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Oct 29, 2024 | 
citywire.com | Alex Cowan-Sanluis |Jack Gilbert |Nicola Blackburn |Michelle McGagh
There’s a lot said, and grumbled, about consolidators in the advice market. And Citywire New Model Adviser editor Jack Gilbert made some good points about private equity (PE) in his blog recently.
But what I see as the biggest risk in consolidation, and what the FCA is looking at in its review, is the potential misalignment of interests.
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Oct 22, 2024 | 
moneymarketing.co.uk | Phil Jeynes |Alex Cowan-Sanluis
In the summer, I seriously considered replacing my iPhone 14 with an old Nokia 3310 – a phone you can use to text, make calls and play Snake. But then I remembered how heavily I rely on Google Maps. And how I need email and Microsoft Teams on my phone for work. Also, it’s so much more convenient to keep train and plane tickets on my phone, and use Apple Pay to buy things. And to have a camera to hand at all times. The list goes on and, needless to say, I kept my iPhone.
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Oct 21, 2024 | 
moneymarketing.co.uk | Alex Cowan-Sanluis
The Financial Conduct Authority’s recent letter to advice firms has certainly got people talking with its specific mention of consolidators and its desire to gather data from them. The FCA specifically said consolidators are expected to “ensure the delivery of good outcomes is central to your culture”. That should come naturally to any business operating in this area.
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Aug 9, 2024 | 
professionaladviser.com | Alex Cowan-Sanluis
'It's a complex situation and a competitive market'Tech innovation for advisers is strong but the numbers need to add up, writes Alex Cowan-SanluisI was lucky enough for The Lang Cat to ask me to be a ‘High Inquisitor' at its inaugural AdviceTech Catwalk event. This involved five tech start-ups pitching their wares to me, FNZ chief executive Adrian Durham, and Money Means founder Helena Wardle in front of a 150-strong crowd of financial advisers and planners.
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May 7, 2024 | 
professionaladviser.com | Alex Cowan-Sanluis
Tech lies at the heart of improving outcomes and services for clientsBecoming a consolidator, rather than an aggregator, is about making better use of technology, writes Alex Cowan-Sanluis The wealth sector is full of many consolidators. Similarly to other industries, there are acquisitive firms trying to create value by producing something greater than the sum of individual businesses. However, there are many examples of consolidators that are struggling to do that successfully.
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Feb 14, 2024 | 
professionaladviser.com | Alex Cowan-Sanluis
The cost of living crisis has been tough for economies and markets the world over, but the bulk of adviser platforms have had a particularly rough ride of it over the past 18 months or so. The latest market figures from The Lang Cat and Fundscape paint a pretty grim landscape for adviser platforms. Looking at the sector as a whole, outflows remain high, inflows continue to fall. The overall happiness of the sector can be seen through the graph from The Lang Cat below.
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Dec 13, 2023 | 
moneymarketing.co.uk | Alex Cowan-Sanluis |Emmelia Powell
First of all, it’s fantastic to see the Financial Conduct Authority pushing to make progress in the area of guidance and simplified advice. Although the regulator has only launched a discussion paper, expanding the help advice firms can give to clients is crucial and any further provision for advice and better guidance should be great for the public.
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Jun 15, 2023 | 
moneymarketing.co.uk | Alex Cowan-Sanluis
Not a week goes by in 2023 where adviser-as-platform doesn’t hit the headlines in the trade press. Whether that’s a couple of platforms singing its praises or somebody dismissing it as a fad that’s doomed to fail, similarly to the piece Platform One was mentioned in last week quoting Bella Caridade-Ferreira’s scepticism of the model. Both sides have good points to this argument.
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Mar 31, 2023 | 
moneymarketing.co.uk | Alex Cowan-Sanluis
Let’s get this article off to a clear start: blockchain technology is not the same as cryptocurrency. If you imagine a Venn diagram, blockchain is the large circle and cryptocurrency the much smaller one within it, merely using the technology as its foundation to function. A blockchain is a decentralised, distributed ledger that allows multiple parties to securely record and verify transactions without the need for a central authority or third party.
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Jan 24, 2023 | 
investmentweek.co.uk | Alex Cowan-Sanluis
If you have not tried to switch your personal investment portfolio from one platform to another, then just ask any IFA of their pains trying to do it for their clients and you will soon understand. What should, in theory, be a simple data transfer that takes seconds instead drags on for weeks and often months. And this archaically slow process is mostly down to fund administrators being stuck in the dark ages. But that is soon to change.
