More people are turning to financial advisers and wealth managers for support and nearly nine out of 10 rate the service they receive as excellent or good, new research* from wealth manager Investec Wealth & Investment (UK) shows.
The study by Investec Wealth & Investment (UK), part of Rathbones Group, found around one in three (31%) of people with stock market investments or pensions are currently working with financial advisers and many have only started doing so recently.
Around a third (32%) say they have signed up with an adviser in the past two years with 10% doing so in the past 12 months. The COVID-19 pandemic was good for client recruitment and business, the research found, with 11% of retail investors saying they consulted an adviser for the first time or made more use of the services on offer during the crisis.
Investec Wealth & Investment (UK)’s research found high levels of satisfaction with those services – 88% of clients say their adviser’s service is excellent or good. Just 11% rate their adviser as average and only 1% say they are poor. Around nine out of 10 (88%) would recommend their adviser to family members.
The big regret identified by the study is that many clients wish they had started working with an adviser or wealth manager sooner. Around 46% of the clients questioned only started using an adviser when they were 40 or older with one in six (16%) saying they waited until they were 55-plus.
The majority (56%) however wish they had started working with an adviser earlier and nearly two out of five (37%) wish they had done so 10-plus years earlier. Around 63% say they delayed because their investible assets were not big enough but 27% said they could not find an adviser who either had time to take them on or who they felt understood them enough.
Around 62% of the clients questioned estimate they have investible assets worth up to £250,000 while 14% have more than £500,000 with around one in 20 (5%) estimating their investible assets are worth more than £1 million.
Simon Taylor, head of strategic partnerships at Investec Wealth & Investment (UK), said: “The financial advice sector is in rude health given the numbers of new clients joining in the past two years and the fact that the vast majority of clients very much appreciate the service they receive.
“The only issue appears to be that most clients wish they had started working with an adviser earlier plus there are indications that many clients struggle to find an adviser who has the time to help them or who they think is suitable.”
Investec Wealth & Investment offers an award-winning, bespoke discretionary managed investment service which is highly flexible and built around adviser’s clients’ individual preferences and specific investment goals. It can also be applied to almost any investment structure, including joint or sole accounts, ISAs and trust assets.
Once the adviser has agreed the most suitable mandate with their client, their portfolio will be actively managed on a discretionary basis. This enables advisers to leave the day-to-day decision-making to Investec and allows Investec to respond quickly to market changes or capitalise on opportunities that are in the best interest of the adviser’s client.
Investec offers a number of specialist services within its Bespoke Discretionary Fund Management. This includes the AIM Portfolio IHT Plan, which can reduce advisers’ clients inheritance tax liability on assets passed onto the next generation and also aims to deliver outstanding long-term performance as well as a Structured Product Service, which gives advisers’ clients the security of a set return over a defined period with a choice of two structured portfolios which have the potential for positive returns in rising, flat or falling markets.
The value of your investments can go down as well as up and you may not get back the full amount invested. Your capital is at risk.
Please remember past performance is not necessarily a guide to the future and should not be relied upon.
-Ends-
Notes to Editors
* Investec Wealth & Investment commissioned independent research agency Viewsbank to interview 1,065 UK adults aged 18-plus including 568 who have stock market investments between January 26th and January 29th, 2024.
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About Investec Wealth & Investment (UK)
As one of the UK’s leading wealth management firms, we are trusted with managing £40.7 billion (as at 31 March 2023) of our clients’ money. Our wealth teams work hard at providing Out of the Ordinary levels of service to our clients and with an investment heritage dating back to 1827, we’re built for the long term.
Investec Wealth & Investment (UK) is a trading name of Investec Wealth & Investment Limited which is a subsidiary of Rathbones Group Plc. Investec Wealth & Investment Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and is registered in England. Registered No. 2122340. Registered Office: 30 Gresham Street. London. EC2V 7QN. Member firm of the London Stock Exchange.
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Investec Wealth & Investment (UK) is a trading name of Investec Wealth & Investment Limited which is a subsidiary of Rathbones Group Plc. Investec Wealth & Investment Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and is registered in England. Registered No. 2122340. Registered Office: 30 Gresham Street. London. EC2V 7QN.