In just 7 weeks, we delivered full product discovery for a FinTech startup, from prototype and key UI screens to complete system architecture.
Twelve tools. One platform.
We built a unified operations platform for a US-based wealth management company, replacing a dozen disconnected tools with a single custom-built system.
Short summary
Industry
Finance
Location
USA
Services
Product discovery
Software development
Quality Assurance
Team
Technical Project Manager
6 Software Engineers
QA Engineer
Technology
React, React Native
NestJS, PostgreSQL, InfluxDB
The client is a wealth management firm serving ultra-high-net-worth families. Their clients’ assets span custodian bank accounts, investment portfolios, and private crypto wallets. All managed across more than a dozen separate tools, with no unified view and no way to maintain context across workflows.
The challenge
The client had the complexity of a sophisticated financial operation, but the infrastructure of a dozen disconnected tools. Specifically:
- They managed client wealth data through a platform that didn’t connect to many of the other tools they relied on for task management, communication, or file management.
- No existing platform could model the multi-layer ownership structures their clients used: a family holding legal entities, sub-entities, portfolios, and individual assets across several layers.
- The software they were using required months of vendor back-and-forth for any customization. They had no way to adapt the tool to how they actually worked.
- Document signing, file storage, client communication, and task management each lived in a different tool, making it impossible to maintain context or produce a clean compliance trail.
The solution
We built an all-in-one platform for the client, combining:
- Banking data
- Crypto tracking
- Document management
- E-signing,
- Task workflows,
- Client messaging,
- Audit logging
How we built it — From discovery to development
Product discovery
We ran a structured discovery phase that defined the entire shape of the platform. Working directly with the client’s advisors and leadership, we moved from fragmented pain points to a product blueprint grounded in how wealth managers operate.
User personas
We developed detailed personas to represent the client’s four key user types: a company administrator managing the full platform, an advisor owning client relationships, a moderator with limited access, and external clients viewing their own holdings. Every design decision in the discovery phase pointed back to these four people.
Competitor analysis
We reviewed the tools the client had been piecing together – CRM systems, task managers, communication platforms – alongside alternatives on the market. The analysis confirmed that no existing tool could model the multi-layered ownership structures their clients required. Custom software was the only viable path.
User flows
We mapped end-to-end flows for each persona: onboarding a new client family, managing an advisory task from assignment to completion, and running a compliance report. These flows became the shared language between design and development throughout the project.
Feature prioritization
We ran structured workshops to move from a long wishlist to a sequenced build plan. By the end of discovery, the team had a shared understanding of what to build first, what to defer, and why, so development could start with confidence rather than ambiguity.
Development
We built on NestJS and React, with React Native for mobile, hosted on AWS. Development was organized around the complexity of the integration layer. Each external connection required its own research, security review, and client sign-off before we could build on top of it.
Ownership data model
Before writing code, we mapped exactly how the company’s clients are structured and designed the data model to reflect that. This foundation shaped the hierarchy visualization, permission model, and financial aggregation logic that everything else was built on.
Integration layer
The platform connects to external services for banking data, crypto asset tracking, document management, file storage, and messaging. For each connection, we evaluated options, worked through the documentation, aligned on security and data contracts with the client, and built the integration.
Financial data pipeline
Pulling live account data from custodian banks and building PnL calculations on top required close collaboration with the client on the financial logic: how profit and loss should be calculated, against which starting point, across which time periods. We worked through that together and built it into the platform.
Iterative delivery
The client had access to a staging environment throughout development, with all features available as they were built. We ran regular walkthroughs, collected feedback, and adjusted course where needed. By the time any feature was finished, the people who would use it had already shaped it.
THE END PRODUCT
One platform custom-built for the full complexity of wealth management. Client hierarchies, advisory pipelines, task and workflow management, compliance logging, and a client-facing portal, all in a single system.
Product features
- Hierarchical client tree
- Portfolio and holdings view
- Crypto portfolio tracking
- Document management and e-signing
- CRM pipeline and task management
- Audit logs and compliance center
Hierarchical client tree
An interactive, searchable visualization of each client family’s full ownership structure, from the family entity down through legal entities, sub-entities, portfolios, and individual assets. Advisors navigate the complete picture on a single screen.
Portfolio and holdings view
A live view of all accounts and assets across a client family, drawing from connected custodian banks. Includes profit and loss calculations with selectable time periods, replacing a manual spreadsheet process.
Crypto portfolio tracking
Clients can connect both bank-held and private crypto wallets. The platform tracks transaction history and live balances, with valuations displayed in any world currency.
Document management and e-signing
The company’s files surface inside the platform. Any document can be sent for signature in-app. The system handles the full workflow and saves the completed document automatically when all parties sign.
CRM pipeline and task management
Lead and relationship tracking from first contact through close, with fields tailored to wealth management. The bundled task system turns repeatable multi-step processes (like client onboarding) into reusable workflow templates.
Audit logs and compliance center
Every action across the platform is logged with a timestamp, actor, subject entity, and outcome. Compliance teams can produce a complete regulatory trail on demand, and clients can access their own holdings through a secure portal built into the same system.
Outcome
The client now runs its entire operation on a single custom-built platform, one that models their clients’ ownership structures, unifies every internal workflow, and extends outward to the clients they serve.
- Full visibility across every client relationship, entity, and portfolio in one place
- A unified advisory operation with no tool switching across the core workflow
- Compliance infrastructure built in, not reconstructed for every inspection
- A client experience that reflects the quality of the relationships they’ve built
The platform continues to evolve, growing with the firm and the clients they serve.
RUNNING OPERATIONS ACROSS TOO MANY TOOLS? — LET’S TALK
Most companies at this scale have data in one system, documents in another, and client communication scattered across platforms. If you’re ready to bring it all together, fill in the short form below or book a call directly with our client strategy specialist
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