Our regular round-up of the latest insights on investment distribution
How IHT changes in the Budget will help life cos
The Budget introduces significant inheritance tax (IHT) changes that will impact financial advisers, platforms, wealth managers, and asset managers. Life insurers, however, may benefit most. Key IHT adjustments include: • Limiting pensions as IHT avoidance tools,...
Cross-border challenges for asset managers
Significant challenges for European asset managers – but also some green shoots – were revealed in Platforum’s recently-published European Fund Distribution: Routes to Market report. Net sales of European-domiciled funds have markedly improved since 2022 but...
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...