How we are supporting Asset Managers deliver higher standards for consumer protection?

The FCA’s latest paper on “Consumer Support Outcome: good practices and areas for improvement” provides more detail on how asset managers can ensure their products and services deliver better outcomes for retail customers.

Boring Money has been working with leading asset management brands since 2019, using our unique consumer data and insights to help firms track and evidence value, as well as supporting developments to improve products and communications.

Our data-driven insights and tailored solutions empower asset managers to align with the FCA’s expectations, improve customer support, and deliver better outcomes for end investors.

How we support asset manager clients today

1. "Proactively understanding the needs of customers”

Boring Money’s data enables firms to get a clearer view of what their end customer looks like, allowing them to build support and servicing around their customers’ needs. In a largely intermediated world, we support firms to understand customer demographics, attitudes and behaviours of their target consumer and existing customer base.

Our Retail Investor Analytics service, developed in partnership with Broadridge Financial Solutions, allows firms to build a data-led picture of retail investors' demographics, wealth, confidence, capacity for loss, average advised status, need for additional support etc. The service allows members to meet the Consumer Duty Regulations, allowing firms to design their support services around the needs of their customers.

2. "Annual product reviews which assess the product against each Duty outcome.”

Retail Investor Analytics also provides the customer view on where more focus is needed, mapped against the outcomes of Consumer Duty. Using product data (in collaboration with Broadridge), client feedback, and client data, we work with asset managers to create a picture of their customer perceptions, mapped against actual product data, to highlight areas which need work.

The Retail Investor Analytics report provides benchmarked insights (including customer perceptions on price, performance, sustainability credentials, communications and quality of service), as well as metrics spanning risk tolerance, financial goals, product retention/trust in brand, distribution channels used and more.

3. "Understanding the target market, with a dedicated expertise in identifying any characteristics of vulnerability.”

Our extensive knowledge of the retail investor landscape allows us to support firms with critical insights into the characteristics and needs of vulnerable investors. Our data supports firms to understand how vulnerability impacts their customer base, with a specific focus on how and when these customers require additional service and support.

With over 6 years of customer data, gathered from over 30,000 asset manager clients, and the largest proprietary panel of investors in the UK – currently circa 12,500 – Boring Money is uniquely positioned to support intermediated asset managers gather, interpret and act on customer data and insights.