Stay connected:
Citywire printed articles sponsored by:
View the article online at http://citywire.co.uk/wealth-manager/article/a658990
FSA stats show large drop in adviser numbers
Markets
by Annabelle Williams on Feb 14, 2013 at 14:55
The number of advisers has fallen by 11.5% since summer 2011, according to the data from the Financial Services Authority (FSA).
A further 2,000 advisers said they were planning to quit the market as of summer 2012 and almost 2,000 more were uncertain about their future.
Many within the industry had expected the number of retail investment advisers (RIAs) to fall with the implementation of the retail distribution review (RDR), as advisers retire or quit the market rather than meet the regulator’s demands, but few tried to pin a figure on the drop.
The FSA’s latest “adviser readiness” report shows the number of RIAs fell to 35,899 last summer from the same time in 2011.
The figures will do little to assuage fears that ordinary retail customers will have restricted access to financial advice now the RDR is in force. Many banks have raised the threshold at which they are willing to provide advice, and others have made large numbers of advisers redundant as they look to exit the retail advice market entirely.
Of the 35,899 retail advisers in the market, 58% were working for independent financial advice companies, while a further 19% were part of banks or building societies.
However, those that said they would stay in the retail advice market were appropriately qualified, with 93% holding the right documents.
The FSA said a more detailed report would be published soon.
News sponsored by:
Subscribe to Wealth Manager to get the inside track on your rivals' moves
Keep up to date with how your peers are allocating their clients' assets by subscribing to Wealth Manager magazine.
Today's top headlines
Aberdeen Live supplement: Fundamentals point to ongoing flows and solid returns from EMD
After a record year for inflows and market-leading performance in 2012, emerging market debt has taken a large step towards the mainstream. Our recent debate covers the outlook for the asset class this year and where opportunities can be found.
On the road
Click here to find out more from the Audience Development team.
Read more...
Canaccord UK wealth footprint expands to the tune of £10.5bn
by Dylan Lobo on May 22, 2013 at 08:05
1 comment so far. Why not have your say?
CoeurDeLion87
Feb 15, 2013 at 13:52
FINANCIAL REPRESSION - many 'experienced' advisers have simply taken the view that the game of Russian Roulette presented to them by the pro-RDR lobby is likely to become a fully fledged open battle as 'Wealth' grabbers grab more and more. Anyone who believes that this is about 'professionalism', 'integrity', 'public demand to fend off the next Madoff' and a general requirement to clean up the industry is living in fairyland. RDR is all about control & greed and it hasn't considered the impact on the raw economy or the market as a whole. If CISI are claiming that sub-6,000 Level 4+ out of some 40,000 members as being a SUCCESS then there's plainly something wrong here. The number of non-CISI members out there is NOT being reported by Citywire but it's likely that the 5 million estimated shortfall in the public having access to advisers is woefully short as '000s are departing quarterly. The world of PCIAM stockbroking, fund management, IFAs being rebranded as 'Wealth' together with hedge funds & Family Offices is today a distorted unlevel landscape due to excessive regulation and non-transparent capital adequacy (who really has access to the real numbers other than regulators?). Who really could predict that firms like Seymour Pierce would add to the long list of firms (100s) effectively extinguished by our own regulator, a regulator today that has no respect for the past, little regard for the present and zero interest in the future? Individuals too have been hounded out (dog eat dog) but can the market really survive this type of perverse culling? A DETAILED & BALANCED REPORT ON THE DESTRUCTION OF THE MARKET IS LONG OVERDUE CITYWIRE.
report thisleave a comment
Please sign in here or register here to comment. It is free to register and only takes a minute or two.