NDEX & Schwab Tackle Advisor Workflow with New Digital Integration

MONTREAL, QC – January 08, 2026 – Financial advisors juggling multiple platforms and tedious client paperwork may soon find relief as NDEX Systems, a leading wealth-management data utility, today announced a significant integration with Schwab Advisor Center®. The collaboration introduces a single sign-on (SSO) connection and a deeply integrated digital client onboarding workflow, designed to streamline daily operations for registered investment advisors (RIAs), wealth managers, and family offices.

The partnership connects Schwab's vast custodial infrastructure with NDEX's sophisticated data aggregation and normalization engine. This move aims to directly address some of the most persistent operational bottlenecks that plague advisory firms, promising a more secure, efficient, and unified digital experience.

A Direct Strike Against Advisor Inefficiency

For years, financial advisors have cited administrative burdens as a primary obstacle to growth and client service. Industry studies have shown that the average client onboarding process can span a grueling 22 days, a period fraught with manual data entry, potential for errors, and a disjointed client experience. This new integration targets these pain points with precision.

The enhanced client onboarding process now allows advisors to initiate the opening of a Schwab account directly from within the NDEX platform. Leveraging NDEX's core function as a data normalizer, client information already stored within the system can be used to pre-populate account opening documents. This functionality is expected to drastically reduce duplicate data entry, a notorious source of errors and compliance risks. Research suggests that such automation can reduce manual errors by up to 90% and improve overall process efficiency by 40-60%.

Furthermore, the introduction of an integrated single sign-on (SSO) addresses the widespread issue of 'password fatigue.' Advisors often navigate a half-dozen or more software applications daily, each requiring a separate login. This constant toggling between systems creates friction and wastes valuable time. The unified authentication flow between NDEX and Schwab allows advisors to move seamlessly and securely between the platforms, eliminating redundant logins and strengthening security protocols.

"Advisors need speed, data accuracy, and workflow simplicity," said Laurent Bensemana, Founder and CEO at NDEX Systems, in the official announcement. "Our integration with Schwab delivers exactly that—removing friction, eliminating duplicated administrative steps, and ensuring that advisors always work from a single source of truth."

Schwab's Strategic Play in the Custodial Arms Race

The move is also a significant strategic play for Schwab Advisor Services, which operates in a fiercely competitive custodial landscape. Major custodians are increasingly vying for RIA assets not just on fees and services, but on the strength of their technology ecosystem. A robust, open-architecture platform that integrates seamlessly with the third-party tools advisors already use is now table stakes.

This partnership mirrors a broader industry trend. Competitors like Fidelity have cultivated their "Integration Xchange," an open-architecture marketplace with over 200 fintech partners, while BNY Mellon's Pershing is aggressively building out its Wove platform to create a single, interconnected advisor experience. By deepening its integration with a critical data utility like NDEX, Schwab strengthens its own ecosystem, making its platform 'stickier' and more attractive to efficiency-focused advisory firms.

This collaboration builds upon Schwab's previously announced integration with Salesforce Financial Services Cloud, signaling a consistent strategy of embedding its custodial functions directly into the advisor's existing workflow. The goal is to keep advisors within their preferred systems while still providing real-time access to Schwab's core account data and functionalities.

"Schwab is committed to enabling technology that helps advisors run more efficient and scalable businesses," stated Alison Dooher, Managing Director of Wealth Services at Schwab Advisor Services. "Working together with NDEX, we're making onboarding and account access more streamlined, more secure, and more advisor centric."

The Data Utility Powering the Modern Advisor

While the user-facing benefits are clear, the integration is powered by the complex, behind-the-scenes work of NDEX Systems. For over 25 years, the Montreal-based firm has carved out a crucial niche as a multi-custodial data utility, a role akin to being the financial industry's universal translator.

NDEX specializes in aggregating financial data from myriad sources—custodians, broker-dealers, and asset managers—and then 'normalizing' it into a single, clean, and consistent format. This reconciled data becomes the bedrock upon which other applications, from CRMs to financial planning tools, can operate reliably. This capability is especially vital for growing RIAs that often manage client assets across multiple custodians.

The company's growth underscores the rising demand for such services. In late 2018, NDEX reported supporting over 11,000 advisors and $130 billion in assets. Today, those figures have swelled to over 13,000 wealth managers and more than $300 billion in assets under management, demonstrating significant momentum and market penetration across North America.

The new integration is available immediately for NDEX users with Schwab custody relationships. This partnership not only enhances the value proposition for both companies but also serves as a clear indicator of the future of wealth management—a future where technology automates administrative burdens, allowing advisors to dedicate their most valuable resource, their time, to serving clients.