SMArtX founder Evan Rapoport becomes latest wealthtech CEO to step down: Wealthtech Weekly

August 17, 2023 2:48 PM

Evan Rapoport may no longer be CEO of the wealthtech firm he founded six years ago, but he plans to remain part of the SMArtX family long into the future.

This week, SMArtX Advisory Solutions announced that Jonathan Pincus has been named the firm's new CEO as Rapoport transitions to a role on the SMArtX board of directors.

Pincus has served as SMArtX's president and chief operating officer for the last three years, according to the company. His run as SMArtX CEO is effective immediately. Before joining SMArtX, Pincus was global head of investment operations at Northern Trust Asset Management.

"SMArtX is the most important part of my life's work in the financial services industry, and I am immensely proud of what we have achieved together," Rapoport said in a statement. "I am confident that the company is in capable hands under Jonathan Pincus's leadership, and I look forward to contributing to its continued success as a member of the board."

Rapoport founded SMArtX Advisory Solutions in 2017. Company officials said under his guidance, SMArtX has grown to become "widely recognized as an industry leader in the managed accounts technology industry."

"Evan Rapoport is an extraordinary entrepreneur that has truly transformed this industry," David Miles, founding partner of ManchesterStory Fund Management and chair of SMArtX's board of directors, said in a statement. "The board of directors congratulates him on his great success, and we are grateful for his continued leadership as a director going forward."

Pincus said over the years, he has witnessed the passion and dedication Rapoport brought to the role of CEO, and he looks to build on that foundation.

"We will continue to bring new advancements into the marketplace that replace legacy technologies and lead the evolution of managed accounts solutions across the industry," he said.

With the move, Rapoport has become the latest wealthtech leader to exit their company's top spot in 2023. In April, InvestCloud announced that co-founder and former CEO John Wise had left the company and that Richard Lumb was being appointed interim chief. The board also has initiated a comprehensive search for a permanent CEO, but no timeframe for the effort was provided, and no updates have been issued since then.

The next month, Orion Advisor Solutions CEO Eric Clarke announced his plans to retire at the end of year. Former AssetMark President and CEO Charles Goldman — who was appointed to the position of executive chair of the Orion board — is leading the CEO search along with a committee.

Moving beyond the tech space, other notable wealth management exits in 2023 include the sudden February departure of Sanctuary Wealth Founder Jim Dickson, who was replaced by Adam Malamed as the new CEO.

In late March, it was announced that Andy Sieg was stepping down from his position as president of Merrill Wealth Management to become the new head of Citi Global Wealth in September.

Sieg worked at Citi from 2005 to 2009. He had been at Bank of America's Merrill since then, serving first as head of Global Wealth & Retirement Solutions, then as president of Merrill in 2017. Sieg is replaced by Lindsay Hans and Eric Schimpf, who were named presidents and co-heads of Merrill Wealth Management. Both executives will report to Bank of America CEO and chairman Brian Moynihan.

Scroll down to get caught up on other recent fintech news you might have missed in our Wealthtech Weekly recap. And check out the previous edition here.

Former Vanguard CEO Bill McNabb joins VC firm as an advisor

The man who led Vanguard as CEO for nearly a decade is stepping into a new role with a focus on fintech investment.

This week, New York-based venture capital firm Venrock announced the addition of F. William McNabb as an advisor who will help the firm with its investments into wealth management technology.

Venrock, a backer of digital custodian Altruist, said in a statement that "Bill pushed Vanguard to be more aggressive in embracing and adopting new technologies, and that ended up being an important differentiator for Vanguard."

Under McNabb, Vanguard more than tripled in size as investors embraced the low-cost index funds for which it is best known.

"Entrepreneurs need every edge they can get to build a large, sustainable business. The team has a long history of rolling up our sleeves to provide every advantage possible to our portfolio, including expanding our team with advisors who are leaders and innovators in their field and can accelerate a company's trajectory," said a Venrock statement. "Bill is a legend in the finance industry. He grew through the ranks during his 30+ years at Vanguard to become CEO in 2008 and steered the company's growth from $1 trillion in assets under management to $5 trillion."

McNabb currently sits on the boards of Venrock portfolio companies Altruist and Vanilla, according to the company. He also serves on the boards of IBM, United Healthcare and Axiom.

UNest extends family planning tools to advisors, partners with Wealthtender

UNest, a fintech firm that helps parents save and invest for their children, is opening up its direct-to-consumer platform to financial advisors.

The California-based firm has announced the debut of UNest FinPro, a program that lets advisors use UNest to open accounts for the children of clients interested in getting a jump start on their savings.

Since launching in 2020, UNest has helped more than 700,000 investors, according to the company. The core UNest product is an iOS and Android app that originally offered tax-advantaged 529 college savings plans to parents, but now provides custodial accounts to customers.

To celebrate the change, UNest has partnered with Wealthtender, a marketing platform for financial advisors, to roll out perks for planners. The more than 300 financial advisors in the Wealthtender community will gain early access to join UNest FinPro, and have the opportunity to be featured in the new FinPro Find-an-Advisor Directory on UNest.co.

Advisors who join UNest FinPro are provided a dedicated UNest service team, educational webinars and bonus deposits for clients who open new UNest accounts. In addition, families opening a new UNest account with a UNest FinPro advisor will receive a $25 reward deposited in their UNest investment account.

"Our focus is on giving parents the confidence and ability to map out a sound financial future for their kids," Ksenia Yudina, founder and CEO of UNest, said in a statement. "Through our partnership with Wealthtender, parents can access the leading platform for rating and reviewing financial advisors."

Apex adds new trading and rebalancing capabilities

Wealth management software provider Apex Fintech Solutions is teaming up with developer AdvisorArch to offer advisory firms updated trading and rebalancing tools.

Through AdvisorArch's integration, advisors and fintechs will gain access to a rebalancer to help support tax loss harvesting capabilities, direct indexing, fractional share trading, concentrated position management and more with connectivity to their current portfolio management tools.

Users will also have the ability to customize their settings and standardize models, access direct indexing and ESG/SRI strategies, view client holdings and targets and execute trades across all their accounts.

Olivia Eisinger, general manager of advisory at Apex Advisor Solutions, said the integration allows advisors to construct their tech stack with top technology with "the only independent rebalancer in the market that provides trade explanations and tax loss harvesting capabilities on fractional shares."

"As personalizing portfolios becomes ever more critical to help advisors stand out and efficiently deliver better client experiences, we are excited to be deeply integrated with AdvisorArch's new rebalancer," Eisinger said in a statement. "Our broader mission and focus is to remove the friction that exists in the investment management process."