Hammond says it depends on the type of client an adviser deals with. A high net worth adviser, for example, probably needs not, although this could be different if a rich client was looking to pass wealth down to a younger generation.
“They can’t ignore it, even if they’re an ultra high net worth adviser,” he adds. “The mass market advisers probably need to embrace it, because their customers are not going to want advice at every single point.
“If they just want to put in [up to] £20,000 into their Isa this year, they’re not going to want advice for that quite a lot of the time.”
Mackay, meanwhile, does not think increasing competition in the D2C investment market will come at the cost of existing advice relationships. “It’s very rare that you interview or talk to a client of a financial adviser who would consider moving away from an advised relationship to a DIY investment relationship.
“I think the more interesting thing for financial advisers is that this is incubating their next generation of customers.”
She continues: “It’s starting people on the savings journey; it’s taking people from cash-only to become investors.
“Advisers will get queries from people they think they can’t service, so being able to refer people to these types of services is an entirely positive thing.”
Chloe Cheung is a senior features writer at FTAdviser
