Adviser operated platforms are shaping up to be the next big thing with firms considering operating a platform of their own, instead of using or white labelling a third-party platform, according to research by Seccl and the Lang Cat.
The research shows 33% of advice firms have given the idea of platform ownership some consideration and a further 11% have given it a lot of thought.
It could be the next striking development in the structure of the market but what of the business plans of all those consolidators and private equity houses backing the conventional platform sector.
Interesting also that one driver is the ways in which platform changes can disrupt adviser’s day to day business. Replatforming may bring another hidden cost for the platform owners.
HMRC has just published some 'alarming' data on the number of reviews completed in the 2020-21 financial year, and reveals the high percentage of occasions where the review officer determined the decision maker was wrong writes John Hood a tax partner with Moore Kingston Smith.
Quite remarkable.
A win for a cause which appeared to be lost. The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman deems past communications to women regarding the rise in the state pension age to be inadequate as FTAdviser reports. One key finding is that the Department for Work and Pensions commissioned research in 2004 to see if the message was getting through and it was not. This should have prompted action in 2005 and subsequent years.
Compensation at last? Experts have suggested that it will cover a relatively narrow period so perhaps not quite what some of the more vocal campaigners have called for. It is, however, a victory of sorts following various reverses in court.
CashCalc has launched an app for advisers and for clients. There was a time many years' ago when some advisers didn't give much information to clients at all including portfolio performance. But this is an era where client empowerment is taken as read.
Interesting to see fund managers having to challenge themselves on providing value for money as Citywire reports. M&G’s second value for money report suggests that 60% of its funds ‘must improve their investment performance' but the firm says most of its range as offers value for money. The headline is a lot harsher than the introductory paragraph.
M&G has cut its fees across much of the range so it has a defence and things seem to be improving. The FCA may begin to point to this as a successful regulatory reform. Less fun for the marketing departments of asset managers.
