New research from Legado and FNZ, conducted by the lang cat, unveils significant opportunities to transform the client experience through enhanced communications.
Findings reveal that 88% of UK financial advisers face challenges with outdated communication practices, underscoring the need for innovative solutions.
Legado and FNZ collaborate to introduce a groundbreaking unified communication solution, integrated into FNZ’s global wealth management platform, set to elevate client interactions and optimize advisory communication processes.
20 June 2024, London: New adviser research released by Legado and FNZ, conducted by the lang cat, reveals that an exciting opportunity exists to redefine the client communication landscape among financial advisers and providers. The report, which surveyed and interviewed over 160 adviser firms, found that the vast majority (88%) of UK financial advisers believe the industry is hindered by inadequate technology for communicating with clients and managing information, resulting in missed client opportunities.
The research underscores the critical need for a next-generation unified communication and interaction solution for financial advisers. By adopting such a solution, advisers can streamline their processes, reduce risks, and provide better service to their clients.
The adviser research brings to light several crucial challenges:
Fragmentation of Communication Tools: Advisers use a variety of methods to contact clients, including email (75%), SMS (48%), and WhatsApp (29%), leading to fragmented communication channels.
Lack of Proper Recording and Auditing: Over 90% of advisers stated that having an audit trail of communications was desirable.
Security Concerns: 85% expressed concerns about data security and encryption for their firms.
Regulatory Challenges: The myriad of tools to communicate with clients, along with the regulatory demands posed by the FCA, adds to the complexity and inefficiency, with 70% acknowledging that a regulatory focus on ongoing service is making them review their communication processes.
Need for Integrated Solutions: UK financial advisers show a keen interest in an integrated communications platform, with a high average score of 7.7, responding extremely well to the use of an omni-channel communication platform.
Legado, backed by global wealth management platform firm FNZ, is launching a game-changing and industry-leading client communication solution. The Legado platform is designed to save advisers time and effort while introducing advanced security and regulatory tools to comply with Consumer Duty and ICO regulation.
It delivers a consolidated way for advisers to interact with their clients, offering omni-channel notifications and a full record and audit trail of all interactions.
The solution is available to FNZ’s institutional customers and will be seamlessly integrated into the FNZ global wealth management platform through their unique Connect API, enabling advisers to benefit from this enhanced communication capability without disruption.
Josif Grace, CEO of Legado, said: "The fragmentation of communication tools and the lack of proper audit trails are significant challenges for advisers."
Our partnership with FNZ aims to provide a game-changing platform that addresses these issues, ensuring secure, compliant, and efficient communication with clients.
Adrian Durham, CEO and Founder of FNZ, commented: "Across the wealth management industry today, firms are held back by outdated legacy technology infrastructure and fragmented systems, too often still relying on paper-based processes. This matters not only for an industry that is in the midst of a profound shift but for all of us, as we look to make our hard-earned savings work harder."
Our partnership with Legado exemplifies our commitment to delivering innovative technology that breaks down barriers, modernizes a fragmented industry, and supports our purpose to open up wealth by helping more people invest in their future on their own terms.
Steve Nelson, Insight Director at the lang cat added: “We do a lot of adviser research studies and one thing that consistently comes up in various forms is the fact that disconnected and fragmented processes and systems are the bane of advice professionals’ lives. And here we are again. This time it’s client communication that suffers because of inadequate technology."
Anything that takes some of this pain away, whilst at the same time keeping the regulator (and its perpetual focus on consistent client outcomes) happy, has huge potential upside.