Pennsylvania, Oklahoma cos. join open-architecture provider's client roster. Concord Wealth Management, a back-office and investment-platform provider to fee-based wealth-management programs, has added a pair of new clients in recent months.

One is Lancaster, Pa.-based Fulton Financial Advisors, the wealth-management division of community-bank holding company Fulton Financial Corporation. The other one is Durant, Okla.-based First United Bank.

Clawing back

Both institutions are using Concord's "Universal Architecture" investment platform, which gives them access to a roster of outside managers, which they can they offer as an all-outsourced investment platform or in combination with proprietary products.

Concord, which works mainly in the bank and trust-bank channels, also offers unified managed account capabilities, featuring overlay-management technology from Cambridge, Mass.-based Smartleaf. It provides training and marketing support to its clients' advisors as well.

"It seems increasingly clear that the way for banks to reclaim market share is to embrace open architecture and ensure that our clients have all of the necessary investment tools including third-party asset managers and overlay," says Fulton FA's CEO David Hanson. "We're certain that Concord, by virtue of their high degree of flexibility and customization, and successful client-centric approach, will enable us to fulfill this need."

For First United, outsourcing its investment platform gives its advisors time "to focus more attention on building durable client relationships," according to its senior v.p. of wealth management Brian Schmidtberger.

First United has about 30 branches in southern Oklahoma and a part of northern Texas.

Fulton FA, which provides trust and retirement services in addition to financial products, has a total of 11 offices in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, Virginia and New Jersey.

Matawan, N.J.-based Concord doesn't publicize its assets under administration. -FWR

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