New Apps for the Mobile Financial Adviser

Written by Daisy Maxey, The Wall Street Journal Friday, 14 September 2012

When financial adviser Chris Buck hits the road to visit clients, his laptop stays behind. Instead, he packs his iPad.

Mr. Buck, a senior adviser at LifePlan Financial Group of Dayton, Ohio, uses the tablet to run presentations, take notes during meetings and even make trades on the go, thanks to an app from his custodian, TD Ameritrade.

Smart gadgets packed with apps are changing the way financial advisers do business and relate to their clients. As more advisers snap up mobile devices like iPads, the investment firms they work with are offering up apps that let them do their jobs from a small screen. Among other things, advisers can research investments, check clients' accounts and execute trades—and more innovation is on the way.

"Advisers want to replicate all of their business functions, but do it on a device that's mobile, lasts for 10 hours on a single battery charge and that they can use from almost anywhere in the world with a 4G connection," says Bill Winterberg, owner of FPPad.com, an Atlanta-based technology consultant to advisers. Read More..