the complete investment management solution Gaining Perspective on IBOR Solutions Bryan Dori CEO, Archer June 2015 archerims.com (484) 615-6271 Pennsylvania 801 Cassatt Rd., Suite 212 Berwyn, PA 19312 New York 286 Madison Ave., Suite 1301 New York, NY 10017 New Jersey 10 Parsonage Rd., Suite 314 Edison, NJ 08837 2015 Archer. All rights reserved.
1 Gaining Perspective on IBOR Solutions IBOR Investment Book of Record has gained acceptance in the investment management industry of late after having been around as a concept for some time. 1 The benefit of having a transactional account of investment activity is best realized when seen across an entire firm as a single view. 2 However, buy-side managers are struggling with the complexities of IBOR support 3 as they attempt to streamline internal processes while expanding product offerings and addressing ever-more-stringent compliance requirements. Wholesale replacement of current operations and the systems that support them entails hefty up-front expense and can cause extreme business interruption. But the effort of using existing internal systems and processes to maintain the quality and efficiency of data can be debilitating as well. Executives evaluating the requirements, risks, and costs associated with internal versus outsourcing IBOR support face difficult challenges. This paper explores different methods of managing IBOR data and its support structure. Lessons learned during past evolution in the investment management industry are reviewed, different perspectives are considered, and current IBOR options are explored. Focusing on Core Competencies: A Historic Perspective Banks, acting as service providers, have approached IBOR support with serious consideration and much discussion, fleshing out the details of what can be done, by whom, how and when. Non-bank service providers -- such as boutique service providers, managed service providers, business process outsourcers, and technology firms -- have been following this discussion, too. While a few of these service providers have been offering outsourcing for a while, the others are poised to enter the fray. Those who are veteran to the industry may be reminded of discussions in the 70s and 80s that led to third party fund accountants and transfer agents springing up to fill needs from the mutual fund boon. As the early 1980s approached, mutual fund products were predicted to grow exponentially as they became an integral part of institutions and individuals investment portfolios. This explosive growth, however, created challenging service issues, expenses and risks. Initially, asset managers internally staffed to strike NAVs and to perform transfer agency functions. With the popularity of mutual funds growing, senior financial executives began to examine the accelerating cost of internally supporting mutual fund operations. They were forced to acknowledge that the sheer volume of work was distracting their firms from creating value and enhancing ROI. Instead, firms were increasing their operating expenses with no incremental revenue as armies of operations and technology support staff were hired to chase high-touch legacy operating processes. They were also outgrowing their physical office spaces and increasing their risk exposures. 1 IBOR Before It Was IBOR, WallStreet & Technology, Bob Leaper, August 19, 2014 (http://www.wallstreetandtech.com/data-management/ibor-before-it-was--ibor-/a/d-id/1298123) 2 All Eyes on IBOR, Markets Media, October 27, 2014 (http://marketsmedia.com/eyes-ibor/) 3 Are you ready to support IBOR?, Rob Erman, June 19, 2014 (http://eagle-exchange.com/ready-support-ibor/)
2 Third-party service providers for transfer agency and fund accountancy then entered the market. This provided mutual fund executives with options: purchasing new technology to enable internal efficiency, or fully outsourcing their NAV-supporting technology and operations. Despite risk-sensitive executives being reluctant to relinquish control of their data and oversight of their operations, many believing the functions could not be successfully performed externally, third-party support was gradually accepted. Fast forward to 2000, and the mutual fund servicing business had evolved such that it was considered unthinkable for an asset manager to strike an NAV or to perform transfer agency functions....archer is a strong proponent of right-sourcing investment managers IBOR support needs. Sound familiar? Experience shows that senior financial executives are Right-sourcing is the process of again taking a hard look at cost, efficiency and risk, seeking to better identifying the core competencies align costs with success and improve ROI through an exchange of variable expense for SG&A. This time, financial executives are viewing the of an investment management firm and the critical client-facing challenge through the lens of non-core activities associated with IBOR functions for each sales channel, support. Executives are seeking a single accounting engine/ibor then applying technology and platform to support all business lines, thereby creating optimal efficiency, data integrity, risk mitigation and support-cost reductions -- all operations solutions to enable operational efficiency and while seeking to implement a solution with minimal business interruption. Concerns about potential solutions rightly exist at the firm-level effectiveness. regarding both cultural fit and a client-centric view of the investment manager s roles and responsibilities. Said another way, the answer to what is non-core? is partly dependent on a firm s culture and their client expectations. Gaining a Better Perspective Investment managers seeking IBOR solutions have indicated that their main concerns are: risk mitigation; cost containment and predictability; and superior, accessible service. Mindful of these concerns, we caution managers actively pursuing a solution that: Scale cannot be achieved with bodies. Middle office process efficiency must be addressed by a marriage of subject matter expertise and technology solutions that facilitate the management of firm and client risk. No one vendor is an expert in every aspect of the business. Compliance and vendor management are critical components of investment operations outsourcing. IBOR must be viewed as an integrated piece of an overarching investment process. Vendors who specialize in IBOR need to own the technology for sure, but also to be experienced in its use, that is, to be investment management professionals themselves. The astute service provider understands that an integrated IBOR system is not a compilation of discreet systems, plugged together. Data integrity is critically important. Taking together investment managers focus on IBOR and the aforementioned considerations and cautions, Archer is a strong proponent of right-sourcing investment managers IBOR support needs. Right-sourcing is the process of identifying the core competencies of an investment management firm
3 and the critical client-facing functions for each sales channel, then applying technology and operations solutions to enable operational efficiency and effectiveness. Right-sourcing moves the industry from parallel offerings of technology and service to the intersection of financial services, technology, and support that is emerging today. An appropriately right-sourced solution: Provides a single and comprehensive accounting platform for all channels, Streamlines technology in support of disaster recovery and business continuity, Eliminates technology obsolescence, Provides a transparent and flexible operations infrastructure capable of adding value, compliance and efficiency to the investment management process. Moreover, the solution provider acts in partnership with the investment management firm, integrating technology and services seamlessly into the manager s framework in a manner that is respectful of the investment firm s culture and client mix. Right-sourcing moves the industry from parallel offerings of technology and service to the intersection of financial services, technology, and support that is emerging today. IBOR Options: Finding the Right Path As investment management firms have achieved growth by expanding product lines to include global securities, mutual fund shadow accounts, institutional separate accounts, private wealth and retail accounts, support infrastructures have become extremely complex and expensive. Consider too that requisite additional legal and compliance oversight along with increased trading risk further complicate the necessary support structure. This parallels the challenges of the past that fueled the shift from internal to external mutual fund servicing. Just as our predecessors may have done when considering the more traditional players and structures available, the following analysis is offered. Frame the question Define non-core: which functions are burdensomely manual, high risk, or non-productive from an ROI perspective Define potential solution-set: proprietary or third-party technology; proprietary, onshoreoutsourced, offshore-outsourced, or selectively-outsourced operations Define preferred technology/service delivery: on-site technology installation; remote user ( cloud ) access; unification of technology and services platform(s). Evaluate solutions Data warehouse: A data warehouse has a role to play -- but when employing multiple accounting engines in conjunction with multiple databases, a data warehouse morphs into a super-system with reconciliation and data integrity nightmares. Resolving them adds operating expense, achieving the exact opposite of the original intention. Banks and hedge funds as service providers: Realistically, the days of large banks giving away thin margin, middle office services for relationship purposes in anticipation of future business revenues ended back in 2012. Competition among these providers continues and they advance and retract offerings, casting off lower-aum clients, as margins shrink. Additionally, offshoring among these players has grown. Quality of service has slipped and client dissatisfaction is growing.
4 In-house, proprietary or third-party technology purchase and support: Function by function, developing or purchasing technology to deliver efficiency in IBOR support is achievable. However, integration of the functions with an accounting engine is complicated by ongoing systems support and integration issues. As a result, operational efficiency issues may potentially remain unaddressed. Outsourced services: While efficiency can be gained by outsourcing operations to an established and experienced boutique service provider or business process outsourcer, oversight responsibilities cannot be outsourced. Ever. Maintaining oversight with transparency and connectivity across business lines remains an issue. Examine providers Most of these solutions have been structured by respected financial industry players, and continue to uphold the legacy of the firms that created them. Larger providers tend to be less agile in making their services relevant to managers of all sizes. For example, providing a high-quality, high-touch service model is eschewed for the efficiency of a one-size-fits-all offering. Additionally, these providers have somewhat outsourced themselves, strapping their business models with a lack of down-scalability and poor control over third-party platforms. Larger firms are firing clients who do not meet asset or revenue requirements while under-serving their larger clients with less experienced, less expensive operations staff. Business process outsourcers and managed service providers are categories where most nonbank, non-boutique players fall. These providers offer a wide array of services, quality, expertise and technology. Many can service investment managers of all sizes. Agility in this group is enabled through leaner organizations with efficient vertical integration. Most are capable of offering a hightouch, white glove service model, using the industry s premier tools and protocols. However, seeking to contain their own operating costs, these providers tend to outsource offshore, subjecting themselves and their clients to high employee turnover and, often, political/socioeconomic instability. Boutique providers are new micro participants and often specialize in one particular discipline, have minimal staff and resources, and generally aggregate information and research by polling the larger players and industry experts. Because of their lack of funding, these boutiques often move very slowly in their ability to address scale. Their ability to grow in lockstep with their clients is, in other words, suppressed. Traditional financial technology and software companies offer a broad range of products, from industry utility software to function-specific software. While these firms offer a good to excellent software product, they often lack understanding of the operational processes precedent and antecedent to the software capabilities. They have little appreciation for the challenges of building and equipping support teams. Conclusion A single, comprehensive IBOR is increasingly becoming a necessary component of successful investment management firms operations. When seeking to implement an IBOR solution, consider the benefits that outsourcing solutions can provide. These benefits include the ability for a firm to concentrate on core competencies while aligning costs with success. Gaining perspective on how IBOR should work within an investment management firm s total business will help lead to a right-sourced solution where technology and service intersect. Right-sourcing enables flexible IBOR solutions and is the emergent answer to investment managers business efficiency challenge. 2015 Archer. All rights reserved. archerims.com