Our regular round-up of the latest insights on investment distribution
Dear CEO: a dearth of one-off advice
The FCA’s latest Dear CEO letter landed last week and sent a shot across consolidators’ bows. But it was the part where the regulator yet again raises the issue of ongoing advice that caught our attention. The FCA has repeatedly expressed concerns that advisers...
The continuing resilience of the advice market
Advice firms look after more clients and more assets than ever before. Contrary to popular belief, adviser numbers have risen since 2016, although much too slowly to keep pace with demand. Despite economic and regulatory challenges, advice business has proved to be...
Platform selection tension
There has always been a tension in how advisers select platforms. On one hand, platforms are products, recommended to clients, who generally pay for them. On the other, they are services primarily used by advisers. Platforms therefore serve two masters, with subtly...
Just how many investors can the advice market serve?
The number of people receiving ongoing financial advice in the UK has risen by over a fifth in the last five years. But the population of advisers has hardly grown and in 2023 it actually fell. Strong demand for advice has propelled the average number of clients...
Hargreaves Lansdown deal undervalues the megatrends that will drive digital wealth
Will HL maintain its status as the leading online investment service following its acquisition by a private equity consortium? It has a 29% share of the UK D2C market, considering the full range of D2C services, as covered in our recent UK D2C: Market Update. This...
Exploring the opportunities and challenges of tailored model portfolio services
Platform model portfolio services (MPS) has continued to experience healthy asset growth, buoyed by growing adviser demand as more advice firms have decided to outsource their investment management functions. Competition among MPS providers has intensified with...