RIA revenue tool targets fee leakage as PE growth pressure mounts

Ascentix Partners and PureFacts Financial Solutions are joining forces to help wealth management firms unlock revenue that is already in their books - without chasing new assets.

The New York-based strategy consultancy and the Toronto-headquartered revenue management software provider aim to address what both firms describe as a gap in how RIA enterprises and private equity-backed wealth businesses approach organic growth: the money they are already owed but failing to capture.

For Larry Roth, founder and managing partner of Ascentix Partners and a former CEO of both Cetera Financial and Advisor Group, the impetus is clear. Private equity sponsors backing RIA portfolio companies have become increasingly demanding on growth targets, he said, and firms have historically had limited tools to meet those expectations.

"There is ever-increasing demand from private equity sponsors for their RIA portfolio companies to achieve aggressive growth targets," Roth said. "Historically, solutions for addressing these growth expectations have been restricted to a combination of asset growth, cost cutting and client acquisition."

The partnership introduces a different avenue. PureFacts' PureRevenue Platform - which the company positions as a Revenue Book of Record - connects fee billing, advisor compensation and practice management intelligence into a single system. The aim is to give firms a cleaner picture of where revenue is being earned, billed and distributed, and where it is being lost to inefficiencies or inconsistent pricing.

Roth framed the tool as a lever that firms have not previously had access to. "PureFacts fundamentally transforms this picture by adding a new and powerful component to driving valuations," he said, "by considering revenue more holistically and finding overlooked or underutilized earning levers to pull."

The platform's three core modules address distinct problems. Fees & Billing targets errors and inconsistencies in how complex fee structures are calculated and collected.

Advisor Compensation is designed to align incentive pay with firm-wide strategy, reduce disputes and reinforce revenue-positive behavior. Practice Management delivers analytics on client value, pricing benchmarks and advisor effectiveness, framed as a tool for identifying unnecessary discounting and strengthening existing client relationships.

Pete Hess, president of PureFacts and the former CEO of Advent Software, said the collaboration targets the defining operational challenge facing wealth management firms. "Organic growth is the defining challenge in wealth and asset management today," Hess said, "and few understand it as deeply as Ascentix and PureFacts do together."

The announcement comes as high-performing RIAs have come under scrutiny for failing to convert asset growth into revenue growth, with Fidelity's 2024 RIA Benchmarking Study finding that firm expenses consumed approximately 82 percent of revenue in 2023 - a record high.

The pressure to extract more from existing revenue streams, rather than simply increasing AUM, has become a board-level concern at many wealth enterprises.

Ascentix, which rebranded from RLR Strategic Partners earlier this year, serves RIA enterprises, dual registrant firms, family offices, wealthtech platforms and private market solutions providers. It is headquartered in New York with offices in Los Angeles.

PureFacts, which counts more than 140 clients managing a combined $10 trillion in assets under management, has expanded its presence across North American and European wealth management technology stacks over the past several years. The company received a majority investment from private equity firm GrowthCurve, which has been directed toward product development and artificial intelligence.