The complex world of private capital markets is traditionally fraught with inefficiencies. But it is evolving. And you risk being left behind if you’re not making changes to optimise your business operations. 

Streamlining your operations not only gives you an edge, but it’s also essential to remain competitive; optimised processes lead to better allocation of resources, faster execution, reduced costs, and improved investor experiences. 

Below are four areas of improvement to consider as a starting point: 

  1. Rethink your onboarding & KYC / AML process. 
    If you’re still managing your investor onboarding & KYC / AML manually, it’s time for a rethink. You’re wasting valuable time and resources collecting static data, and you also risk non-compliance due to manual errors and oversights. Using one of the many tried-and-tested digital solutions available is a quick way to be confident you are fully compliant without demanding the extensive effort required from a manual process. One adviser we spoke with told us the effort required to manage KYC / AML has reduced by 90% since automating the process, and they now review cases on an exception-only basis. 
  1. Step away from the spreadsheet: there is a better way to manage your data. 
    We all have Excel spreadsheets we use for various tasks. They’re easy to maintain, can be shared across the team, and are cost-effective. But they can also go wrong pretty quickly. Whether it’s a ‘fat finger’ error, unsynced changes from a colleague or accidental hardcoded data, we all have stories to share of when we’ve had to fix spreadsheets. So why do we still rely on them for critical operational tasks, such as maintaining investor information and managing an order book? Moving to a digital solution means that your data is dynamic, accurate and can be reused across the many different verticals and stages of your business, as well as significantly protecting the integrity of the data and reducing the scope for manual errors. 
  1. Centralise your documentation. 
    Gone are the days of wet signatures and sharing document versions over email – losing track of markups and essential updates. Instead, you can maintain an accurate audit trail, reduce administrative overheads and provide a better experience for investors by centralising and digitalising your documentation. From e-signature platforms to document-sharing software, this is a quick win to realising operational efficiencies. 
  1. Segment your investors and track their engagement. 
    Do you have an expansive database of investors with varying investment preferences and styles? Do you have a deal flow that varies in quantity and strategy? Most likely you do. So why not use digital tools that allow you to profile your investors and manage their distribution and engagement into and throughout investment opportunities? 
     
    A vast pool of prospective investors is a good thing to have. However, it can be challenging to manage. Only some investors will be interested in all opportunities, and only some opportunities will always be suitable for some investors.  
     
    Reallocate time towards discovering more genuine prospects and focusing on those for whom the opportunity is suitable/appropriate. Use tagging tools to compliantly segment investors and quickly build distribution lists for each deal. Incorporate tracking tools, and you always have an instant, up-to-date picture of your investor comms. Focusing on a targeted list of investors can add more value where needed. 

There are now solutions that allow you to integrate all these components into one platform and innovate across your business. If you have not yet looked into ways to improve the operational efficiency of your capital market business, what are you waiting for? 

If you have already innovated in these areas – what are you considering next?