20th anniversary 20 years of RedBlack: Built by listening. Built to last.

20 years ago, RedBlack didn't start with a business plan or a grand vision to change wealth management.

It started with a conversation.

A friend of mine who was a financial advisor needed better rebalancing software. The solutions that met his needs were too expensive and the solutions he could afford didn't work the way he needed them to. So, he gave me the opportunity to build something better, and RedBlack was born.

The first version of RedBlack was built from my apartment, using the same spreadsheet my friend relied on for rebalancing as a starting point. Like many successful businesses, we weren't trying to build a company.

We were trying to solve a problem.

What we couldn't imagine then was that two decades later, we'd still be solving challenges for advisors.

The moment everything changed

In the early days, we believed the opportunity was straightforward: provide sophisticated rebalancing technology to advisors who needed more capability at an accessible price point.

But competing on price alone is rarely a sustainable strategy.

The turning point came when a large advisory firm approached us with a challenge that was far more complex. They wanted to manage portfolios at the household level rather than by account. At the time, that level of portfolio management introduced operational and trading complexities that few providers had effectively addressed.

Instead of simply handing us requirements, the customer partnered with us. They shared insights, challenged assumptions, and helped shape the solution.

When we delivered it, RedBlack could do something the market largely couldn't. More importantly, it changed how we thought about our business.

We stopped competing on price and started competing on value. We realized that the best innovations didn't come from guessing what advisors might need, they came from listening carefully to the challenges they were already trying to solve. That lesson continues to guide us today.

In the process, we helped advisors adopt a new way of managing portfolios. As more firms embraced household-level management, we were fortunate to play a role in enabling that evolution. Listening closely to our customers became the RedBlack blueprint for guiding how we build technology for our industry.

Building alongside our customers

If there's one thing that defines RedBlack's first 20 years, it's that we have always been incredibly customer-driven.

Our customers have always had unique needs. Every firm has its own processes and competitive advantages in how they approach investment management, which is why we don't believe technology should force firms into a predefined way of working.

Instead, we've always believed technology should adapt to the way firms operate.

Many of RedBlack's most important innovations began as conversations with customers looking to solve increasingly complex business challenges. Those conversations helped shape, not only our product roadmap, but also our philosophy as a company.

Listen first. Build second.

It's a simple approach, but it's served us well for 20 years.

Complexity rewards focus

Rebalancing and trading are some of the most complex functions within wealth management.

Every firm has different portfolio structures, investment philosophies, trading preferences, compliance considerations, and operational workflows. Delivering flexibility at scale requires deep expertise and constant refinement.

Early on, we made a conscious decision to stay focused.

While many technology providers expand into broader platform strategies, we remained committed to solving investment management challenges exceptionallytionally well. Not because other approaches are wrong, but because we believed specialization creates value.

Our customers trust us because investment management isn't one of the many things we do. It's what we do.

For two decades, we've remained focused on helping firms manage investment complexity with greater precision, flexibility, and confidence.

Technology alone doesn't create lasting relationships

From the beginning, we wanted RedBlack to be built on trust, support, and transparency. I've always believed that without the right people, we're nothing.

We've been fortunate to build a culture where people take pride in what they do and genuinely care about the customers they work with. Over time, that creates a cycle: great people build a strong product and service experience; people become proud of what they've built, and new employees pick up that same sense of ownership.

That culture has become one of our greatest strengths and 20 years later, while I'm incredibly proud of the technology we've built, I'm equally proud of the people who continue to make RedBlack what it is today.

20 years later, the foundation remains the same

A lot has changed between that first piece of software I wrote in my apartment and the RedBlack solutions we offer today.

We've helped advisors navigate major industry shifts, from the adoption of household-level portfolio management to a comprehensivehensvie order management system, from pre- and post-trade compliance to customizing portfolios at scale. We continue to solve the operational complexitiesthat come with firm growth.

20 years is a milestone worth celebrating. Not because we've reached a destination, but because it gives us a chance to reflect on the customers, employees, and partners who helped us get here.

The wealth management industry will continue to evolve. Technology will continue to advance. New challenges and opportunities will emerge.

Our job remains the same as it was 20 years ago:

Keep listening. Keep innovating. Keep building for what's next.