Leading Asset Manager Transforms Fund Operations with Clarista's AI-Accelerated Data Fabric

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"As one of India's leading alternative investment fund managers, we needed a solution that could match our growth ambitions. With Clarista's speed and flexibility, we've been able to meet our diverse needs fast and efficiently. Things that would have taken us at least six months to deliver, were accomplished in just two months with Clarista."

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Executive Summary

Edelweiss, a leading asset manager, grappled with fragmented data systems and manual processes that hampered efficiency and transparency. Lengthy day-long processing times, data inconsistencies, and a lack of visibility into fund flows were challenging their ability to grow and their competitive edge in managing high-value portfolios across multiple sectors.

In partnership with Clarista, Edelweiss embarked on a transformative journey to modernize its data ecosystem. Leveraging an AI-powered solution and a streamlined three-phase approach—Connect, Manage, and Consume—the firm achieved extraordinary results in just six months:

• 95% reduction in data processing time

• Consistency in financial records across third party and internal systems

• Real-time access to mission-critical metrics for informed decision-making

• Recognition as an industry leader in GenAI innovation

This transformation not only resolved Edelweiss’s operational challenges but also positioned the firm for sustained growth and innovation. By harnessing intelligent data modernization, Edelweiss set a new benchmark for excellence in the highly competitive financial markets.

"In our business, investor data management is absolutely critical. Before Clarista, reconciliation processes would take us seven to ten days. Now, we can complete the same tasks in just hours. The platform's interactive capabilities allow us to slice and dice data efficiently, transforming how we manage our operations."

Challenges

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Despite its strong position in managing high-value funds across real estate, infrastructure, and credit sectors, Edelweiss's outdated data infrastructure was increasingly hampering its performance.  

The core issue stemmed from disconnected systems and multiple third-party data providers, each using different formats and processes. This fragmentation created severe operational bottlenecks, with teams dedicating days to manual reconciliations between internal systems and external data sources. Even then, troubling inconsistencies persisted across reports, undermining their reliability.

The impact was felt daily across the organization. Senior management requests for time-sensitive information routinely took up to 24 hours to fulfill, forcing operations and technology teams into overnight shifts to meet urgent deadlines. Essential calculations that should be automated, such as XIRR computations for hundreds of funds, remained manual Excel-based processes that took days to complete, leaving decision-makers waiting for crucial metrics.

Most concerning was the diminishing transparency in fund flows and portfolio performance. This lack of clarity began affecting stakeholder confidence and raised concerns about reputational risk among investors. These inefficiencies impacted every department - from financial operations to investor relations, from portfolio managers to executive leadership. As the market grew more competitive, Edelweiss recognized that these data challenges weren't just operational hurdles; they were obstacles to growth that needed urgent attention.

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Solution: A Three-Phase Transformation

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When Edelweiss partnered with Clarista, they sought to replace their inefficient, disjointed systems with a unified platform that could serve each department's unique needs. The transformation unfolded across three strategic phases, each building upon the success of the last.

Phase 1: Connect

The journey began with the crucial task of connecting Edelweiss fragmented data landscape. Clarista's flexible data fabric technology served as the cornerstone, uniting the disparate systems and third-party sources into a cohesive ecosystem. The result was a single source of truth that spanned data from hundreds of funds and thousands of investors across multiple systems. What traditionally would have taken 12-18 months was accomplished in just four months, demonstrating the agility and efficiency of Clarista's approach.

Phase 2: Manage

With data flowing seamlessly, attention turned to governance, control and access. Clarista deployed its AI-assisted data management capabilities to configure a comprehensive data catalog, create standardized data products, and implement automated quality checks, resulting into reconciled and mastered book of records at both fund and investor levels. This transformation gave finance and operations teams unprecedented ability to search, analyze, and validate information across their vast portfolio. These data management capabilities collectively provided Edelweiss’ Finance team the confidence in their data’s accuracy and completeness.

Phase 3: Consume

The final phase marked a revolutionary shift in how Edelweiss's stakeholders interacted with their data. Having previously attempted to implement a well-known BI software that struggled with their data volumes run-time calculations, Edelweiss turned to Clarista's high-performance dashboards. Built on modern distributed technology, these dashboards delivered real-time visibility across multiple data sources with sophisticated drill-through capabilities, dynamic filtering, and the ability to perform complex calculations in real-time.

Additionally, Edelweiss's CTO and CFO championed the implementation of Clarista's GenAI-powered TALKData feature. This proved to be a critical step in data democratization, allowing non-technical users to access data using natural language. Senior executives could now simply ask questions like "What's the XIRR for this fund?", "Show me the TVPI and DPI for last quarter by fund" or "Can you provide the deployment and recovery figures for the top 3 portfolios?" - receiving immediate, accurate responses without technical expertise.

This three-phase approach didn't just solve Edelweiss's immediate challenges - it established a repeatable framework for data modernization that could adapt and scale with their future needs. Each phase was designed to build upon the previous one, creating a comprehensive solution that transformed how the organization operated with its data.

Measurable Impact

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The transformation of Edelweiss's data ecosystem yielded remarkable results across multiple dimensions:

Operational Excellence

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Processes that previously took an entire day were reduced to just five minutes—a staggering improvement in efficiency. Automated workflows streamlined data ingestion and validation, reducing errors by 50% and ensuring faster, more reliable access to data. Optimized resource allocation enabled the firm to reassign eight team members to more strategic initiatives, while the implementation of automated monitoring and notifications revolutionized third-party accountability, bringing Edelweiss closer than ever to achieving 100% data accuracy.

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Strategic Advancement

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Real-time, dynamic dashboards redefined decision-making at Edelweiss by providing stakeholders with instant access to critical metrics. This newfound agility enhanced fund flow transparency, rebuilding investor trust and reinforcing key relationships. Furthermore, automating manual data tasks allowed some of the firm’s top talent to pivot toward strategic, high-impact initiatives—fostering greater job satisfaction and driving meaningful value creation for the organization.

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Industry Recognition

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Edelweiss's successful transformation garnered widespread acclaim, earning the firm recognition as a GenAI leader of the year. This achievement positioned Edelweiss as a trailblazer in technological innovation within the asset management industry, setting a new benchmark for operational excellence and demonstrating the immense potential of AI-driven solutions in financial services.

"We're proud to have been awarded with the “Best Initiative in Gen AI” category by UBS Forums, thanks to our partnership with Clarista. This achievement validates our commitment to leveraging cutting-edge technology in alternative investments."

Conclusion: A Blueprint for Modern Data Management

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Edelweiss's transformation journey with Clarista underscores the immense potential of intelligent data modernization. By leveraging Data Fabric architecture and AI-powered capabilities, every stage of the data lifecycle was streamlined and optimized, fostering transparency and collaboration through an intuitive, web-based platform.

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The platform’s advanced AI-driven features empowered technical, operational, and business teams alike, enabling them to unlock actionable insights tailored to their unique needs. This democratization of data access not only delivered immediate efficiency gains but also laid the foundation for sustained strategic growth.

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Through Clarista's solution, Edelweiss overcame operational bottlenecks, achieved near-perfect data accuracy, and rebuilt stakeholder trust—turning complex challenges into enduring competitive advantages. The firm emerged stronger, more agile, and better prepared to navigate the demands of an increasingly dynamic financial landscape.

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This case study serves as a testament to how financial institutions can transform their data ecosystems into engines of innovation and growth. With the right technology partner, even the most intricate challenges can become opportunities for strategic advancement and market leadership.  

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