07 Jul New Survey Shows RDR May be Catalyst for Platform Adoption

A new survey into the upcoming Retail Distribution Review has claimed that the measure will act as a "major catalyst" for new platform adoption and use, a trend which the survey claims will only continue after implementation of the program. The survey, by Defaqto, claims that a quarter of advisers have already changed their platforms due to the RDR regulations and 53% of the 232 advisers questioned claimed to have changed their platform provider over service-related issues. The survey asked advisers to rate platforms in relation to 37 aspects of service, with overall service being the most important aspect of a platform. Fraser Donaldson, insight analyst for funds at Defaqto, commented "In this vein, it is interesting to see what advisers expect when it comes to service and what standard of service they believe they are actually receiving from the platforms they use." He continues "Interestingly, for many areas of service advisers consider to be most important it appears they don't believe their expectations are being met. "Conversely, at the other end of the spectrum, there appears to be overall satisfaction with elements that advisers generally consider to be less important to them." All of this leads to the conclusion that the RDR is acting as the catalyst for new platform adoption as advisers search for a platform that can match the new requirements. Fraser adds "From an adviser's perspective, when selecting a platform they are effectively entering into a long-term business partnership. "As a result, it is important they choose a platform that meets the needs of their business and, ultimately, those of their clients. Robust due diligence is key and central to this will be the availability of independent analysis to support an adviser's selection process."