As markets ebb and flow with noise, WealthRyse provides wealth advisors and asset managers with the perfect AI “co-pilot” to rebalance portfolios for and engage customers.
Financial advisors today grapple with the daunting task of managing vast amounts of data and market volatility. This complexity makes it increasingly challenging to deliver personalized advice that aligns with each client’s financial goals. Moreover, the escalating competitiveness of the market requires advisors to stay updated and develop distinctive, flexible strategies and portfolio rebalances that make a real impact.
WealthRyse, an AI FinTech startup based in Asia, is here to simplify this process. Co-founded by David Lee and Bernard Lee, WealthRyse offers AI-powered wealth management predictive rebalancing “on demand” to personalize investment advice and make it accessible to a broader audience.
Leveraging advanced and proprietary neural network-based AI, WealthRyse equips financial advisors with a dashboard to tailor investment strategies and portfolio rebalances to meet individual client needs. To learn more about how WealthRyse is guiding its clients toward successful financial outcomes, the Jumpstart Team recently spoke with co-founders David and Bernard to gain more insights.
A story of diverse backgrounds and a shared vision
David’s journey began in Oklahoma. After spending some time in Asia during his youth, he returned to the U.S., earning a law degree from Harvard. His career evolved from a Wall Street lawyer to an investment banker at Credit Suisse (now known as UBS), eventually leading him to a role as a portfolio manager at a regional private equity fund.
Bernard, on the other hand, pursued a path steeped in technology, attending Princeton with a double major in engineering and the Woodrow Wilson School. He also earned a master’s degree in computer science at Stanford and a PhD in Quantitative Finance from Imperial College, UK. His resume includes being a managing director in the Portfolio Management Group at BlackRock in New York and having side professorial appointments at top universities. Moreover, he sits on editorial boards and steering committees of leading academic journals/venues and is a board member of one of the alumni boards at Stanford.
David and Bernard’s paths first crossed six years ago at an Accenture accelerator program. Despite their diverse backgrounds—David in law and finance, Bernard in tech and quants—their shared vision for utilizing AI in financial advisory laid the foundation for their collaboration.
What does WealthRyse bring to the table?
WealthRyse harnesses a proprietary data lake and AI engine to deliver a comprehensive business-to-business-to-consumer (B2B2C) solution. Its core offering is Genisys, a platform that makes managing assets easier and simpler for people. Much like a terminal-style platform offered by Bloomberg and Reuters, Genisys offers a seamless “plug-and-play” experience, acting as a trusted digital co-pilot for wealth advisors and asset managers looking to expand the scope of their assets under management with advanced tools.
Genisys learns from investment patterns and customizes portfolios to fit individual client needs using advanced techniques like dynamic programming and real-time relearning—similar to how Google’s AlphaGo identifies the highest probability winning move by playing most, if not all, possible games to completion. This system processes large volumes of data quickly and transparently, offering rebalancing advice that builds trust between advisors and clients.
What sets Genisys apart is its efficiency and adaptability. The platform automates essentially all core asset management steps once an investor is onboarded, facilitating rapid, real-time data-driven portfolio adjustments. It uses predictive analytics to generate detailed rebalancing reports and actionable insights, scientifically validated to outperform human portfolio managers. Moreover, Genisys allows wealth advisors and asset managers to create customized funds with simple parameters, enhancing the personalization of investment experiences.
Democratizing AI in asset management
David believes that sophisticated wealth management tools should be accessible to all, not just the moneyed elite. WealthRyse is committed to democratizing financial technology and simplifying financial planning.
“Financial advisors sell advice,” David notes. “To do so effectively, they need to produce, create and market robust rebalancing strategies.” The on-demand rebalancing capabilities of Genisys optimize its neural networks and algorithms, enabling daily adjustments and offering the best unbiased improvement estimates for portfolios.
A resilient beginning
“Throughout our journey, the most challenging part has always been dealing with the uncertainty of innovation,” shares Bernard. “When you’re trying to do something that’s never been done before, there’s no roadmap. You’re in uncharted territory, and every step forward is a step into the unknown in order to refine our AI technology to suit the needs of the market.”
From the start, WealthRyse has faced numerous challenges, including skepticism and setbacks from partners and competitors. Many predecessors in the field with expectations of success have attempted similar innovations but failed, making it crucial for WealthRyse not just to differentiate itself but to genuinely solve the problems faced by users. This meant rejecting the allure of creating “exotic” AI technologies in favor of developing practical, market-fit solutions that actual users could integrate seamlessly into their operations.
“It’s like being in a dark room and trying to find the light switch. You stumble, you fall, but you keep going because you believe in the vision and you achieve it,” Bernard adds. “Long story short, we ended up tweaking the platform until it was as easy to use as a data terminal solution from Bloomberg or Reuters, powered by a user-friendly front-end to allow wealth advisors and asset managers to rebalance portfolios instantly.”
Despite many hurdles, the team’s determination never wavered. “We’ve never really given up,” David remarks. “All these challenges have become part of our company’s DNA, born from our resilience and driven by our belief and vision.” This deep-seated persistence is the fuel to their mission of empowering financial advisors and helping clients grow their wealth through AI and technology.
Milestones, future plans and the outlook of AI
Since its inception, WealthRyse has achieved significant milestones, including securing a major client in Asia within just two months of launching. The company also proudly received the “Most Innovative Use of Technology” award at the FinanceAsia Awards 2023-2024.
“We are deeply honored to receive this award from FinanceAsia, which serves as a testament to our team’s tireless efforts in developing solutions for the wealth management industry”, David comments. Further accolades include the “Best Client Advisory Solutions Platform by a Vendor” and “Best Disruptive Solution”.
Looking ahead, David reveals plans to expand WealthRyse’s technological capabilities and scale its business globally. This includes forging new partnerships with cloud providers and large financial technology firms to enhance its solutions for rebalancing and portfolio management.
“Our plans are simple,” Bernard adds. “We aim to scale the business to serve wealth advisors and asset managers wherever they may be.” The ultimate vision for WealthRyse is to become the Alibaba or Amazon for wealth advisors and asset managers of all sizes, democratizing access to sophisticated financial tools.
Agreeing with Bernard, David concludes, “As people talk about our AI and WealthRyse possibly becoming the next big success story or ‘unicorn’, we need to continue to be grounded and ignore the hype to achieve what Bernie and I promised each other. Our focus is on using Genisys to help wealth advisors give accurate, tailored portfolio suggestions on demand, and we’re dedicated to pushing boundaries and shaping the future of financial guidance, step by step.”
The expansion plan focuses not just on growth, but also on promoting financial literacy and sustainable wealth management. This commitment aligns with WealthRyse’s dedication to environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles, emphasizing practical ways to construct ESG-conscious portfolios. David and Bernard are confident that their technology will have a profound societal impact by providing essential tools for managing wealth and improving the financial futures of families and individuals globally.
Regarding the future of AI in wealth and asset management, Bernard envisions transformative changes. He expects AI to automate most of the routine tasks and scale up to offer virtual business environments. These advancements are expected to automate functions currently played by investment advisors and research analysts. Ultimately, this automation will help wealth advisors and asset managers deliver more personalized client services. Innovations such as video avatars and virtual client advisors are anticipated to turn mainstream, deepening the engagement between advisors and clients.
As David and Bernard continue to push the boundaries of AI and its application in wealth advisory, WealthRyse’s future is bright, set to redefine global financial services delivery and experience.
Also read:
- 7 Exciting FinTech Innovations That Are Changing the Way We Bank
- The Rapid Rise of FinTech in India
- Fintech Startups: 3 Challenges You Need to Be Ready for before Launching
Header Image by WealthRyse
