Colonial takes stake in financial planning technology
Colonial First State is throwing its financial weight behind Australian financial planning technology developer Avanteos.
Colonial has taken a minority stake in the group which it views as a strategic investment. Colonial First State Investments managing director Peter Polson and Colonial First State Investment Managers chief executive Chris Cuffe have both taken seats on the six member board of Avanteos.
"Colonial has been associated with Avanteos for a number of years," Cuffe says.
"We saw this group involved in areas which we would certainly be competing with in web based financial planning solutions, so our involvement with the company gives us a shareholding interest in a rapidly changing segment of the market."
Avanteos provides wholesale technological support to financial planners, dealers and fund managers through its back office software, such as the capabilities for online wrap accounts. Avanteos chief executive Mark Papendieck says that it is not in the company's intentions to create a retail brand as a software developer in financial services.
"We provide financial planners and dealer groups with the ability to provide their own online transactions or wrap services. We believe it's cheaper and quicker for dealers or fund managers to lease these software services from us than design them in-house," he says.
Papendieck says that Avanteos has no direct competitors in wholesale technology development.
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