Blue River Partners Provides a Comprehensive Solution as Cybersecurity Continues to Threaten the Investment Management Industry

DALLAS, Oct. 5, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Recent headlines continue to shed light on the growing worldwide cybersecurity crisis.  We have witnessed enormous, real-life cybersecurity breaches in every major industry, including banking, media, technology, transportation, government, and financial services.  The alternative asset management industry is no different, with new reports of cyber hacks occurring on almost a weekly basis. 

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been emphasizing this issue for years now, identifying cybersecurity as an exam and enforcement priority and sending strong signals to the investment community in the form of public statements, industry guidance, and enforcement actions. "If investment firms have procrastinated in addressing this business and regulatory risk, they are advised to make it an immediate priority," stated Michael Minces, Founding Partner and General Counsel of Blue River Partners.

Investment management firms should understand that protecting against cybersecurity threats and complying with SEC rulemaking involves more than passively relying on their IT provider to ensure that firewalls are in place and penetration tests are carried out.  A complete solution necessitates an ongoing, proactive effort of assessing risks, implementing policies and procedures, testing systems and procedures, vendor due diligence, technology enhancements, and training personnel.  Blue River provides this type of solution.

Blue River utilizes advanced solutions to comprehensively review a firm's technology and software environment, identifying potential exposures and existing threats in order to design customized remedial solutions and a framework for securing the systems going forward. As opposed to the majority of the IT service provider community that continues to service clients with dated software and technology, Blue River leverages the most current cloud-based systems to provide a cost-effective solution, which can be implemented quickly and managed remotely.

"It's upsetting to see members of our investment community get hit by something that can be preventable," said Minces. "Our robust IT & cybersecurity service offering is supported by an experienced team, specifically focused on this ever-increasing risk."

Tucker Goodrich, Blue River's Chief Information Officer, with his deep industry experience, leads the firm's IT and cybersecurity practice.  Blue River's service offering exceeds the requirements of recent SEC guidance and provides scalability and peace of mind, allowing managers to focus on their core business of managing assets.

According to Goodrich, "The majority of traditional IT providers fail at maintaining effective cybersecurity protocols.  Almost all significant cybersecurity risks are the result of software that either hasn't been updated, or was in need of a patch that was never implemented.  No manager wants to tell investors that their information has been compromised or, worse, that the manager failed to diligence a service provider and the investors' money has been lost."

"The importance of vetting IT providers is paramount," said Goodrich. "Just as important as having internal procedures and policies in place is employing providers that implement them consistently."

To understand how Blue River can support your IT and cybersecurity needs or for more information on Blue Rivers' service offerings and resources please visit www.blueriverpartnersllc.com or contact us at [email protected].

Management Biography
Tucker D. Goodrich, Chief Information Officer
Tucker Goodrich is the Chief Information Officer of Blue River Partners, LLC.  He is responsible for all aspects of Blue River Partners' Information Technology efforts.  Prior to joining Blue River Partners, Mr. Goodrich was Chief Technology Officer for Mariner Investment Group, LLC, a $12 billion global multi-strategy hedge fund and fund-of-funds, specializing in fixed-income, capital-structure, interest-rate arbitrages, and various equity and derivative strategies.  His responsibilities included all IT aspects of Risk Management, Accounting and Operations, Trading, Investor Relations, Compliance, Infrastructure, Information Security, and Business Continuity.  Mr. Goodrich was responsible for implementing and managing the firm's Sarbanes-Oxley IT compliance and control framework, and participated in numerous due diligence and regulatory reviews of the firm's IT functions.  Additionally, early in his career at Mariner, he was the portfolio manager of an international risk-arbitrage portfolio. 

Prior to Mariner, he was the first employee of Sandell Asset Management, LLC, an international risk-arbitrage hedge fund startup, where he was responsible for all aspects of IT, developed the firm's trading and P&L models, was the primary trader, and was responsible for all daily back and middle office operations.

Mr. Goodrich is a member of the Society for Information Management and Hedge Fund Tech Connect, and has also participated in industry fora.  He's spoken at numerous industry events on various aspects of hedge fund technology including cybersecurity and IT operations.  Mr. Goodrich has been published in Forbes, National Review, and the Journal of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.  He attended the University of Connecticut and the University of Rochester.

About Blue River Partners
Blue River Partners, LLC is a preeminent service provider to the alternative asset industry.  By leveraging Blue River's team, investment advisory firms are able to implement a best-of-breed, integrated institutional back office at a fraction of the cost of internal hires.  Blue River works with managers in multiple capacities ranging from:

• outsourced IT and cybersecurity services;
• hedge fund, private equity fund, and mutual fund launches;
• private equity fund administration;
• advisory firm set-up, regulatory registration and infrastructure design;
• ongoing regulatory compliance (SEC, CFTC, and 40 Act);
• financial controls and operational support services;
• compliance and operational related projects, due diligence, and reviews; and
• outsourced CFO/controller and administration services to private equity fund investments – portfolio companies, real estate assets and energy assets.

Blue River currently supports over 230 clients managing over $160 billion in assets.

For more information about our service offerings and resources please visit www.blueriverpartnersllc.com or contact us at [email protected]

Blue River Partners, LLC is not a CPA firm. Blue River Partners, LLC is not a law firm.

Contact Information:
MICHAEL S. MINCES
Founding Partner & General Counsel
Phone: 214.736.7176
[email protected]

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SOURCE Blue River Partners, LLC