A very common feature of these platforms is the lack of in-house products. In other words, these are «wholesalers» that offer a wide range of financial products which generate commissions for the retailers which distribute them without giving preference to one financial institution over another. Furthermore, there is virtually no advice provided, as it is assumed that this is carried out by the financial intermediaries who sell the products at retail level. All of this lends it a not inconsiderable air of independence, as it leaves behind the
the traditional relationship between banks and financial advisers, which completely undermined the advice received by the end investor. Financial intermediaries will, unfortunately, continue to charge commissions on products sold, but at least there is the certainty that they will be paid by the platform for placing any Thanks to its vast catalogue, it will ensure that the investment choices made for its clients are, in theory, more carefully considered and potentially more successful. Some of these platforms require purchases to be made through a specific investment bank, which has nothing to do with the chosen product, but most do not even require that.
Clearly, that approach is still a long way from a genuine and healthy client-counsellor relationship/A solicitor who is paid on a fee basis. As we have mentioned on other occasions, if the advice is provided on a fee basis in itself, can and must to be completely and truly independent, passing on to the client any commission received from these platforms or directly from investment banks or private banks. In fact A rigorous multi-family office will save its clients far more than its fees through this approach alone. Very often, the best investment for a client is not the purchase of a financial product, and so it may not be in the advisor’s best interests to earn any commission at that particular time. However, if the adviser has to earn a living through commissions, the temptation to sell as much «fish» as possible before it goes off (the maturity of structured products, for example) will take precedence over what is actually in the best interests of each specific investor and their families. Furthermore, traditionally, the ‘fish’ comes from just one or two institutions with which the adviser has signed collaboration or referral agreements. In other words, this is advice very similar to what you might receive from your own ‘trusted’ bank manager – that is, a voracious coffee for everyone.
The slow but steady roll-out of these platforms means that the catalogue selection of the retailer towards their clients is significantly greater. This allows for more professional advice without any loss of remuneration for the broker/adviser. Clearly, this is not the ideal scenario in which the investor-broker relationship should be established/counsellor, but it is an improvement on the way they are currently being treated, being ruthlessly forced to buy their own bank’s products or eagerly persuaded by commission agents or so-called financial advisers to invest in the products recommended by the bank.
Lately, even these platforms are being used by some high-net-worth retail investors, and they are increasingly resembling a business retail than an older person. This phenomenon, which we view as positive, is similar to what has led to the emergence of the well-known ETFs. In other words, the globalisation and popularisation of financial investments, which is spreading day by day, largely thanks to the internet, which facilitates this accessibility—something that, until a few years ago, was reserved for the financial elite.
Continuing with the analogy from the title of this article—that of the pedlar or merchant who supplied local residents with basic provisions in remote corners of the ancient world—we have evolved towards the large, 24-hour hypermarket just a click away, where we find 
A vast array of products: interesting, superfluous, tedious, reckless or simply unsuitable for a specific client. It is therefore highly advisable for 99.91% of investors that a specialist, who is well acquainted with their financial and family circumstances, helps to draw up the shopping list on a regular basis. To tailor this list to the family’s current and future financial needs and to what they already have in their pantry, they must be thoroughly advised by those who know the hypermarket well, its offers, special deals and the quality of its products. And not to follow the recommendations of outdated advisers single-brand who simply recommend shopping at the corner shop because the revenue from their misnamed advice comes almost exclusively from the owner of that very shop.
Some investment banks have already picked up on this trend and are jumping on the bandwagon. Something is changing on the investment horizon, and private bank managers
That's something, isn't it? utterly outdated in light of the new landscape in which some investment banks are operating. Multi-level marketing techniques such as those used by Citigroup, or even Fibanc with personal advisors freelance who are peddling their products left, right and centre will have to rethink their strategy, which until recently was both innovative and exceptionally aggressive.
Any bank that continues to seek out customers in order to sell them its own products as a means of boosting its turnover has no future in the medium term.
Now, pioneering banks are positioning themselves by sourcing products through these platforms and creating bespoke products for customers. They are not looking for customers for their products (they downplay their own products) but rather products for customers. Customers who, moreover, are not necessarily the bank’s own clients to begin with, but are mainly referred by those who best understand their specific needs: multi-family offices, financial institutions and even independent financial advisers. As it should be. It is a pity that most of them continue to follow in the footsteps of the traditional commission-based broker, as long as payment for advice is not widely accepted.
Globalised specialisation appears to be leading the traditional private banking sector to bring together, under the umbrella of financial soundness, three pillars on which it will base its business:
- Exclusively bespoke product design.
- The search for professional product developers (pure investment banking).
- The collaboration between multi-family offices and independent advisers who provide support to clients constitutes the third fundamental pillar.
Customers are no longer primarily clients of the bank; instead, they are increasingly turning to multi-family offices and independent advisers in whom they place their trust, not their money (or at least it never should). So banks are now trying to provide services to these companies so that they can meet their customers’ needs using the tools and platform offered by the bank’s umbrella organisation. This allows the bank to avoid the extremely costly, aggressive advertising campaigns typically used to attract customers, the opening of branches across the city, or the creation and maintenance of hordes of internal and external personal account managers. And at the same time, it allows these firms to maintain a more than acceptable degree of independence, given that the products to which they have access through that bank are universal. A smart, proactive and intriguing strategy if ever there was one, which is sure to succeed in the short and medium term. Could this be the strategic alliance we were calling for the last AugustHard to believe, isn't it?
Private banking is dead. Long live banking!