Alongside Finura Group, Investment Trends share the belief that technology in financial services will continue to rapidly change at the benefit of the industry and consumer.
The three key areas of research include:
- Examining advisers’ evolving technology needs and key platform and planning software trends
- An in-depth review of recent developments in the Australian technology space
- The latest developments in digital technology used to deliver wealth services to Australian retail consumers
“This marks an important milestone for our business,” Finura Group’s joint managing director Peter Worn said.
“We believe it’s a compelling combination of deep quantitative analysis and digital strategy which can drive the transformation of wealth management through technology.”
Investment Trends CEO Sarah Brennan added: “Investment Trends approach has always been to evolve our research to meet the changing needs of our clients and to keep ahead of the rapid evolution in the wealth technology space.
“Working with Finura Insights means that for both Investment Trends and Finura clients, we will deliver the best fusion of research and innovation in the technology space.”
The news comes after Craig Keary, Asia-Pacific chief executive of digital advice provider Ignition, told ifa that the government’s terms of reference for the upcoming Quality of Advice review (QAR) highlights the importance of technology in financial services.
The QAR’s terms of reference state that the review will consider the use of regulatory technology and digital advice and will “pay particular attention to how technology and digital advice might enable mass market adoption of low-cost advice”.
“It reflects the growing maturity of the financial advice industry, the government and regulators, in acknowledging the important role that technology will play in making financial advice more accessible to more Australians, in a cost-effective manner,” Mr Keary said.
The top 10 financial advice problems affecting consumers and advisers right now are:
1. Bad regulation
2. Bad regulation
3. Bad regulation
4. Bad regulation
5. Bad regulation
6. Bad regulation
7. Bad regulation
8. Bad regulation
9. Bad regulation
10. Bad regulation
Most technology innovation at the moment is aimed at exploiting advisers struggling with the excessive admin of bad regulation, or exploiting naive consumers who are unable to access affordable, professional advice due to bad regulation.
None of this exploitative technology should exist when a simpler, cheaper, more beneficial solution is possible. Just fix the bad regulation!!
Only once that happens is technology innovation likely to refocus on more worthwhile purposes that genuinely add value.