It's time to move beyond integration—and build for intelligence

Wealth management has an integration problem—or more specifically, a data fragmentation problem. For years, the industry has treated integration as a reactive fix for inefficient workflows. It was a way to transmit specific data from point A to point B, to reduce duplicate entry, minimize friction, and get the same work done faster. According to The 2026 Fidelity Technology Integrations Pulse Survey, this approach can drive real gains in efficiency, experience, and growth when done well.¹ But as the fintech ecosystem grows more complex, deeply embedded and consistent data across the tech stack will power the next evolution of integrations.

The typical tech stack remains highly fragmented

In this survey, we found advisors immersed in technology, working across an average of 5 to 6 distinct solutions every day.¹ And according to Cerulli, about 9 in 10 advisors affirm that their technology enables them to achieve a range of key business objectives.²

This is a deeply digital model, but it’s also limited by the narrow view inherent in traditional integration. For all the progress firms have made in streamlining workflows, most have made little impact on the overall level of integration within their tech stacks.¹

In fact, less than 1 in 4 survey respondents indicated that their firm’s tech stack was at least somewhat integrated, and only 3% reported that it was fully integrated.¹

Exhibit 1: The typical tech stack is not well-integrated

Perceived level of tech stack integration, across all respondents

That’s not just an inconvenience; it’s a real problem across the industry. Advisors identify a lack of integration as their biggest challenge in using technology effectively.²

Firms that invest in integration see real results

The relatively few firms with at least somewhat integrated tech stacks enjoy meaningful benefits, starting with ones you’d expect: enhanced scale and efficiency.¹ Consider the client onboarding workflow. When onboarding clients, these integrators:

• Spend significantly less time on administrative tasks¹
• Are 2X as likely to complete those tasks in under an hour¹
• Use fewer solutions and rely much more on a single solution¹

Exhibit 2: Integrators enjoy greater efficiency

But the benefits of better integration also extend beyond efficiency, impacting a firm’s relationships with their advisors and driving measurable business results.¹

In fact, those who spend less time on administrative tasks and rely on fewer solutions when onboarding new clients are broadly more likely to be satisfied with their technology.¹ And high technology satisfaction is tied to higher levels of integration and asset growth.¹

Exhibit 3: Beyond efficiency, a better experience and better growth

The stakes and standards for effective integration are rising

While most firms still have room for improvement in their efforts to meet today’s integration standards, those best practices—and the stakes to meet them—are also rising, thanks to two persistent factors:

• Tech stacks are becoming more complex: Investors expect more and better from their advisors, and firms continue to add new capabilities to compete. This “service inflation” is an established phenomenon, and it translates into bigger, more complex tech stacks.² Already, firms with higher asset growth are using one to two more solutions per day than their peers,¹ and we expect this trend to continue. And as client needs continue to expand, firms will need to add impact not just by adding more solutions, but by deeply integrating the ones they have.
• The age of AI has arrived: The transformative potential of AI is clear, but that potential can only be reached when this technology is integrated into a firm’s workflows and tuned to their business and needs. Case in point: Almost one third of advisors today cite AI integration as the biggest barrier to AI adoption and expansion within their firms.³ And firms that have integrated AI solutions within their tech stacks (about 1 in 4) are generally growing faster.¹

Exhibit 4: Faster growers are more likely to embrace AI

Usage and integration of AI tools, by level of growth

As tech stacks grow and AI becomes more embedded, the challenge shifts from connecting systems to ensuring the data flowing between them is consistent, accessible, and usable.

Extracting maximum value from integrations starts with your data

There is a ceiling to integration as we know it, and the industry is entering a new era in which a well-integrated tech stack is only as effective as the data layer underneath it. By focusing primarily on enabling workflows, many firms have not had to require that the data itself be aligned and governed across systems.

This next era isn’t just about doing the same work faster; it’s about doing fundamentally better, more intelligent work, including:

• Delivering personalized advice at new levels of scale
• Enabling proactive, insight-driven engagement and service
• Expanding the scope of that advice and service to better support client needs
• Automating decisions—not just tasks—to refocus on higher value activities

That all depends on more than workflow integrations; it requires trusted, well-managed data that flows consistently across the tech stack. And so, this next era of integrations will be defined not as a set of connected tools, but as a cohesive data environment that extracts business intelligence, powers better experiences, and results in better business outcomes.

Most firms have improved workflows. Few have made progress on holistic integration. Even fewer yet have fully addressed the data layer. And that’s what will separate incremental improvement from meaningful transformation.