Altruist Financial Model
Fintech Startup Financials (Free Excel Download)
Vertically integrated all-in-one platform for registered investment advisors (RIAs) - combining custodial, portfolio management, practice management, and client acquisition tools.
professionals from Deloitte
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About this model
Altruist is an all-in-one operating platform for registered investment advisors, covering custody, trading, portfolio management, billing, practice management, and a client-facing portal. It aims to give independent advisors modern infrastructure without competing for their end clients.
The US wealthtech company sits between legacy custodians and consumer robo-advisors. Its integrated design can replace several advisor systems while creating a more scalable service model for firms managing client assets.
The model is a hybrid of SaaS and custodial economics. Forecast RIA firms, advisor seats or accounts, average assets under management, and platform fees; then layer in cash-sweep, order-flow, margin, and other custody-related revenue tied to client assets and activity.
A turnkey financial model
Live formulas, no hardcoded values
Outputs are driven by live formulas, so the workbook updates from its assumptions instead of relying on hardcoded results.
All assumptions in one tab
Inputs are clearly marked in the Assumptions tab and separated from calculations, making it clear what to change and what to leave intact.
Statements always balancing
For integrated-statement models, the balance sheet, cash flow, and supporting schedules tie through properly.
Distinct schedules for clarity
Debt, working capital, taxes, and cash flow can get messy quickly. We group calculations in clear schedules, not across disconnected tabs.
No hidden macros or external links
There are no unexplained external workbook links or macros to undermine auditability or portability.
Changes flow through the model
Update a key driver and see the impact carry through the forecast, financing, and return outputs. We never use hardcoded numbers in formulas.
About Altruist
altruist.com
How to build a detailed financial model for Altruist
A complete walkthrough of the business, drivers, and assumptions behind the downloadable Altruist model - distilled from its pitch deck and publicly available information.
Product & value proposition
All-in-one RIA platform with a single login covering:
- Custodial functions (account opening, funding, clearing via Apex Clearing)
- Commission-free fractional share trading and automated rebalancing
- Portfolio accounting and performance reporting
- Fee billing (flexible, accommodates multiple advisor business models)
- Client portal and mobile app
- Practice management (replaces multiple disconnected point solutions)
Positioning: "the best of both worlds" between legacy advisor custodians (Fidelity, Schwab, TD Ameritrade - robust but expensive, not user-friendly, compete with advisors) and robo-advisors (Wealthfront, Betterment, Wealthsimple - user-friendly but can't run an advisor's full business).
Revenue model
Revenue streams inferable from product description but not explicitly quantified in deck:
- Platform / SaaS fee to RIAs - described as "industry-low cost" vs. incumbents; no pricing figures shown.
- Custodial spread / cash sweep - standard RIA custodian monetisation model; Apex Clearing handles clearing/custody, so Altruist likely earns on cash balances, margin, and order flow.
- Fee billing infrastructure - platform charges advisors or takes a cut of AUM-based billing; consistent with "flexible fee billing" feature.
- Commission-free trading - implies PFOF or internalization revenue on order flow; standard zero-commission brokerage model.
No explicit pricing, take rates, or AUM-based fee schedule shown.
Traction & metrics
- Founder Jason Wenk's prior company (FormulaFolios): 13,927% 3-year growth rate, $3.2B AUM at peak, ranked as high as #10 fastest-growing private company (Inc. magazine, 4 years in a row). - this is prior-company data, not Altruist traction.
- No Altruist-specific revenue, AUM, advisor count, growth rate, or retention figures are shown in this deck.
Competition / moat
Competitors called out explicitly:
- Legacy RIA custodians: Fidelity, Charles Schwab, TD Ameritrade - widely trusted/adopted but expensive, not user-friendly, don't include key practice management software, compete directly with advisors.
- Robo-advisors: Wealthfront, Betterment, Wealthsimple - affordable and user-friendly but can't run an advisor's entire business, compete with advisor.
Altruist moat claims:
- Vertical integration across all four RIA infrastructure layers (custodian + asset management + practice management software + client acquisition) - competitors are single-layer.
- Modern tech stack (no legacy debt).
- Does not compete with advisors (unlike custodians and robos).
- Fiduciary-first design - "hard for advisors not to do the right thing for clients."
- Network effects and trust-building via advisor partnerships.
Team & funding ask / use of funds
Team:
- Jason Wenk - CEO & Founder (20 years financial services; founded FormulaFolios, grew to $3.2B AUM, Inc. 500 top 10)
- Nachiket Shiralkar - CTO
- Mazi Bahadori (JD, MBA) - CCO / EVP Operations
- Pete Dorsey - Chief Strategy & Revenue Officer
- Zach Pentel - Chief Marketing Officer
- Katherine Starros (SPHR) - Head of People
- Harpreet Ahluwalia (MBA) - VP Product
- John Scianna - VP Brand & Design
- Michelle Shotts - VP Customer Success
Recommended financial model
- Archetype + why: RIA platform - hybrid SaaS + AUM/custodial revenue model. The business has two interlocking revenue streams: (1) a recurring platform/software fee per advisor seat or per-account (SaaS-like, high margin), and (2) custodial economics tied to advisor AUM (cash sweep yield, PFOF, margin). This requires a combined SaaS ARR + AUM growth model, not a pure SaaS build. Closest archetype is a wealthtech platform model (similar to Betterment for Advisors or Orion).
- Forecast horizon & granularity: 5 years (2021–2025), monthly for Year 1 (cash management), quarterly for Years 2–5.
- Key drivers & assumptions:
- Number of RIA firms on platform
- Average AUM per advisor firm
- AUM growth per existing firm (market + organic)
- Platform/SaaS fee per advisor ($/month or % of AUM)
- Cash sweep yield on client cash balances
- PFOF / trading revenue per trade
- Gross margin on SaaS component
- Gross margin on custodial/brokerage component
- Advisor CAC
- Advisor churn / retention
- Headcount growth and S&M, R&D, G&A as % of revenue
- Founded 2018, Series B in May 2021; model should reflect ~3 years already in market.
- Scenarios (Base / Bull / Bear - which variables flex):
- Bear: Slow advisor adoption (competitive moat not yet established), low cash sweep yield (low-rate environment), high CAC, 10% annual churn.
- Base: Moderate advisor growth, rising rate tailwind on cash sweep, steady CAC, 5% churn.
- Bull: Rapid RIA migration from legacy custodians, strong network effects, high AUM per advisor, rate environment supports sweep income, M&A or referral flywheel accelerates adds.
- Primary flex variables: advisor adds per quarter, AUM per advisor, cash sweep rate, platform fee level.
- Required sheets / outputs:
- Assumptions dashboard (all drivers in one place)
- Advisor cohort model (adds by quarter, AUM ramp per cohort, churn)
- Revenue build: SaaS fees + custodial/sweep + trading revenue
- COGS and gross profit (split SaaS vs. custodial margin)
- OpEx build (S&M, R&D, G&A, headcount)
- P&L (Income Statement)
- Cash flow and runway (critical for Series B context)
- KPI summary: advisor count, AUM on platform, ARR, revenue per advisor, gross margin %
- Scenario toggle (Base / Bull / Bear)
Frequently asked
Is the Altruist financial model free?+
Yes. The Altruist model is a free Excel (.xlsx) download with live formulas. Sign up with your email and the workbook is yours to keep, review, and edit.
What's included in the model?+
A 5-year monthly forecast with P&L, cash flow and runway, valuation (exit multiple plus a DCF cross-check), MOIC/IRR returns, and unit economics, with live formulas throughout.
How was this model built?+
It was built from Altruist's pitch deck and publicly available information, then structured to investment-banking standards as a fully editable Excel model.
Can I change the assumptions?+
Yes. You can change assumptions and the live formulas will recalculate in the downloadable Excel model.
Have more financial modelling questions? Contact us
Created by ex-finance professionals
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