PERSHING | UNBLU (3RD PARTY INTEGRATION)
Integrating Secure Chat for Finance
Designing a Native, White-Labeled Chat Experience for a Cautious User Base
6 months
In finance, even a simple chat isn’t simple. This project integrated Unblu’s secure chat into NetXInvestor—Pershing’s investor platform—without disrupting workflows or breaking compliance. We made it feel native, intuitive, and brand-agnostic while maintaining strict security, flexible record-keeping, and a seamless experience across dozens of white-labeled firms.
role + focus
Product Designer (Microfrontend UX) • UX Strategy • Prototyping • UI Design • Cross-Functional Collaboration
Project Overview
Integrate advisor chat into an investor dashboard to enable seamless communication, improve service transparency, and preserve compliance-critical records—without disrupting existing workflows.
This project began as an effort to integrate a third-party advisor chat tool into an existing investor platform while maintaining the look, feel, and trust users expected. The challenge was to make chat feel native across multiple devices, ensure persistent access without confusing users, and meet strict compliance requirements for recordkeeping and data custody. Our work spanned interface design, advisor status states, notification logic, and white-label flexibility—all while prototyping solutions that balanced user needs and institutional risk tolerance.
We designed around existing platform constraints, tested UI patterns across investor types, and delivered a responsive, branded experience that maintained Pershing’s control over record retention and security.
Approach
Mapping advisor-chat access points across investor journeys
We adopted a user-centered and systems-aware design approach to integrate third-party chat in a way that felt native to a highly regulated environment. Our process balanced user expectations, brand flexibility, and compliance constraints—ensuring intuitive placement, responsive design, and secure communication patterns across different investor types and institutional needs.
Our work began with a competitive analysis and advisor interviews to understand how financial professionals communicate with clients today. We then mapped advisor availability, investor entry points, and recordkeeping responsibilities to inform user flows. From there, we prototyped multiple interaction models—from support dropdowns to floating buttons—and worked closely with product and legal teams to validate placement, behavior, and error states before styling and implementation.
Process
By leveraging a modular front-end strategy, agile prototyping, and collaborative partner integrations, we aligned third-party capabilities with enterprise UX standards, regulatory needs, and investor expectations.
The project process began with identifying core compliance requirements and legacy system constraints. We then mapped user flows across advisor, investor, and support contexts to design entry points that felt intuitive and native. Multiple prototypes were created to simulate floating CTAs, message states, record retention logic, and advisor availability states. Through iteration with internal stakeholders and vendor partners, we refined a microfront-end integration that balanced security, usability, and firm-level branding. Final deliverables supported both white-label flexibility and Pershing’s custodial oversight.
The design philosophy emphasizes clarity, trust, and seamless integration — making complex third-party features like chat and screen share feel intuitive, native, and secure. By prioritizing responsive layouts, accessibility, and white-labeled flexibility, the design supports compliant communication while preserving firm-level branding and user confidence.
Final Design
The final design delivered a native-feeling advisor messaging experience while satisfying stringent compliance and custody requirements. A widget embedded in the dashboard surfaced key advisor details—name, availability, and contact info—alongside a status-aware floating action button (FAB) that launched the chat when the advisor was available. The FAB was designed to be non-persistent when inactive to maintain a clean layout.
The final design combines a seamless user experience with strict regulatory adherence. Advisor details, availability, and contact options are surfaced via an embedded widget, while a floating action button (FAB) launches the chat when active. To maintain interface cleanliness, the FAB remains non-persistent unless the advisor is online. Before initiating a chat, investors must accept terms of service, enabling Pershing to retain and archive records in compliance with industry regulations. This subtle but critical step builds trust and ensures that all communications meet enterprise security and compliance standards—without compromising on visual clarity or usability.
Product Images
Results
Results
Implementing this design required balancing regulatory obligations with user expectations. Angela’s work made compliance feel seamless—while showcasing our platform’s service level and advisor accessibility in a way that truly resonates with clients.
— Product Owner, Digital Experience | Pershing
The integration successfully enhanced the advisor-client experience by embedding chat functionality directly into the investor dashboard. It preserved Pershing’s record retention obligations through consent-driven entry while delivering a modern, intuitive communication flow. The micro front-end approach allowed Unblu to feel native while satisfying both regulatory needs and partner expectations. The end result boosted confidence, improved user adoption, and aligned the platform with emerging industry standards.
Advisors praised the new chat and screen-sharing tool for its speed and ease of use, while compliance teams valued the transparency and security it introduced. Adoption across independent broker-dealers was strong, reflecting high client satisfaction and advisor trust in the platform’s reliability. The solution demonstrated how compliance-aligned UX can drive measurable engagement and business growth.
CONVERSION RATE INCREASE
CLIENT SATISFACTION RATE
