Can Financial Firms be More Efficient?

Koger, Inc. definitely thinks so.

By Jim Pytell, Assistant Editor On Oct 2, 2017

Since 1994, Paramus-based financial technology company Koger, Inc. has been providing its clients within the financial industry with fund administration software. The company has 40 employees in New Jersey and 150 worldwide. The software solutions enable clients to increase efficiencies by simplifying complex financial processes, and allow clients to easily keep track of their investors and the value of their holdings.

Additionally, Koger also offers regulatory technology, which helps its clients – many of which are major multinational global banks – adhere to various regulatory standards in place for financial institutions including “Anti-Money Laundering” and “Know Your Client” legislation. Wasseem Ghorayeb, vice president of operations, points out that the regulatory products have built-in flexibility so clients don’t have to worry when regulations change over time.

Some of the software products that are offered include the Shareholder Register and Transfer Agency System (NTAS), Integrated Knowledge-Based Accounting System (IKAS), Private Equity Software (PENTAS) and Universal Regulatory Engine (KURE). After a product is installed, Koger includes free training with coverage of the product’s core functionality as well as advanced topics based on the requirements of the business.

Koger’s flagship product, NTAS, supports more than 8,000 funds with some $2 trillion in assets.

NTAS is a share registry and transfer agent system that manages the complex processes involved with fund tracking, reporting and fee calculation. Through the years, as investment vehicles have proliferated and compliance grown more rigorous, Koger has expanded its core platform to serve the entirety of the financial services industry, including hedge funds, mutual funds, money market funds and private equity as well as pension funds.

The company is committed to catering to its clients and provides flexibility in determining ways to best utilize the products based on each company’s unique culture, budget and needs.

“We place our clients at the center of everything we do,” Ghorayeb says.

“We are able to accommodate roughly 99 percent of alternative investment vehicles on the market,” Ras Sipko, chief operating officer, adds. “So, when clients take on our system, they are able to serve nearly the entire market.”

Ghorayeb says that much of the financial industry uses Microsoft Excel for a number of their operations, but that there are obvious inherent risks when doing so. Many of Koger’s clients chose to upgrade to one of its products because of the peace of mind that comes with the checks and balances of the system and the added controls that become necessary to how a large company operates.

Forward thinking and an ability to adapt to user demand and legislative change are some of the things Koger has used to stay competitive as an industry leader over the past 20 years.

 

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