Amid ongoing market volatility, high net worth (those with a net worth of $5m+) and ultra high net worth (those with a net worth of $30m+) individuals need expert wealth management guidance more than ever. Registered investment advisors (RIAs) that are able to successfully navigate current challenges have an unprecedented opportunity to grow their client base and emerge as leaders in the industry. But seeing the path clearly in such a tumultuous landscape can be challenging in the chaos on the front-lines.
This year’s Wealth Management EDGE conference, held June 10 to 12 in Boca Raton, FL, was dedicated to revealing the big-picture of the wealth management sector, addressing the most pressing challenges affecting RIAs. As a proud sponsor, Altrata joined over 2,000 experts and 250 speakers at the conference to explore what’s keeping wealth professionals up at night and how the industry is aligning around a new north star: organic growth. Here are the top takeaways from the event.
The state of the wealth management market
Much of the Wealth Management EDGE conference was centered around the challenges RIAs and wealth management firms are facing as they try to support their clients. Four themes appeared repeatedly in each conversation over the course of the three day conference:
- Navigating disruptive times
- Geopolitical and economic shocks have become an everyday occurrence, leaving RIAs (and their clients) uncertain how to proceed. What’s more, the Trump administration’s fluctuating tariff policies and escalating global trade tensions further threaten to disrupt supply chains and trigger more erratic market swings.
- All of this short-term volatility makes it increasingly difficult to set long-term strategies, while client anxiety arises. This unpredictability is putting traditional portfolio models under stress, and even historically stable investments exhibit uncharacteristic turbulence. All of the media coverage of the market volatility has left advisors scrambling to sort through the noise, quell client anxiety and provide timely guidance. Many speakers highlighted the struggle to maintain stability, retain trust and deliver value when it seems like the ground keeps shifting beneath them.
- The rise of alternative investments
- A common lament throughout the conference was the end of predictable returns from traditional 60/40 portfolios. As market volatility upends conventional strategies, many RIAs are now trying to diversify with endowment-style investment models.
- What’s more, crypto’s explosive arrival as a legitimate asset class has made the investment market even more complex, with the Bitcoin ETF marking the largest ETF launch in history. Advisors must now master volatile digital assets while dodging regulatory landmines, managing client expectations, and facing the existential threat of being sidelined in the greatest wealth creation event since the birth of the internet.
- Ai is center stage
- In a short time, AI has evolved from a mere buzzword to a business imperative, revolutionizing many facets of wealth management. Top-performing RIA firms now use AI to power hyper-efficient client acquisition through predictive lead scoring, perform risk analysis in real-time, deliver unprecedented personalization and automate compliance workflows, fundamentally redefining what proactive service means. Many speakers at the conference urged attendees to strategically integrate AI to avoid losing their competitive edge in an industry where personalized, tech-enabled service is quickly becoming status quo. But how can firms find the right balance between hyper-efficiency and maintaining a human touch with their client relationships?
- Unprecedented opportunities
- The $31 trillion Great Wealth Transfer is well underway, rapidly moving a new generation of clients to the forefront of the wealth management industry. Simultaneously, HENRYs (High Earners, Not Rich Yet) are emerging as one of the most valuable long-term client segments for RIAs that are equipped to work with more tech-savvy, non-traditional investors. As a result, RIAs that can’t speak the language of younger clients, meet them on their platforms and demonstrate authentic value beyond portfolio management will be left managing shrinking books of aging clients. And the window to establish trust with these critical demographics is closing fast.
The RIA action plan for organic growth
Attendees didn’t just commiserate about their shared challenges; they actively strategized ways to manage chaos and thrive in the current turbulence, taking a long view of the industry landscape. Organic growth emerged as the gold standard path of progress, reminding industry leaders that old-fashioned grit and innovation are as important as innovation and capital. Here are the top strategies discussed:
Tailor strategies for NextGen investors
The next generation of wealth holders isn’t just seeking financial advisors, they’re seeking partners who reflect their progressive values, digital fluency, and desire for transparency.
To remain competitive, RIAs must proactively engage heirs before wealth transitions occur. That means getting involved early in succession planning and building authentic, trust-based relationships with younger stakeholders, using the channels and formats they actually engage with like value-driven social content and mobile-first platforms.
This generation expects a very different service model. They favor transparency, accessibility and investments that align with their social and environmental values. Traditional methods like phone calls, PDFs, and golf tournament sponsorships are quickly losing relevance.
And the opportunity is massive. According to research by Altrata, the typical UHNW individual has a direct connection to more than 70 other UHNW individuals. Strong relationships not only retain clients, but they also create powerful networks for growth.
RIAs that want to win over NextGen wealth holders will need to reimagine their approach from the ground up, aligning their services with the expectations of a generation that would rather Venmo than visit a bank branch.
De-prioritize M&A (for now)
While M&A served as a reliable growth lever in recent years, quality targets are becoming increasingly scarce. Firms clinging to the acquisition model as their primary growth engine are already beginning to face a growing challenge: without robust organic pipelines, they’ll struggle to maintain valuation premiums, while more agile competitors eat away at market share. Today’s wealth management landscape demands a fundamental shift toward organic client acquisition strategies, and RIAs must now get back to basics, re-investing in direct prospecting, cultivating precise referral networks, and developing engagement strategies that directly speak to target clients.
Learn from faster industries
Until more recent digitalization of the finance industry, innovation moved at a glacial pace. Now, the wealth management sector needs to proactively keep up with the times. One session on the final day of the conference highlighted how forward-thinking RIAs are now learning from the playbooks of high-growth SaaS and fintech firms, dedicating themselves to improved scalability and user experience. Successful firms are creating performance marketing funnels that convert like DTC brands.
Meet the moment with Altrata
In today’s market, old-fashioned prospecting approaches are delivering diminishing returns. The RIAs able to grow their AUM in this challenging environment all share a critical advantage: they’ve moved beyond guesswork for precision targeting that engages prospects as full, three-dimensional human beings.
Altrata is a leading people intelligence platform with deep insight into current and future HNW and UHNW investors tailored to helping RIAs overcome the challenges of this moment. During the conference, Altrata’s Chief Product Officer, Rob Le Piane, demonstrated exactly how the platform helps RIAs and wealth management firms improve every aspect of the prospecting, engagement, and client acquisition process.
Altrata offers:
- Detailed profiles of affluent and high-potential professionals that includes key wealth indicators, career alerts (such as promotions and equity payouts), charitable giving history, current net worth, and more — allowing users to build highly-targeted prospect lists and engage at the perfect time.
- Relationship mapping capabilities that can help RIAs identify existing connections to potential clients, facilitating warm introductions and strengthening relationships.
- Seamless integration into existing advisor workflows and systems, allowing users to flesh out profiles for existing prospects, better qualify leads, and develop uniquely personalized engagement strategies for organic growth.
Ready to accelerate your organic growth? Schedule a demo today and arm your firm with the insights needed to thrive in 2025 and beyond.