$19-billion RIA eager to deliver "customized suite of investment products". Advisors with BB&T Asset Management are using PFPC Worldwide's "Advisorport Unified Managed Account" (UMA) platform to combine separately managed account (SMA) manager models, mutual funds and ETFs within individual accounts.

BB&T Asset Management is an RIA subsidiary of Winston-Salem, N.C.-based BB&T Corporation. Third-party investment-platform provider Advisorport is a subsidiary of PFPC -- which in turn is part of PNC Financial Services.

Flexible

"We are pleased to partner with PFPC's Advisport on the implementation of its UMA platform and look forward to delivering a customized suite of investment products to our clients," says BB&T Asset Management's president Keith Karlawish.

The platform that BB&T has opted for is a more flexible UMA that Advisorport introduced last year. It gives the sponsor the chance to determine the investment vehicles on offer and own-label the platform interface and associated client reports.

Advisorport has an off-the -shelf UMA for firms that aren't so fussy about customization at the platform level.

With the more flexible version, asset-allocation models are based on client-specific risk profiles, which advisors can adjust to match near-term market conditions. Advisors can also customize portfolios with an active tax-managed overlay and offer clients the ability to restrict the purchase of specific stocks or industry groups.

BB&T Asset Management has about $18.6 billion in assets under management. -FWR

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