With the exception of the account aggregation and performance reporting, everything on the platform, including the integrated CRM application, is offered at no additional charge. Account aggregation costs $150 per month and performance reporting costs $99 per month. Each of these services is a bargain considering what you get for the money, and to entice advisors, Trade PMR is offering both applications for the bundled price of just $180-an incredible value.
Electronic fee billing is also included. Advisors can create simple or complex fee schedules and apply them to all accounts or to individual accounts. At the beginning or end of a billing cycle, (according to his or her Form ADV) the advisor simply goes online and tells Trade PMR to apply the schedule. If there is sufficient cash in all accounts to process the bills, the transactions will be processed.
If not, the system will warn the advisor to raise cash in the appropriate accounts. For bills processed before 2:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, the advisor's account is credited the next day. If an advisor's ADV requires client notification of the bill payment, Trade PMR can send e-mail notifications to the client or create PDF letters for the advisor to mail out. Copies of this correspondence are automatically stored in the Trade PMR CRM system.
For those who require a more robust CRM system, Trade PMR offers some level of integration with Redtail. Ideally, the firm will eventually offer real-time or near-real-time synchronization between the Redtail and Trade PMR Web sites. In the financial planning software area, Trade PMR offers integration with FinanceLogix, and the company is negotiating to have its platform work with MoneyGuidePro as well.
Although eCustody 2.0 is quite impressive, a few things are lacking. Right now, you cannot upload documents and link them to a client record, but we expect that capability before the end of 2010. Also in the plans for 2010: basic rebalancing capabilities. Online fixed-income trading is also expected this year. The integrated CRM lacks work-flow capabilities, but basic work-flows are due before year's end. Also by that time, the platform will enable advisors to automatically schedule follow-ups to a task. Some services routinely offered by other custodians such as e-prospectuses and e-proxies are not yet offered, but I suspect these too will be coming soon.
Overall, there is a great deal to like here, especially for newer, smaller RIA firms. Clearly, Trade PMR is focused on providing good technology and tight integration while keeping costs low. Its eCustody platform sports a state-of-the-art interface with strong capabilities. For an RIA that custodies exclusively with Trade PMR, the total package, all integrated together for $180 per month, represents a truly enticing value.
New RIA firms, or those unsatisfied with their current custodian would be well advised to further investigate Trade PMR. You can visit the company's Web site, www.tradepmr.com, to learn more.