This is an amazing solution, built for the greater good of the industry as a whole.
Vendor risk management (VRM) is no longer an optional compliance task for Registered Investment Advisers (RIAs)—it’s a regulatory necessity. As financial firms face increasing oversight from the SEC and FINRA, ensuring that vendors meet cybersecurity and compliance standards is a critical part of doing business.
But here’s the problem: The current approach to VRM is time-consuming, inefficient, and costly. RIAs must review vendors annually, track compliance, and manage fragmented workflows. Vendors, on the other hand, are often forced to respond to multiple compliance requests, duplicating their efforts across different platforms.
Enter Open VRM—a free, centralized platform created by Buckler and designed to streamline vendor due diligence and enhance collaboration between RIAs and their vendors.
Why RIAs Need a Smarter VRM Solution
Traditionally, vendor oversight has been a resource drain, requiring firms to gather documents, assess risks, and manually track compliance. With the SEC’s proposed Vendor Due Diligence Rule, RIAs need a scalable, structured approach to third-party oversight—one that doesn’t bog down operations.
What Makes Open VRM Different?
Open VRM is not another costly compliance tool—it’s a zero-cost VRM standard built to simplify vendor assessments while ensuring transparency.
Key benefits include:
✅ Pre-filled vendor data – Save time by accessing information from 1,100+ vendors without manual collection.
✅ Compliance-driven framework – Standardized assessments ensure vendors meet cybersecurity and regulatory requirements.
✅ Dashboard visibility – Get a real-time view of vendor status and risk levels for better oversight.
Unlike traditional VRM systems that come with high costs and complex workflows, Open VRM is free forever, making it accessible to firms of all sizes.
See the full article here or clients and vendors can go to Open VRM to learn how to participate.
