Don’t take us for idiots

In an earlier post, I had a bit of a go in an open letter at direct-to-customer platform giant Hargreaves Lansdown over their charging structure. Lots of people seemed to agree, and I’m pleased to say that…it’s made not the slightest bit of difference. That’s the power of social media. Or something. At the moment, […]

Don’t take us for idiots

In an earlier post, I had a bit of a go in an open letter at direct-to-customer platform giant Hargreaves Lansdown over their charging structure. Lots of people seemed to agree, and I’m pleased to say that…it’s made not the slightest bit of difference. That’s the power of social media. Or something. At the moment, […]

Will platform margins really halve in 3 years?

Hmmm! The redoubtable Southampton-based platform behemoth Skandia has started 2012 in characteristically robust fashion by jack-in-the-boxing on Citywire and predicting that platform margins will halve by 2015. According to Skandia, the market is at 30-50bps now, and will be at 20-25bps by 2015. Only 10 platforms will survive. Cue the Destiny’s Child song of your […]

Will platform margins really halve in 3 years?

Hmmm! The redoubtable Southampton-based platform behemoth Skandia has started 2012 in characteristically robust fashion by jack-in-the-boxing on Citywire and predicting that platform margins will halve by 2015. According to Skandia, the market is at 30-50bps now, and will be at 20-25bps by 2015. Only 10 platforms will survive. Cue the Destiny’s Child song of your […]

Peace out from the lang cat

So that was the year that was. As I write this I’m on a train back to Edinburgh having missed the lang kitten v1.0’s carol concert. It’s been that kind of year. Work/life balance? Not so much. Never mind. Being a talking head is no fun if you can’t do a review of the year […]

Peace out from the lang cat

So that was the year that was. As I write this I’m on a train back to Edinburgh having missed the lang kitten v1.0’s carol concert. It’s been that kind of year. Work/life balance? Not so much. Never mind. Being a talking head is no fun if you can’t do a review of the year […]

An open letter to Hargreaves Lansdown

Dear HL Unlike many others in my sector, I’m a big fan of yours. I’m such a big fan that I’m a client – there, I’ve said it. And yes, I hold L&G and HSBC passive funds in my portfolio (such as it is). I’m not daft enough to think that I’m getting something for […]

Bosh, bish, the end of commish

Busy week this week. Now the FSA have only gone and published their latest Consultation Paper (CP) on the treatment of legacy assets as far as commission and adviser charging are concerned. The paper’s title is CP11/26 and it turns out to be rather important. First off, if you’re looking for it you can find […]

Bosh, bish, the end of commish

Busy week this week. Now the FSA have only gone and published their latest Consultation Paper (CP) on the treatment of legacy assets as far as commission and adviser charging are concerned. The paper’s title is CP11/26 and it turns out to be rather important. First off, if you’re looking for it you can find […]

The right number of platforms to use

So this is something that came up in the sessions I did last week at the PFS conference (and a very good conference it was). How many platforms should an IFA practice use? My glib answer on the day was 2.8. The real answer though is only a little less glib. You should use the […]

Impact of poor service

/ White papers

The Impact of Poor Service

We provided the research for a report, in conjunction with Parmenion, which reveals how far short of expectations many adviser platforms are falling. The research found that over the last 12 months, 88% of advisers needed to apologise to at least one of their clients on behalf of a platform, and that poor service delivery from platforms impacts 91% of advisers every day.

Impact of poor service

/ White papers

The Impact of Poor Platform Service

We provided the research for a report, in conjunction with Parmenion, which reveals how far short of expectations many adviser platforms are falling. The research found that over the last 12 months, 88% of advisers needed to apologise to at least one of their clients on behalf of a platform, and that poor service delivery from platforms impacts 91% of advisers every day.

/ White papers

Answering the Call

Service means a lot of things to a lot of different people. It’s so subjective it can be hard to put your finger on. This paper aims to challenge the status quo and inertia that’s built up in the sector for many years.