Decision Technologies

What Decision Technologies does

Decision Technologies Corporation (DTC) is a Troy, Michigan-based fintech that has developed patented decision-assistance technology for objectively scoring and ranking investment choices. Founded around 2004 and operating with 1-10 employees, the company serves professional financial advisors, robo-advisor platforms, registered investment advisors, broker-dealers, and institutional investors including public pension plans, Taft-Hartley plans, nonprofits, and family offices. The founder and Chairman & CEO is Eric S. Smith, J.D., an attorney and co-inventor of the technology.

DTC's core technology uses hierarchically arranged and weighted blends of up to 450 performance factors to score and rank investment choices — covering approximately 30,000 mutual funds and share classes, 8,000 SMA managers, and 43,000 benchmark indices — to identify products that best match individual client needs, goals, and preferences. The portfolio includes the Cloud Comparison Engine for Professional Advisors, APIs for Robo Advisors, and the patented Core/Satellite Portfolio Design Methodology (U.S. Patent 8,341,060 B2) for portfolio risk optimization. The company holds two U.S. patents and nine foreign patents, and its methodology has been independently validated as a fiduciary best practice by Wagner Law Group.

Revenue is generated through technology licensing to RIAs and broker-dealers, API licensing to robo-advisor platforms, and cloud comparison engine subscriptions. The company also offers trustee consulting services through its affiliated entity, Trustee Empowerment & Protection, Inc. (TEPI), an SEC-registered investment adviser. The company has only one disclosed funding event of $25,000 (August 2020), no institutional investors, and operates as a founder-controlled private corporation.

Name

Decision Technologies

Legal name

Decision Technologies Corporation

Website

https://decisionengines.tech

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Decision Technologies Corporation develops patented decision-assistance technology that scores and ranks investment choices for financial advisors, robo-advisors, RIAs, broker-dealers, and institutional investors. Founded in 2004 and based in Troy, Michigan, the company licenses its cloud comparison engine, APIs, and Core/Satellite methodology under two U.S. patents.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Investment Decision Support Software

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940), Custom Computer Programming Services (541511)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282), Services-Computer Programming Services (7371)

akta.pro primary industry

Digital/Robo Financial Planning (FSAEAAAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Scenario Planning, Forecasting Platforms & Planning Intelligence (HDAAAHAL), Model Portfolio & Portfolio Construction Engines (FSAGAEAD)

Keywords

• Investment decision support
• Robo advisor APIs
• Mutual fund scoring
• Portfolio risk optimization
• Fiduciary compliance software

Headquarters

HQ city

Troy

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. API Licensing: Licensing DTC's APIs to robo-advisors, allowing them to integrate comparative scoring and ranking of thousands of investment choices based on client preferences.
2. Technology Licensing to RIAs and BDs: Licensing patented decision-assistance technology directly to Registered Investment Advisors and Broker Dealers to help them meet compliance challenges posed by fiduciary and best interest rules.
3. Cloud Comparison Engine Subscription: Subscription-based access to cloud comparison engine for professional advisors to score and rank investment choices for their clients.
4. Strategic Alliances and Distribution: Strategic alliance, investment, and distribution opportunities are available for qualified partners.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Decision Technologies Corporation develops and licenses patented decision-assistance software that uses hierarchically arranged and weighted blends of multiple performance parameters to score and rank thousands of investment choices such as mutual funds, ETFs, and money managers. Its commercial offerings include a cloud-based comparison engine for professional advisors, APIs for robo-advisor platforms, and a patented Core/Satellite Portfolio Design Methodology for portfolio risk and return optimization, sold via direct licensing, API licensing, and cloud subscriptions to financial advisors, broker-dealers, robo-advisors, and institutional investors.

Product overview

Decision Technologies Corporation offers a patented decision-assistance platform centered on its Cloud Comparison Engine for Professional Advisors and APIs for Robo Advisors. The technology enables scoring and ranking of thousands of investment choices using weighted blends of multiple performance parameters based on client-specific preferences. The portfolio includes the Core/Satellite Portfolio Design Methodology (U.S. Patent 8,341,060 B2) for fine-tuning portfolio risk exposure, and the foundational Decision-Assistance Technology (U.S. Patent 7,711,623 B2) for investment selection optimization. The company also provides Trustee Empowerment & Protection services through its affiliated SEC-registered investment adviser.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Cloud Comparison Engine for Professional Advisors Patented cloud-based comparison engine that incorporates multiple risk factors and parameters, enabling advisors and their clients to score and rank thousands of mutual funds, ETFs, and manager choices using weighted blends of multiple performance parameters personalized to client needs.
• APIs for Robo Advisors APIs that allow robo-advisor platforms to communicate using multiple performance factors based on personalized client preferences, comparatively score and rank thousands of investment choices based on historic performance, and periodically re-evaluate client investment choices against top-scoring alternatives in each asset class.
• Core/Satellite Portfolio Design Methodology Patented portfolio design methodology that uses an active core strategy with satellite managers to fine-tune overall portfolio risk exposure and volatility, optimizing the portfolio's risk/return profile and producing 'higher highs' and 'higher lows' across market cycles.
• Trustee Empowerment & Protection Services SEC-registered investment adviser services providing reviewing consultant services to trustees of pension and health & welfare plans, leveraging DTC's patented technology to support investment-related decision making and improve plan investment results.

Quantifiable outcome

• Back-tested 100% Core strategy outperformed all other manager selection methodologies including passive/index investments, 100% Satellite selection, and Core/Satellite blends during 2008/2009 Crash period
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Trustee Empowerment & Protection, Inc. (TEPI)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRelated entity where Eric Smith serves as Chairman & CEO. TEPI is an SEC registered investment adviser providing reviewing consultant services to pension and health & welfare plans. DTC's patented technology is utilized to help trustees make better investment decisions and improve plan investment results.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Addepar: Wealth management technology platform for RIAs, family offices, and institutions, focused on portfolio analytics and reporting. Comparable to DTC in providing data-driven investment evaluation and reporting tools to advisors and institutional investors.
• Riskalyze: Risk-alignment and portfolio analytics platform for advisors (rebranded as Nitrogen). Comparable to DTC in serving RIAs and broker-dealers with quantitative investment decision and risk assessment tools.
• YCharts: Advisor-focused investment research and analytics platform with screening, comparison, and portfolio analytics for RIAs and broker-dealers. Closely comparable to DTC's cloud comparison engine and scoring/ranking use case for professional advisors.
• RightCapital: Financial planning and investment analysis software for RIAs. Comparable to DTC as a decision-support technology layer for professional advisors evaluating investments and building client portfolios.
• MoneyGuidePro: Financial planning and goal-based advising tool widely used by RIAs and broker-dealers. Comparable to DTC as advisor-facing decision-support software used in the investment selection and planning workflow.
• Orion Advisor Tech: Portfolio management, accounting, and analytics platform for RIAs. Comparable to DTC as a core technology layer that RIAs and broker-dealers integrate to evaluate investments and manage client portfolios.

Broad incumbents

• FactSet: Global financial data and analytics platform for portfolio managers, advisors, and institutions. Comparably provides the screening, scoring, and analytics infrastructure that DTC's engine competes against at the institutional end.
• Envestnet: Broad wealth management technology and platform provider offering portfolio management, analytics, and advisor tools. Comparable as a scaled platform alternative for RIAs and broker-dealers evaluating DTC's offering.
• Morningstar: A dominant investment research and data platform serving advisors and institutions. Comparably provides performance/risk analytics, fund screening, and portfolio construction tools — overlapping with DTC's scoring/ranking and portfolio-design offering, but at vastly greater scale.

Emerging players

• Kwanti: Portfolio analytics and investment research platform for RIAs with portfolio analysis, comparison, and proposal-generation features. Comparable to DTC's cloud comparison engine and advisor use case, but at an earlier scale.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Decision Technologies