Acct management, securities processing, etc. -- without in-house hardware. SunGard has released an ASP version of its Charlotte trust and investment management system. So instead of having to keep extra IT folk on hand to fiddle with server hardware and database software to run the application in-house, the next wave of Charlotte users can access the system online and leave upkeep to SunGard.

Hands off

"oeFinancial organizations have to focus their limited resources on client-facing activities, [so] the support of a pre-eminent technology provider like SunGard to gain automated updates, allow remote access by administrators and investment officers, as well as reduce operating costs from limited IT expenditures, is a beneficial development," says Robert Ellis, a analyst with Boston-based research and consulting firm Celent.

Hosted by SunGard in a "fully redundant environment" -- meaning it's backed-up for security and disaster-mitigation purposes -- ASP version of Charlotte provides automatic upgrades, database and other related system software, and data and system back-up and recovery. Clients staffers can also access the system remotely.

But the main advantage to the ASP or web-access version Charlotte is in cost saving, according to SunGard wealth-management head Kevin Rafferty. "The cost of installing and maintaining trust accounting systems in-house can be out of reach for financial institutions that need to be able to reduce costs in today's challenging economic environment," he says. "SunGard's Charlotte ASP solution helps to reduce the rising cost and complexities of operations, respond quickly to more sophisticated client needs, and establish, build and strengthen long-term, trusted client relationships."

Charlotte syncs up with SunGard's WealthStation wealth-management platform, its Transaction Network (STN) trading connectivity services and its Investor's View portfolio-management, compliance and performance-reporting platform.

Wayne, Pa.-based SunGard has no plans to stop selling the in-house license version of Charlotte, which is mainly used by my small banks and trust companies.

The PrivateBank Meanwhile SunGard has a new taker for its AddVantage asset-management and trust accounting system: the PrivateBank's PrivateWealth Group.

AddVantage is meant for middle-market and larger banks and trust companies.

The PrivateWealth Group converted two of its bank operations onto AddVantage to help gain cost and processing efficiencies and to help bring in a new custodian using AddVantage's custody interface.

"In addition to robust and flexible reporting, SunGard's AddVantage provides straight-through processing with reduced trade touch points and real-time capabilities, as well as flexible and efficient data handling that saves us countless hours on downloading data and creating custom reports," says Susan Vonder Heide, managing director and senior trust ops officer with the PrivateWealth Group.

PrivateBank is part of Chicago-based PrivateBancorp a banking and brokerage company with 23 offices in nine states and more than $10 billion in assets at the end of 2008. It caters to middle-market commercial and commercial real-estate companies, as well as business owners, executives and wealthy families. -FWR

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