Analysts predict the robo-advisor market could grow to $2.2 trillion in assets under management by 2020

Before Bernie Sanders blazed his way into the hearts of millions, the most famous man previously connected to the name Bernie continues to sit in a prison cell after bilking $65 billion from his clients via an elaborate Ponzi scheme. You know him as Bernie Madoff — the worst investment advisor in history — the man who made the word ‘Ponzi’ a household term and forever sullied the reputations and trust of investment advisors worldwide.

Robots to the rescue? Just as aggressive foreign policy and religious fanaticism created terrorism, shady investment bankers like Madoff have spawned robo-advisors, removing the human equation from the investment transaction entirely. What is a robo-advisor? It is a software program that uses a series of algorithms to do exactly what human financial advisers do, but much more cheaply and without the threat of human greed. Investors can now play the market without the human overhead.

The robo-advisor market, driven by startup companies like Wealthfront and Betterment, grew so dramatically in such a short time that robot development is now a key focus at the biggest financial institutions. Bank of America, Wells Fargo and Morgan Stanley are all scheduled to roll out robo-advisors later this year, while others like Vanguard are now testing limited rollouts. All told, analysts expect the robo-advisor market to grow to $2.2 trillion in assets under management by 2020.

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