Portfolio management has slowed growth for independent financial advisers (IFAs) by up to 20%, research from Rathbones Group found.
94% of advisers said their profession was best served by focusing on financial planning to help clients manage changes in tax, pension, and estate planning rules.
The research, which surveyed 100 IFAs, was released alongside Rathbones’ launch of a new model portfolio service (MPS).
The upgraded MPS offers seven actively managed portfolios, with ongoing charges capped at 0.5% and no discretionary fund manager fee.
73% of advisers said they could grow their business by up to 10% in a year if they spent less time managing portfolios and more time acquiring clients and planning.
27% said growth could reach 11 to 20%.
Andrea Yung, investment director at Rathbones, said: “In today’s increasingly complex financial landscape, many advisers are stretched thin trying to balance investment management with comprehensive financial planning – often without the scale or support to do both effectively.
“Rathbones’ upgraded MPS is designed to ease that burden, giving advisers access to actively managed, resilient investment solutions.
“This allows them to focus on what truly differentiates their service: delivering forward-looking, holistic financial planning that meets the evolving needs of their clients.”
Rathbones’ MPS is aimed at advisers and clients with medium to long-term plans and covers a range of risk levels.
The underlying funds are managed by David Coombs, head of multi-asset investments at Rathbones asset management, and Will McIntosh-Whyte.
Yung manages the portfolios, with support from the multi-asset team at Rathbones asset management.
The MPS portfolios use three new funds based on Rathbones’ risk framework.
The seven portfolios range from conservative to growth+.
Portfolios are rebalanced according to market views and risk profiles.
Coombs said: “The three funds within the Rathbones MPS are designed to work in harmony, providing financial advisers with access to a resilient, risk-managed portfolio that evolves over time.
“The portfolios are more agile, enabling us to respond swiftly to changing market conditions without relying on third-party decisions.
“By managing assets in-house, we maintain full visibility of each funds’ holdings and can implement changes with speed, confidence, and precision.”
Other findings from the research showed the top challenges for advisers were time-consuming rebalancing (61%), market responsiveness (55%), and scalability (54%).
51% of advisers said they would spend more time on financial planning and client service if portfolio management was handled by a specialist.
61% currently hold 26 to 50% of their clients’ assets in model portfolios, with over a quarter holding even more.
90% of advisers said they expected to increase allocations to actively managed MPS solutions in the next three years.
Of those planning to increase allocations, 73% said economic uncertainty was the main reason, 58% pointed to rising market volatility, and 56% highlighted the need for greater portfolio resilience.
