OnBord and VRGL get compared more often than you might expect, usually by firms who have decided to fix their client acquisition process and are trying to work out where to start.
It is worth saying plainly at the top. These two products sit on opposite sides of the same moment. VRGL works on winning the client. We work on what happens in the hour after they say yes. Understanding that split makes the choice much easier.
Two ends of the same handshake
VRGL is a prospecting and proposal platform. It extracts portfolio data from a prospect statement, runs institutional grade analytics across performance, risk, diversification, tax and fees, and turns that into a white labelled proposal showing why your advice is better than what the prospect holds today. It is built to shorten the distance between a first conversation and a signed agreement.
That is a real problem and VRGL solves it well. If your firm competes on the quality of its investment case, the analytics do work that a spreadsheet cannot.
OnBord starts one step later. Once the prospect becomes a client, the account has to be opened, the data has to be collected, the identification has to be verified and the disclosure documents have to be delivered. That is the stage where most firms quietly lose two weeks. We built OnBord to close that gap using a text message and a form that works properly on a phone.
OnBord vs VRGL at a glance
| Comparison | OnBord | VRGL |
|---|---|---|
| Stage of the lifecycle | After the client says yes | Before the client says yes |
| Core focus | Client onboarding and data collection | Portfolio analytics and proposal generation |
| Primary job | Get the account opened and funded quickly | Win the business against the incumbent |
| Key inputs | Information supplied by the client on their phone | Prospect statements and aggregated portfolio data |
| Key output | A completed account and delivered compliance documents | A comparative proposal and risk assessment |
| Client experience | SMS led, mobile first, automatic reminders | Advisor presented proposals and questionnaires |
| Compliance documents | Form ADV 2A, Form CRS and ADV 2Bs generated and delivered automatically | Compliant, white labelled proposal output |
| Client data | Sensitive information never touches our database | Portfolio data extracted and held for analysis |
| Integrations | CRMs Redtail Wealthbox Sales Force Practifi Custodians Charles Schwab Goldman Sachs Fidelity BNY Pershing Docusign |
Broad integration hub with custodial connections |
| Implementation | Self serve, live the same day | Platform onboarding with the VRGL team |
| Published pricing | Entry tier 1-10 users – $80 per user per month Growth 11-99 – $70 per user per month |
Custom, enterprise-based |
Why firms end up choosing between them
Budget, usually. A growing RIA has money for one new piece of software this year and has to decide which problem is costing more.
The honest test is to look at where deals are actually being lost. If prospects are going elsewhere because your proposal does not make the case clearly enough, VRGL addresses that directly and the analytics will do more for you than anything we offer.
If prospects are saying yes and then drifting, that is a different problem. A client who has committed but has not yet funded is not a client. Every extra day between the agreement and the completed account is a day for second thoughts, and the cause is almost always the paperwork rather than the relationship.
That second problem tends to be cheaper to fix and shows results faster, which is why many firms start there.
They work well together
This is not a case where you have to pick a side. VRGL is designed to end at the signature. We are designed to begin there. A firm running both has a continuous process from first meeting to funded account, with no manual handover in the middle.
If you are already using VRGL, the question is not whether OnBord replaces it. The question is what happens to your new clients in the days after your proposal has done its job.
See OnBord on your own onboarding process
Book a short demo and we will run a live client setup, show you how the compliance documents are generated and delivered, and give you a straight answer on where OnBord fits alongside the tools you already use.
