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Having all the right information is key to building a successful financial plan for the future. However, the challenges to obtaining this information is why we set up MyNetwealth – a unique service in the UK to help investors track all their investments in one place and make informed planning decisions around their wealth and what it can do for them.
Many investors don’t get the right quality of financial advice or know where to find it. This shortfall, and resulting inequality, is why we recently became one of the seven founder members of the Digital Advice Group (DAG) – an initiative set up so consumers can better access digital advice opportunities and forge a better path for their money.
For too long investors have suffered from a lack of evidence and transparency regarding claims made by the incumbent wealth management industry. This primarily comes down to assertions about what they do, and the value they provide – and these claims are often accompanied by high costs to investors.
The investment industry is still stacked in favour of the providers at the expense of consumers. To coincide with today’s deadline for the FCA Consumer Investments Market consultation – which aims to make the consumer investment market work better – we outline where we believe the FCA should focus their efforts to help consumers make effective investment decisions.
Being cautious is usually sensible, but being overcautious can come at a cost. This was evident in 2019 as many investors remained on the side-lines – a period when they could have benefited healthily from putting their money to work.
It’s not uncommon for organisations to allow families to club together to earn generous discounts: consider the Network Railcard, National Trust family memberships and the multi-user options on streaming service Netflix. Yet those who want to save or invest as a family have been poorly served by the traditional wealth management industry.
For generations wealth managers have operated within a comfortable and unchallenged niche: they would invest money on behalf of their clients and update them of their progress once a year. A kind of “don’t bother us and we won’t bother you” approach to wealth management.
For many investors, their main priority is to generate and sustain a consistent income. This is usually in retirement, but it can be valuable at any stage in life. Of course, having a regular income is one thing, but how do you ensure that you can make it last?
‘Past performance is not an indicator of future returns’. We often see variants of this phrase in investment materials but it should not be viewed simply as legal gibberish – it should underpin how we think about investing. Nothing is guaranteed.
Anything that makes personal finance easier is a bonus. A helpful way of thinking about our assets is to manage them across three hypothetical pots.
Team Contributors
Gerard Lyons
Charlotte Ransom
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Why we launched MyNetwealth and how it can transform financial lives
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Why transparent investing – and transparent advice – matters
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Why shouldn’t Investors Expect Greater Transparency, Better Consumer Education, plus Simple Advice?
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Missed Opportunity: How Investors Counted the Cost of being Overcautious in 2019
Thomas Salter
Iain Barnes
Simon McConnell
In The Press
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Read what the press have to say about Netwealth
