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Automating Data Reconciliation and Enhancing IT Infrastructure for a Financial Services Company

Focus Areas

Automation

Process Improvement

Digital Transformation

Business Problem

A fund administration company was struggling to manage data across its platforms. It used manual processes to reconcile data from multiple sources, but this brought in inconsistencies in reporting and increased the risk of errors. Frequent errors and unreliable reports were making clients lose confidence in the firm.

Key challenges:

Reconciling Data: The manual process of reconciling data led to frequent discrepancies, increased the possibility of errors, impacted the accuracy of financial reports, and ultimately delayed the delivery of fund performance data.
Operational Risks: The manual processes introduced operational risks such as data and compliance errors. Without automated checks and controls, these could go undetected, leading to regulatory fines and reduced client trust.
Scaling Processes: The existing manual processes resulted in obstructions and delays and could not scale efficiently with the growth of the firm. This was especially a challenge during peak reporting periods.

The Approach

Curate’s consultants designed a solution that would focus on automating reconciliation and improving data accuracy and the IT infrastructure. To do this, an automated reconciliation engine was developed to match data across multiple sources, and automated checks and controls were implemented to minimize operational risks and ensure compliance. Our IT experts also worked with the firm’s internal team to enhance their database and IT infrastructure.

Key components of the solution:

Discovery and Requirements Gathering: Working closely with the company’s operations, client service, and IT teams, Curate carried out a comprehensive asset of the existing workflows and identified the important improvements to be made:
- Reduce manual errors and delays by automating trade reconciliation and account setup processes.
- Enhance operational scalability by standardizing and streamlining processes for peak periods.
- Ensure compliance and accuracy by implementing automation for tax reporting.
- Increasing the accuracy of financial reports and improving time to respond by enhancing client service.
Trade OMS Implementation : Curate implemented a Trade OMS to automate trade reconciliation and improve overall operational efficiency.
- OMS: A custom OMS was integrated and configured to pull trade data from different platforms, reconcile discrepancies, and ensure that all trades were accurately reflected in the firm’s records. This automation of trade reconciliation processes would substantially reduce manual intervention.
- Real-Time Processing: The firm could respond to market changes quickly because of the real-time visibility that the OMS provided. The system automatically flagged reconciliation eros which allowed the team to swiftly resolve issues and maintain accurate records.
Automating Tax Reporting and Account Opening: Curate automated key account setup and tax reporting using advanced IT automation techniques.
- Account Opening: A workflow automation system was developed for account opening and integrated with the firm’s CRM and compliance platforms. It standardized the account opening process, automated several steps for client onboarding, and reduced the time to open new accounts by 60%.
- Tax Reporting: The generation of tax reports was automated using real-time financial data, and the system ensured that the tax forms were accurate, updated, and compliant with regulations.
Standardizing Workflows and Scalability: Key workflows were standardized to improve operational scalability, particularly for peak periods.
- Standardized Workflows: Standardized workflows were introduced that could be scaled up or down depending on the volume of transactions. This reduced variability in processes, and enhanced the efficiency of handling high volumes of client requests and financial data.
- Scalability: The company could easily scale operations due to the automated workflows and handle increased requests during times of high demand.
Stakeholder Engagement and Change Management: Curate worked closely with the firm’s internal teams, vendors, and platforms throughout the project to ensure the successful implementation of automation and workflow standardization.
- Internal Teams: Regular meetings were held with the firm’s IT and operations teams to address concerns, ensure alignment with business goals, and ensure seamless integration of the new OMS and automation solutions with existing platforms and tools.
- Platforms and Vendors: Curate coordinated with third-party vendors and platform providers to ensure the compatibility and proper optimization of the OMS and automation tools with the firm’s existing IT infrastructure, financial platforms, and operational needs.
- Training and Change Management: Comprehensive training and change management sessions were provided to the internal teams on using the new OMS, automation tools, standardized workflows, handling the new processes, and maintaining operational efficiency.

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Business Outcomes

Enhanced Efficiency

The firm could handle a higher volume of transactions without increasing the staff due to the reduction in the time required to complete trade reconciliation and account setup processes.

Reduced Errors

Automating tax reporting and account opening minimized errors, improved regulatory compliance, and ensured accurate financial reporting during peak periods.

Improved Scalability

Operations could be scaled easily during busy periods without compromising service quality or accuracy with standardized workflows and automated processes.

Sample KPIs

Here’s a quick summary of the kinds of KPI’s and goals teams were working towards**:

Metric	Before	After	Improvement
Account opening time	5 days	2 days	60% reduction
Trade reconciliation time	4 hours/day	1 hour/day	75% reduction
Tax reporting errors	10 errors/season	1 error/season	50% reduction
Scalability during peak periods	Limited	Scalable (automated)	100% improvement
Client satisfaction (survey scores)	7/10	9/10	2-point improvement

**Disclaimer: The set of KPI’s are for illustration only and do not reference any specific client data or actual results – they have been modified and anonymized to protect confidentiality and avoid disclosing client data.

Customer Value

Higher Client Satisfaction

Clients valued the increased transparency and accuracy of their financial reports, leading to stronger relationships and increased trust in the firm’s services. The firm saw a substantial improvement in client satisfaction scores.

Scalable Training and Technology Solutions

The financial firm could handle a higher volume of transactions without increasing the staff due to the reduction in the time required to complete trade reconciliation and account setup processes.

Conclusion

Curate transformed the company’s middle-office operations and client experience by reducing errors, accelerating reconciliation, and streamlining report generation. The firm could also scale operations to handle increased trade volumes without compromising on accuracy and speed, which positioned them for future growth.

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