Bespoke Services in Investment Research Outsourcing

Published on: 30 Sept 2025

Last updated: 30 Sept 2025

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Investment research outsourcing has become central to the competitive strategy of research organisations seeking efficiency, specialized expertise, and timely data for their investment data products. For data product managers, bespoke data research and outsourcing services unlock distinct advantages, especially with the rise of custom solutions. This article explains how data product managers can leverage custom research, with a focus on Ascentrik Research’s unique capabilities in sourcing and delivering high-value investment datasets for both public and private markets.

Understanding Investment Research Outsourcing

Investment research outsourcing refers to the delegation of core research functions such as equity analysis, portfolio tracking, fund administration, and due diligence to specialised third-party providers, freeing internal teams to focus on product innovation and user experience. This approach not only provides cost efficiencies through scalable services but also grants access to broader skill sets and tooling—critical in today’s complex, multi-asset investment universe.

  • Cost Reduction: Outsourcing enables research organisations to convert fixed operational costs into scalable, variable expenses, often achieving up to 60% savings compared to maintaining large in-house analyst teams.

  • Skill Diversification: Providers like Ascentrik Research and peers bring deep domain expertise covering traditional asset classes, private equity, venture capital, alternative investments, and niche areas underpinned by robust research methodologies.

  • Quality and Compliance: Specialised outsourcing firms enforce high standards for data accuracy, privacy, and compliance, leveraging manual verification and knowledge of global regulations to safeguard client interests.

Boost decision-making with investment research outsourcing

Boost decision-making with investment research outsourcing

Bespoke Data Research: Customisation vs. Syndication

At the heart of quality outsourcing is the distinction between syndicated and bespoke data research. Syndicated data—largely automated and standardised—can quickly become outdated for niche or emerging market segments. Bespoke data research from Ascentrik Research is defined by:

  • Ground-Up Creation: Datasets are constructed exclusively to match the product manager’s requirements, ensuring data is unique, current, and relevant to the intended investment product.

  • Manual Verification: Skilled researchers validate and triangulate data points using a blend of mainstream sources, obscure filings, local registries, and specialised news publications — critical for opaque private markets.

  • Flexible Scope: Services are seamless, whether accessing public company disclosures or unraveling the fragmented landscape of private market intelligence, providing a genuine edge over generic providers.

Empowering Data Product Managers with Outsourcing

For investment data product managers, outsourcing isn’t just a tactical cost play—it’s about building products with differentiated, high-integrity data that strengthens brand and drives user growth.

1. Unlocking Hard-to-Find Data

Ascentrik’s custom research fills gaps left by generic data sources:

  • Targeted research on private equity portfolio companies, VC funding rounds, and non-listed asset valuations.

  • Custom tracking of market events and regulatory filings not available in standard databases.

2. Supporting Scalable Product Growth

Outsourcing allows product managers to scale research capacity dynamically, adapting to market needs and product roadmaps without hiring additional staff or investing in expensive database subscriptions.

3. Enhancing Data Reliability and Compliance

With escalating data governance and privacy regulations, Ascentrik’s compliance-first approach assures managers that each dataset adheres to relevant standards and mitigates regulatory risk.

4. Driving Innovation with Research Expertise

Experienced research partners contribute new perspectives, help crystallise strategy, and inject best practices in financial modeling, market tracking, and competitive intelligence—all essential for high-performance investment data products.

Key Activities Outsourced in Investment Research

Investment research outsourcing today encompasses a wide breadth of services:

  • Equity Research: Fundamental analysis, DCF models, quarterly updates, and investor call analytics.

  • Private Market Due Diligence: Assessing non-listed company financials, deal origination, and pipeline management using custom sources.

  • Fund Administration: MIS, accounting, company registration, and investor relations.

  • Financial Modeling: Artful model development by experts, delivering actionable forecasts.

  • Deal Origination: List generation, target profiling, and initial screening.

Such services not only amplify throughput for internal teams but also produce richer, actionable insights for end users.

Building Strategic Partnerships: Vendor Selection Best Practices

To maximize value, product managers should rigorously select outsourcing partners:

  • Ask for Work Samples: Validate expertise by reviewing previous deliverables.

  • Pilot Engagements: Begin with smaller scoped projects to assess capabilities, scalability, and reliability before full-scale adoption.

  • Transparent Pricing: Opt for pay-per-value models and competitive terms.

Ascentrik’s Competitive Edge in Investment Research Outsourcing

Ascentrik Research stands out through its focus on bespoke, human-driven data creation, offering:

  • Fresh, non-recycled datasets tailored to client needs.

  • Domain experts with experience across public and private market research challenges.

  • Robust compliance processes and privacy assurance for all data products.

  • Quality-first assurance; clients pay only for verified, relevant records.

For investment data product managers seeking to differentiate their products and satisfy demanding institutional users, Ascentrik delivers a partnership built on reliability, expertise, and innovation.

Conclusion

Investment research outsourcing, especially bespoke solutions such as those from Ascentrik Research, enables data product managers in research organisations to deliver market-leading products with verified, differentiated datasets. 

The shift from generic, syndicated data to custom, expertly sourced intelligence provides a true competitive advantage, supporting growth, compliance, and strategic impact in an increasingly complex investment landscape.

In today’s financial technology and investment product space, the right outsourcing partner is pivotal. With Ascentrik Research, managers of data-driven products gain access to scalable, expert-led research and a toolbox for innovation—empowering them to stay ahead of client expectations and market trends.

Need bespoke outsourcing services for investment research?

Need bespoke outsourcing services for investment research?