Over 82 per cent of those who have a financial adviser believe it offers “value for money,” a 10 per cent rise since 2023, according to the latest Scottish Widows Investor Confidence Barometer.
According to Scottish Widows, value for money is increasingly a major consideration in financial advice, particularly since the FCA’s Consumer Duty was implemented. A recent survey found that cash-flow modelling and accessibility were crucial value indicators.
The Barometer found that the majority of advisers and clients agree that being contactable is important. A significant 90 per cent of advisers and an even higher 96 per cent of clients surveyed believe accessibility is paramount. Meanwhile, 96 per cent of advised clients consider portfolio performance a top priority, which suggests that both accessibility and performance are ranked equally in the minds of advised clients.
It also found that cash-flow modelling is a useful tool for both clients and advisers with around 88 per cent of younger advisers particularly positive about their benefits compared to 82 per cent of clients.
Compared to the previous year, advisers are taking fewer risks due to the extreme volatility of the U.S. stock market. Around 77 per cent of advisers in the last Confidence Barometer predicted that equities will increase in the upcoming year, by 2024, that percentage had fallen to 64 per cent.
According to 40 per cent of experts, the largest risk to stocks is geopolitics. In contrast, 31 per cent of advised consumers and 33 per cent of non-advised consumers say that inflation is the biggest risk to stocks, indicating that investors are more worried about it.
Adviser confidence in long-term market growth is higher than that of investors with 89 per cent of advisers anticipating growth during the next five years, compared to 57 per cent of non-advised customers and 63 per cent of advised consumers.
Scottish Widows Platform head of platform proposition Ross Easton says: “This survey emphasises the difference that advisers make for their clients, especially when it comes to guiding them through times of market volatility. Our Barometer has consistently found that advised clients are more confident than non-advised investors, setting them up to benefit from market corrections and recoveries when others are more cautious.
“It’s also clear from our research that advisers believe that having cutting-edge tools helps them to showcase the value of advice to their clients via coaching on stock market trends and scenarios. Over the last year, we’ve integrated a comprehensive stack of innovative tools, including cashflow modelling applications like Voyant and EVPro, to ensure that advisers have a full range of options to help them communicate their advice to clients in a way that’s intuitive and engaging.”
