Targeted support will do more to close the advice gap and will lead to a higher amount of advised clients.
This is what Nutmeg head of financial advice and guidance Claire Exley told Money Marketing.
In May, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) revealed only 8.6% of the UK population received financial advice in 2024.
Exley believes targeted support is a positive for the industry and will connect the boundaries of advice and guidance.
While offering guidance, Exley said Nutmeg has to remain very neutral but targeted support allows a firm to become more “personal” and give information “more relevant” to the client.
In general, she feels guidance feeds into advice, as guidance is an easier first step to take when a client has never received advice before.
She added that it allows the client to see where exactly guidance ends and advice begins, and if they do need to receive advice for their circumstances.
“This increases the transparency of the process.”
Exley also feels that targeted support will make the transition between guidance and advice “smoother”.
Not everyone is as big of a supporter of targeted support as Exley though.
In July, Count founder Laura Cornely told Money Marketing that targeted support proposals “come from a good place, but it will do more harm than good”.
Count is an app that acts as a digital wealth manager that democratises professional financial advice by leveraging proprietary tech and Open Banking.
Cornely said that most people do not know the difference between advice and guidance, and now there is an added third option: targeted support.
“The only outcome this announcement has is that it is confusing the customer.”
She struggles to see how the FCA will regulate targeted support but still she is “excited” to see how the FCA will set it out.
JPMorgan Chase owns Nutmeg, a digital wealth manager.
