Earlier this year, Sanctuary Wealth acquired tru Independence, and the firms have been hard at work bringing together their services, operations and technology stacks.
Bob Walter, who serves as the president of Sanctuary overseeing all aspects of the firm’s operations and support infrastructure, told Digital Wealth News he sees this process as “alignment” more than in any other post-transaction period he’s supported in the past.
DWN recently caught up with Walter just before heading out to his firm’s Oasis national conference, which is taking place now in Hollywood, Florida. The event includes discussion on various topics impacting the firm’s wealth management offering and tech stack, as well as the alignment of both firms.
During this conversation, we touched on these topics as well as the impact of regulatory changes that may be on the horizon after the November elections.
DWN: Sanctuary acquired tru Independent earlier this year and added more than 30 RIAs to the network. How is the alignment between the firms going? Any surprises?
Bob Walter: Our work to align the firms is going well. Early in the acquisition process, we decided to keep the two firms operating as separate brands under their existing leadership teams. In doing this, we avoided the issues that many firms have when they force an integration on advisors. Sanctuary has built investment solutions and an innovative tech stack that ensures elite advisors have all they need to run sophisticated businesses. The advisors from tru are excited about the expanded offerings they now have access to as part of the larger firm. Sanctuary partner firms are benefitting from the vast experience and unique perspectives on the RIA space that tru brings to the table.
One surprise was how similar the tru advisors’ businesses are to those at Sanctuary. They may have different affiliation models, but they both serve high-net-worth individuals, families and business owners with complex wealth management needs. I’m very excited to speak with many of them at our upcoming Oasis conference. This will be the first time our two firms will be together as one group.
As we continue aligning the firms, tru advisors will be able to take advantage of more of the Sanctuary solutions to accelerate their growth and build even greater value in their practices.
DWN: You mentioned Sanctuary’s annual Oasis conference. What do you believe will be the most significant firm announcement advisors will take away from the event?
BW: Our annual Oasis conference is always an important event because it allows us to connect with advisors, share ideas and renew our commitment to earning their business by investing in the systems, tools and resources they need to grow faster than they could anywhere else. Our goal it to ensure our general sessions, breakouts and one-on-one networking events highlight this commitment to their success.
We will announce several new and enhanced offerings to our wealth management platform and tech stack, from access to diverse alternatives to AI-enabled marketing tools. While there are several more details to come, and we look forward to sharing them with our Partner Firms in person, the fact is that we are in constant motion to enhance our platform.
Without regular review and expansion of services, those on our platform run the risk of being left behind. Our commitment goes well beyond the flashy new products – but getting into the daily operational realities of running an elite practice. By focusing on these details, we can help our Partner Firms focus on what matters most – supporting their clients.
DWN: The current political climate and upcoming elections create uncertainty around the direction of regulations that could significantly impact wealth management firms. In this environment, Regtech is an area many firms are committing significant resources to or may need to in the not-so-distant future. How is Sanctuary approaching this?
BW: At Sanctuary, one of our most important responsibilities is to ensure that our affiliated advisors have the infrastructure they need to remain agile in uncertain situations, including those related to compliance, supervision and the regulations coming out of Washington D.C. and the states.
Regtech can no longer be an afterthought that takes its place at the end of the line when allocating a firm’s IT budget. New platforms, systems and tools are becoming available almost daily that can help streamline workflows, better manage data and improve the effectiveness of a firm’s compliance program.
Many of these innovative new tools we are implementing in our program are AI-enabled. Of course, while AI offers opportunities for improving services and operations, we must carefully manage its integration to avoid risks and ensure compliance with evolving regulations.
Cybersecurity is another area in which we are investing. We understand that as we increasingly rely on digital platforms and data analytics, protecting client information and assets from cyber threats becomes more critical. The SEC has also recently implemented new cybersecurity rules, so we must be prepared and remain vigila
