InvestmentLink Australia (ILA) is hoping to announce in the not too distant future a new 51 per cent shareholder in the business which will help it accelerate technology development.
The company has been seeking a cash injection for at least three months and is close to announcing a deal.
InvestmentLink has wanted a strategic partner (such as a telecommunications to technology company) to help it grow and become a more comprehensive service.
InvestmentLink New Zealand (ILNZ) executive director Frank Habrle says any new shareholder in the Australian company is good news for ILNZ as ILA owns a 21 per cent stake in ILNZ.
"It will probably be a technology partner who we perceive will be able top hurry along the technology advancements," he says.
Currently 12 Australian and 9 New Zealand fund managers are downloading data into the InvestmentLink system, and ILNZ has signed up more than 120 advisers in 19 companies.
Habrle says InvestmentLink is investigating the possibility of extending its service to include insurance product information, debentures, and other products such as non-unitised investments.
Ultimately the system could hook in the banking system so it can conduct electronic funds transfer.
Habrle says InvestmentLink is ideally suited to online commerce, and as it has all the foundations in place, such as common client numbers and data standards, there is the opportunity for the system to become the vehicle for electronic commerce in the financial services industry.
"We're working hard on it, but it's probably premature to says it's definitely going to happen," he says.
InvestmentLink Australia (ILA) is hoping to announce in the not too distant future a new 51 per cent shareholder in the business which will help it accelerate technology development.