"NextCapital is a really easy engine," he says. "The ones that went earlier picked FutureAdvisor." NextCapital, founded by Rob Foregger in 2013, has raised $22 million of venture capital. BlackRock acquired FutureAdvisor for $152 million. Boston-based IBD LPL Financial, First Republic, U.S. Bank Wealth Management and BBVA Compass also chose FutureAdvisor. LPL unveils BlackRock's FutureAdvisor as its robo partner -- albeit with LPL model portfolios  The idea behind big financial services companies acquiring or developing robo-advisors is to enable advisors serve a full nursery of mass-market clients who don't mind being minded by a robot as their assets gradually grow, hopefully, into millions. See: How Barron’s 'Next' lays bare the tail-wags-dog sponsored content predicament facing financial journalism.

http://riabiz.com/a/2016/11/21/rbc-wealth-management-adds-nextcapital-to-its-robo-lineup-with-a-head-scratching-explanation-about-its-earlier-pick-of-futureadvisor