Both investment managers and insurance portfolios have grown increasingly complex over the past few years. M&A activity between the two has also accelerated, forcing the newly combined entities to figure out the best way to integrate disparate, overlapping and redundant systems as well as address redundant or overlapping operations and staff. Legacy technology and inefficient operating models can quickly erode any increase in revenue or margin garnered from such deals.
To gain operational efficiency and scalability while simultaneously mitigating increased risk or exposure, insurers and investment managers are now taking the time to revisit their full front-to-back operating models to decide which business functions and technology stacks they should retire, outsource, upgrade, license or co-source.
Full outsourcing can solve a number of problems, but it comes with its own set of risks if proper governance and oversight are not in place. For example, technology and interoperability limitations can make it difficult to integrate new books of business. Operational and data integrity risks can arise due to the need for multiple reconciliations between disparate systems. And, an inability to view and manage all assets and investments holistically can lead to added portfolio risk.
So, while full outsourcing can often be a solid choice, large asset managers may prefer a more flexible, modular system and operating model, leveraging a combination of licensed, web and mobile-accessible technology and backed by select co-sourcing services where internal expertise or staff resources may be lacking. By working with a solutions provider that offers modularity, large asset managers can pick and choose what they need to optimize revenue and staffing requirements while also reducing both operational and portfolio risk.
SS&C offers technology and services that cover the entire front-to-back investment lifecycle - creating an extremely flexible, scalable solution. Because the front, middle and back-office components are all seamlessly integrated, clients can pick and choose any or all of the solutions that meet their specific needs. Furthermore, the components or full solution can be licensed via a SaaS offering, or provided via a co-sourcing or outsourcing service relationship with SS&C.
These integrated solutions include SS&C’s:
- Front-Office Order Management System (OMS) with multi-asset trading capabilities, global connectivity, advanced risk modeling and scenario analysis tools, and analytics.
- Middle Office providing dynamic trade capture, matching and settlement, security and data maintenance, pricing and valuation models, cash and collateral management, and corporate actions and events processing.
- Investment Accounting providing multi-basis, AI-powered investment analytics and accounting, loan origination and servicing, and support for alternative investment valuations, document and event processing.
- Data Management solution offering comprehensive data integration, validation and management, along with advanced business intelligence, visualization and reporting tools and analytics.
All of this is supported by a dedicated, tenured, global servicing staff with deep domain expertise across public and private investments, accounting, operations and regulatory reporting.
To learn more about how SS&C supports the entire front-to-back operation, watch our "SS&C Front-to-Back Solution" video.
