Dive Brief:
- Capital One has acquired wealth adviser United Income for an undisclosed amount.
- United Income will continue to operate independently under its current management team and plans to expand operations, according to an email obtained by FinancialPlanning.
- The acquisition comes a year after Capital One took a 10% stake in the wealth management platform.
Dive Insight:
This latest acquisition will expand Capital One's automated advice portfolio. The McLean, Virginia-based bank launched its advice offering Capital One Advisors Managed Portfolio in 2016.
"After much consideration, Capital One emerged as the far and away best option," United Income CEO Matt Fellowes said in the email, which was sent to clients.
The company plans to expand its team "with the intent to accelerate our innovation," Fellowes said, adding that not much else will change.
The retirement-focused robo-adviser listed $746 million in assets under management and more than 750 accounts on its latest regulatory filing, according to FinancialPlanning.
This latest move by Capital One illustrates the growing synergy between banks and robo-advisers, which provide automated algorithm-based portfolio management solutions. The technology tends to be cheaper than human advisers.
Goldman Sachs purchased wealth management and financial services company United Capital for $750 million this year, and several robo-advisers have partnered with banks to offer their own checking and savings accounts.
Wealth adviser Betterment unveiled its new checking and savings account platform last month, a move that has caught the attention of regulators. Fintech Wealthfront, another wealth management platform, unveiled its own cash account in February.
Betterment and Wealthfront customers' deposits are held by partner banks, where they earn interest and are federally insured.
