax and expense management, asset allocation and increased returns. The company has a 100% success rate with implementations and deliverables. Founded in 1999, Smartleaf has more than $50 billion in assets under management, is privately held and based in Cambridge, Mass.
About D.A. Davidson & Co.
Founded in 1935, D.A. Davidson is the largest full-service investment firm based in the Northwest. The employee-owned firm offers a wide range of personalized investment services to individual investors, families, businesses and institutional clients nationwide. D.A. Davidson’s experienced research staff regularly wins national awards and is backed by sales, trading and market making, and the firm is a regional leader in public and corporate finance. D.A. Davidson is headquartered in Montana.
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Meghan Gardner
Version 2.0 Communications
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