Fintech Bytes: Envestnet's Bill Crager Wants to Fix Tech's Disconnection Dilemma

Why It Matters

By unifying disparate data sources, these solutions reduce manual stitching, boost advisor efficiency, and create new differentiation opportunities in a highly competitive wealth‑tech market.

Key Takeaways

• Field aggregates data across portfolio, planning, CRM, compliance, billing systems.
• Strad’s partnership gives FIG advisors family‑office tools for mass‑affluent clients.
• Slant integrates phone/text logs into CRM, enabling AI‑driven workflow automation.
• Unified data layer aims to shift wealth‑tech innovation from apps to infrastructure.

Pulse Analysis

The wealth‑management industry has long wrestled with a patchwork of siloed applications, forcing advisors to act as data custodians. Field tackles this by inserting a unified data layer beneath existing tools, pulling information from custodians, planning platforms and billing systems. Leveraging BridgeFT’s API connectivity and Precept’s cross‑custodian mapping, the platform promises real‑time, AI‑ready data that can power next‑generation analytics and compliance checks, positioning it as foundational infrastructure rather than a niche add‑on.

Strad’s alliance with FIG reflects a broader push to democratize family‑office capabilities. Traditionally reserved for ultra‑high‑net‑worth households, the virtual office model now offers structured asset, document and relationship management to a wider client base. The SOC 2 Type 2 compliance and seamless integration with advisors’ existing stacks enable firms to deepen client engagement, differentiate beyond pure investment management, and build succession‑ready practices in an environment of fee compression.

Slant’s integration with CurrentClient closes another critical gap by funneling phone calls and text messages into the CRM’s AI engine. This creates a comprehensive interaction history that can be auto‑summarized, trigger follow‑up tasks, and even draft client‑facing communications in the advisor’s voice. As regulators tighten communication archiving rules, such end‑to‑end capture not only safeguards compliance but also fuels data‑driven insights, reinforcing the industry’s shift toward holistic, technology‑enabled client relationships.