Morningstar, Inc. (Nasdaq: MORN), a leading provider of independent investment research, today announced it has reached an agreement to acquire PlanPlus Global, a financial-planning and risk-profiling software firm based in Canada. On the heels of Morningstar’s acquisition of AdviserLogic in Australia late last year, this is another step to expand Morningstar’s financial-planning capabilities for advisors around the globe. Financial terms were not disclosed, and the transaction is expected to close in the second quarter.
“With a 30-year track record, PlanPlus Global’s strengths in risk profiling and financial planning have been proven to stand the test of time. These capabilities will only become more important as planning grows more central to the value advisors deliver to clients and as the industry puts more focus on ensuring investment plans are best suited for each client’s unique goals and circumstances,” said Scott Mackenzie, president and CEO of Morningstar Canada. “This is an investment for growth in the financial-planning arena, and we look forward to the rich expertise and long-standing relationships PlanPlus Global employees will bring to the Morningstar family.”
Morningstar plans to continue offering PlanPlus Global’s FinaMetrica Profiler as a stand-alone, risk-profiling tool in global markets where it is offered today, and it also sees opportunity to integrate this capability into its existing solutions, such as Morningstar® Advisor WorkstationSM for advisors in Canada and the U.S. or through Morningstar® Enterprise Components connections to third-party planning tools. FinaMetrica Profiler is built on the world’s most academically validated psychometric risk tolerance assessment to give advisors confidence in delivering defensible advice to clients. More than 1.5 million FinaMetrica risk tolerance tests have been completed for over 10,000 advisors in 35 countries since 1998. Fintech News
Furthermore, Morningstar intends to add PlanPlus Global’s financial-planning solution, ProPlanner (formerly Planit), to its offerings in Canada alongside continued support for its users worldwide. ProPlanner equips advisors to offer comprehensive advice that aligns the personal circumstances and objectives of each client within the realities of today’s financial markets. In Australia, AdviserLogic will remain Morningstar’s lead financial-planning offering.
“We have been working with Morningstar for more than a decade to provide investment product data to our users around the world. So we’ve seen firsthand how Morningstar’s mission to empower investor success aligns with our commitment to put clients’ interests first, and we share a belief in evidence- and research-based solutions,” said Shawn Brayman, founder and CEO of PlanPlus Global. “Morningstar has shown a vision and commitment to enable basic goal planning all the way through to advanced planning for high-net-worth-focused advisors. When it comes to finding a large, strategic fintech partner that can help us scale our solutions in the marketplace and enhance the value to our users globally, Morningstar is the perfect fit.”
PlanPlus Global’s more than 40 employees are expected to join Morningstar, which has been named among the 2019 Best Workplaces in Canada by Great Place to Work Institute for seven consecutive years. Brayman, who originally founded PlanPlus Inc. in 1990, and the firm’s leadership team are also expected to join Morningstar.
