Catch up on Money Marketing’s most popular stories this week. A client says Mercer is ‘not fit for purpose’ over poor service and MM Meets: M&G Wealth’s David Montgomery. Read more below:
Client says Mercer ‘not fit for purpose’ over poor service
Pension administrator Mercer has been berated for its poor customer service with one frustrated scheme member saying the firm is failing pension savers. “My experience with Mercer leads me to believe that Mercer are not fit for purpose,” the member told Money Marketing.
Exclusive: GBST buys Salesforce-based CRM system WealthConnect
In a Money Marketing exclusive, platform tech firm GBST has announced its purchase of the digital Salesforce-based customer relationship management (CRM) solution WealthConnect. The deal marks a “significant step” in GBST’s continued growth strategy, which it outlined when it rebranded last month.
HL creates head of advice proposition role
Platform Hargreaves Lansdown is on the hunt for a new head of its advice proposition. A spokesperson said it is a newly created role warranted by the firm’s new advice and guidance strategy announced a year ago.
80% of SJP funds underperforming, analysts say
Yodelar, which offers regulated advice from fund experts has released a damning report on St James’s Place funds and unit trusts. The fund experts stated that 80% of SJP unit trusts were rated as poor with the same amount of SJP funds performing worse than half of same sector over 10 years.
Is ChatGPT right about the value of advice?
Gillian Hepburn from Schroders, uses an experiment with ChatGPT to explore the value of financial advice. Hepburn discusses the factors that contribute to the value of financial advice and notes the challenges in measuring the value of services that cannot be quantified in monetary terms. She also highlights the potential risks associated with AI development and the need for further evaluation of its impact.
MM Meets: M&G Wealth’s David Montgomery: ‘If there is something big going on
David Montgomery, managing director of M&G Wealth, shares his experiences of working in the US and his journey back to the UK to set up M&G Wealth. Montgomery talks about his passion for taking on challenging corporate situations and how he has applied his entrepreneurial culture to his current role. He also highlights M&G Wealth’s new investment service, &me, which aims to help consumers feel more confident in their investment decisions.
Fidelity: Crisis averted, for now. What next?
Fidelity’s Matt Quaife suggests that although the recent banking sector jitters have subsided, the threat of a financial crisis remains. While growth is still moderating slowly, unemployment is low, and corporate earnings are stable.
The Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank have tightened monetary policy, and credit is becoming scarcer, making it harder for small businesses to secure the loans they need. Quaife recommends a cautious approach to asset allocation.
Aegon publishes value assessments in runup to Consumer Duty
Aegon has published the outcomes of its value assessments for all open products, in line with the Consumer Duty deadlines. The Financial Conduct Authority set the deadline of 30 April 2023 for providers to have completed reviews for existing open products and services.
Cover story: There’s a Big Tech monster lurking in the shadows
Lois Vallely’s cover feature explores how tech giants are disrupting the finance industry, and highlights the need for financial advisers to stay alert and adapt to these changes to avoid being left behind.
Govt rolls out cold call ban to all financial products
The government is planning to extend the cold calling ban that currently applies to pensions policies to all financial products. Additionally, it will set up a new fraud squad with 500 investigators who will work with local police and the UK intelligence services.
