Entrust Customers

Mackenzie Financial Corporation gives financial advisors secure Web-based access to accounts, investment portfolios

Within the competitive, fluid and often unpredictable marketplace, today's financial advice quickly becomes yesterday's. Helping Canadians to build financial independence by staying a step ahead with their mutual fund, trust and investment strategies is Toronto-based Mackenzie Financial's business and has helped make the company a leader in the Canadian mutual fund industry. Maintaining contact with more than 30,000 independent financial advisors that represent both Mackenzie Financial as well as its wholly owned subsidiaries MRS Trust, MRS Inc. and MRS Security Services Inc. is a vital component in meeting that client-focused objective. This is especially true when dealing with rapidly changing investment markets, where information must not only be kept confidential, but must also be accurate and timely.

Like many major companies today, Mackenzie Financial has turned to the Internet as a way of connecting with the vast array of independent financial advisors. We needed to ensure we did so without compromising the existing relationship of trust between the company and its advisors, explains Jim Haw, Vice-president of System Security and Standards for Mackenzie.

"At the very outset, when we considered extending the relationship with our financial advisors to the Web, we were insistent that proper security be in place first, before any client information was transmitted," he says. "Our business is built on trust. To expand the services we offer through the Web, our security solution had to provide positive, 2-way authentication and the confidentiality of unit-holder information had to be protected at all times."

After investigating security products available in the marketplace, Mackenzie Financial assembled a solution the company feels meets its needs in providing both authentication and encryption, and which has made Mackenzie the first Canadian mutual fund services company to implement a strategic secure Internet-based business solution through its Mackenzie AccessNet and MRS Symon financial advisor sites.

QUNARA INC., Entrust partnership
In addition to the provision of the appropriate Entrust and PeerLogic i500 product solution, end-to-end information technology security specialists QUNARA INC. Technology Solutions Corp. developed the security component for dealer registration including the design of a front-end GUI. Through it, financial advisors complete an application, which is stored in a separate branch of Mackenzie's i.500 directory pending validation by the dealer services groups at Mackenzie and/or MRS. Mackenzie addressed the potential authorization obstacles of issuing certificates to advisors who could be affiliated with both or either organization through use of a single registration step and multiple workflows to pass the information through different validation and approval functions.

Once validated and approved, the applicant data is moved into the appropriate branch of the directory, a digital certificate is issued by Mackenzie's security group and an authorization code is forwarded to the applicant by email. A reference code is returned to the dealer services group and confirmed by telephone with the applicant.

"Utilizing Entrust/PKI gives Mackenzie what we believe to be the best technology to meet our security objectives both now and in the future, while QUNARA INC. has delivered a solution that enhances the efficiency of implementing and maintaining the Entrust product," Mr. Haw explains.

Unique certificate registration
Mackenzie's infrastructure gives financial advisors the freedom and flexibility to manage accounts and investment portfolios securely over the Web. A key element of this infrastructure was the implementation of the unique certificate registration process described above. As a result, users have transparent and secure access while Mackenzie enjoys efficiencies and control over the issuance and management of certificates.

The Mackenzie AccessNet and MRS Symon sites rely on the Web to provide client information to brokers, dealers and financial advisors, allowing them to make enquire against customer holdings, establish new accounts or modify client information, such as addresses and phone numbers.

In the future, both applications may be used to compliment and supplement the functionality available through FundSERV Inc. - a private network between dealers and fund companies currently used - to process transactions against funds.

Thus far, 1,700 certificates have been issued and Mackenzie plans to expand that base to 5,000 by year's end. Once fully implemented, the system could accommodate all of Mackenzie's financial advisors.

In the longer term, the company's secure presence on the Web could also facilitate access for some of Mackenzie's 1.6-million unit holders who could access Mackenzie via the Web to view account information, obtain confirmation of financial transactions or customer statements, thus improving service and reducing costs while maintaining all the benefits of working with a financial advisor in establishing and carrying through with their financial plan.

"Our partnership using Entrust solutions gives us a sound foundation upon which to build future applications over the Web," says Mr. Haw.

"This combination of technical expertise and advanced technology equips us with a robust mechanism for establishing a trusted Web-based relationship with our business partners and provides a solid base for added functionality in the future."

Authentication and Data Protection Solutions

Entrust security products are trusted by security experts and are known for their reputation for reliability and manageability. Our innovative suite of authentication solutions include digital certificates (including device certificates), two factor authentication and token security products that provide trusted security for less. Entrust's data protection solutions can help organizations meet regulatory mandates such as FFIEC or PCI security. For this reason, business and governments alike rely on Entrust over other solution providers and certification authorities to meet and exceed rigorous IT security requirements.