Defaqto’s newly released annual Platform Service Review for 2023 has found that more than a quarter (28%) of advisers had changed one or more of their preferred platforms in the last 12 months. This is compared to less than one in five (19%) last year.
It also found advisers are not limiting themselves to a single financial services platform in order to improve experiences for their clients ahead of the Consumer Duty regulation.
More than a quarter (28%) of advisers said they had changed one or more of their preferred platforms in the last 12 months. This is compared to less than one in five (19%) last year.
The annual survey conducted by the financial information, ratings and fintech business, measures how satisfied financial advisers are with their preferred providers and identifies where expectations are being met.
Preferred providers hold firm
Aviva remains advisers’ preferred platform provider and has increased support by 5% this year, further cementing itself in the top spot. Quilter also remained in second place.
In one of the only moves at the top of the table, Fidelity Adviser Solutions received enough nominations to nudge AJ Bell and Transact into fourth and fifth positions respectively and take third place.
In total, 16 providers received sufficient adviser nominations as preferred providers to be awarded a Defaqto service rating.
The top 10 preferred providers, in order, were:
- Aviva
- Quilter (Old Mutual Wealth)
- Fidelity Adviser Solutions
- AJ Bell
- Transact
- abrdn (for Wrap)
- abrdn Elevate
- Hubwise Securities
- Aegon Platform
- Wealthtime
Hubwise was the platform with the greatest increase in support. The majority of the lower half of the table remained consistent with last year, apart from Advance by Embark and Nucleus Financial Group.
Trend of changing platforms continues to increase
Post COVID-19 advisers are more confident in changing platforms for their clients either because of service or to improve the client’s experience and cost.
This is likely to be further impacted by the looming Consumer Duty regulation which is encouraging firms to assess many elements of their service offering and find ways to improve experience and accessibility for clients.
The number of advisers changing platforms has been steadily increasing each year since 2018, minus a slight drop in 2021 which is expected to have been due to disruption from takeovers and mergers and a period of technology upgrades.
Darren Winfield, Insight Consultant (Wealth Management), at Defaqto, said: “The consolidation of the financial advice market, which means we are seeing a decline in the number of small firms, is also impacting platform distribution deals. Advisers are moving clients over to their preferred platform or even becoming platform operators themselves to reduce costs for clients and meet their PROD requirements. Advisers need to have clarity with their choice of platform and be prepared for consumer duty and ensure that their platform of choice is also ready.”
Best performing providers
Defaqto also identified the top performing providers in eleven service area categories including new business administration, reporting and technical assistance.
Wealthtime and True Potential made a considerable number of appearances in the top three placements for satisfaction across all categories, as they did in last year’s review, and were joined this time by Hubwise.
Nucleus Financial Group and Fidelity Adviser Solutions also achieved a good set of satisfaction scores with five appearances apiece in the top three for satisfaction.
Overall, the industry is meeting or exceeding advisers’ expectations in six of the service area categories. This is up from only four last year, highlighting a marked improvement in adviser satisfaction.
Read the full Platform Service Review 2023 here.