Asset management giant Vanguard said it has agreed to acquire Altruist, a fintech that provides registered investment advisor firms with a trading platform and technology.
The acquisition expands Vanguard's reach with financial advisors and puts it in direct competition with Charles Schwab and Fidelity, the industry's two largest custodians which serve thousands of RIAs. Vanguard didn't disclose terms of the acquisition, which the company expects to close later this year.
Vanguard has been striving to drum up business with independent financial advisors, providing them with exchange-traded and mutual funds as well as portfolio services. Acquiring Altruist can help it advance that goal and it gives Vanguard a tech-focused start-up. Vanguard invested in Altruist in 2020.
Vanguard CEO Salim Ramji pointed to Altruist's technology capabilities as a reason to acquire the firm, adding that Altruist can advance Vanguard's goal of helping investors more easily access financial advice.
"The need is broad, but the capacity to provide high-quality advice is limited," Ramji says. "Technology can help close that gap by enabling advisors to serve more people and serve them better, while preserving the human judgment and relationships at the center of good financial advice."
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