PNC Financial division select front-office tech for private-bank advisors. PNC Wealth Management, a division of Pittsburgh-based PNC Financial, has chosen advisor-application integrator NorthStar Systems International's client-acquisition, reporting and compliance technology for its private-banking advisors.

"We look forward to providing advanced technology to support PNC's wealth-management strategy and help its advisors spend more time with clients and prospects," says Bob Skea, head of "field operations" at San Francisco-based NorthStar SI. "The efficiencies and productivity improvements resulting from the use of our software will help PNC to efficiently operate its wealth management business."

Excited

NorthStar SI's web-based and on-premise desktop technology is meant to support growth, advisor productivity, regulatory compliance and quality advice to clients by integrating profiling and proposals, financial planning, investment selection, portfolio construction, and client reporting and management into a single workflow.

Schwab, Legg Mason, Merrill Lynch, Wachovia Securities, BlackRock and several large banks are among NorthStar International clients. A few weeks ago the company said it had doubled its year-over-year revenue in 2007.

NorthStar SI's president Collin Cohen says that financial-service firms are looking to "facilitate faster growth and improve profitability" in their advisory businesses -- with the result, he adds, that he and his colleagues "continue to be very excited about the prospects for the wealth-management industry."

One of NorthStar SI's rivals, Mississauga, Canada-based Xeye, was purchased recently by Luxembourg-based wealth-management platform provider Odyssey. -FWR

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