WealthTech is working for asset managers

Last week’s acquisition of end-consumer engagement platform, rplan, by InvestCloud, is another tech play for asset managers and providers, hot on the heels of Invesco’s acquisition of Intelliflo. Having been an early user tester back in 2011, I’ve followed the rplan...

The industrialisation of wealth management

The race for scale appears to be on within the wealth management space. Following news that Rathbones has acquired Scotland’s largest independent wealth manager, Speirs & Jeffrey, questions arise about how else wealth managers are looking – and can look – to build...

The asset manager brand – it’s complicated

Asset managers are thinking hard about distribution opportunities in 2018 and the role of their brands. Cognitive science looks at how the brain interprets marketing and to some extent this boils down to a battle of ‘head’ versus ‘heart’. Do consumers make decisions...

Scale: the double-edged sword in falling markets

In the first quarter of 2018, growth in adviser platform assets halted and they remain just shy of the £500bn mark. Equity markets have been less favourable over the quarter with a period of volatility halting the progress of 2017’s bull market. The benefits of scale...

Decumulation advice: because you’re worth it

How are advisers advising in decumulation? That was the tongue twister we put to advisers this week at a roundtable discussion. There are clear differences in philosophy and approach for IHT planning, investment management, DB transfers and particularly around...