The service, Empire Software, is designed to make it much easier for financial planners, brokers and others to update vital family information through mobile devices.

A fresh New York-headquartered service called Empire Software is being launched to enable accountants, financial planners, brokers and others to rapidly update key family information on the hoof via mobile devices.

The mobile-focused platform of Empire Software pulls together user information into a cloud-based software application, enabling family members and advisors to collaborate in secure environment, the new business said in a statement yesterday.

Empire Software brings together assets, investments, documents, contacts, important dates, estate planning, health information, philanthropy, and other information, and is available via mobile app and desktop. Besides its New York presence, the firm has offices in Los Angeles and San Francisco. 

The complex needs of a family office prompted the launch of Empire Software; the organization told Family Wealth Report that this particular family didn’t have a portal for its investments and real estate holdings, and all kinds of information and data was spread around software platforms, files and boxes. That needed fixing.

“Empire is a single platform that pulls in all family information. There is a great amount of frustration in having disparate pieces of software that don’t talk to one another. Empire is that client-facing layer that unites it all and simplifies our lives,” Matthew Hoffman, co-founder, said.

Empire Software employs eight people, led by Hoffman, Douglas Fritz (chief revenue officer); Liz Fritz (chief marketing officer), and Tom Dunlap (chief technology officer). 

“Empire is a mobile-focused portal that aggregates all client information into a cloud-based platform. This allows advisors, clients, and their families to organize the complexities of life and its finances, with complete flexibility in how permissions and privacy are structured. Gain detailed insight of assets, investments, documents, contacts, important dates, estate planning, health information, philanthropy, and everything in between,” Hoffman said. 

Asked why the firm said its offerings were unique, Hoffman replied: “Empire creates a secure collaboration platform for each family’s team including insurance brokers, financial planners, accountants, attorneys, business managers and appraisers. By providing a secure way for these team members to update information, all of the family's information is up to date and accurate.”

“We have integrated PCR (Private Client Resources), the leading provider of investment data aggregation for wealthy families. For over a decade PCR has helped thousands of families gather and understand their complex investments specializing in their alternative, private equity, real estate and business holdings. By combining this information Empire creates the first Total Net Worth platform delivering in the palm of your hand a daily view of changes that guide your family wealth conversation,” he continued. 

“But we don’t stop there. It’s helping manage `Life’s Moments’ that drive us. Across a wide range of events including births, graduations, marriages, divorces, illness, retirement and death – Empire provides the peace of mind that your family’s interests are protected by coordinating your team during Life’s Moments and making sure all are executing on your instructions and allowing your family to focus on the event, not uncertainty,” he said. 

Hoffman said the firm is “white-labeling” for clients to create custom-branded portals for all clients to access, enabling services and achievements such as sending notifications to family members and advisors; saving and sending interactive reports within Empire; cutting down on calls, meetings and emails; a SEC-certified chat function via Symphony (in development) and sending, receiving and sharing files and linking them to associated items.