Patrick Mill, Wealthtime CEO

This article is intended for regulated financial advisers and investment professionals only. Wealthtime does not provide financial advice. This information is not intended as financial advice and should not be interpreted as such.

After the eventful last quarter of 2024, marked by significant political, fiscal and regulatory developments, those expecting a quiet start to 2025 have been left wanting. In the interests of brevity, I won’t attempt to cover the all the outpourings coming from the government, the regulator and overseas during the first quarter. I’ll just stick to the most interesting highlights that affect our sector.

The year began with a flurry of publications from the FCA, including revised guidance on its ‘polluter pays’ proposals. While most would agree that those responsible for poor outcomes should foot the bill for their actions, the update could have a significant impact on advice firms. The regulator says firms must “plan ahead, revisit and monitor the consumer outcomes and make adequate financial provisions for potential and actual liabilities.” While we know that most firms act in the best interests for their clients, clearly evidencing robust processes and compliant decision-making is becoming increasingly important in the wake of increased regulatory scrutiny.

January also saw Donald Trump’s return to the White House, with the world watching closely to see whether his stated plans for global trade, deregulation, federal government profligacy and an immediate end to the Ukraine war would materialise. We’ve since seen the announcement of tariffs ranging from 10% to 50% on a broad swathe of US imports, contributing to, at the time of writing, significant falls across global markets.

Longer term, the outlook for the US, and more broadly, depends on whether Trump’s policies will be successful in stimulating domestic productivity and growth. As my colleague Peter Wasko at Copia Capital says, “Not everyone is convinced that the policy measures being taken will produce the intended results. Some analysts fear they will weaken the economy and may even lead to a recession in the next 12 months. This uncertainty is unsettling markets and increasing volatility.” You can read Peter’s thoughts on US equities on the Copia website where you can also sign up for a webinar later this month to hear more from the team on navigating the turmoil both inside and outside the US.

February brought welcome news from the FCA regarding its ongoing advice review, with advisers delivering suitability reviews as required in the overwhelming majority of cases. Just 2% of firms assessed reported having made no effort to deliver ongoing reviews. While most in the sector will have anticipated positive findings, the review again highlights the need to evidence compliance. It revealed several poor practices including unclear client contracts, insufficient oversight and inadequate record-keeping with a small number of firms unable to provide data for all the years requested.

The reward for firms that are clearly documenting their processes could be a more flexible approach from the regulator. In March, the FCA unveiled its five-year strategy for 2025-30, outlining priorities aimed at fostering growth, combatting financial crime, supporting consumers and pursuing more agile regulation, including the promise of “less intensive” supervision for firms that can demonstrate they are doing right by their clients.

As the quarter drew to a close amid the usual tax year end activity, the Chancellor’s Spring Statement was thankfully free of new tax hikes. However, many will be concerned by the downgraded economic growth forecasts and the ongoing challenge facing the Treasury in balancing the books as global uncertainty continues to mount.

What’s on at Wealthtime

Developments within Wealthtime are moving at pace too. We announced at the end of March the creation of Quanta Group, a newly formed next-generation financial services group which I am delighted to lead in addition to Wealthtime. The Quanta Group has acquired independent planning business Craven Street Wealth, to provide a broad wealth management proposition that includes financial planning alongside the Wealthtime and Wealthtime Classic platforms and DFM Copia Capital. The Group’s combined AUA now stands at £16bn on behalf of more than 77,000 clients.

Advisers will see no change in their dealings with Wealthtime as a result of the creation of Quanta Group. Importantly, Craven Street Wealth, the Wealthtime platforms and Copia Capital will continue to operate as independent businesses, with separate management teams focused on the success of their individual operations.

Within Wealthtime, we’ve also taken a major step forward in achieving our ambition to bring you the next-generation platform with the signing of a 10-year deal with technology giant Wipro. This long-term partnership will transform how the platform operates, driving greater innovation, unrivalled service and delivering operational excellence for the benefit of your advice business and your clients. GBST will continue to provide our core technology, upgrading the platform to the latest version of Composer, with many new features coming in the next few months. You can read more about the platform evolution on our website.

In the meantime, we’re continuing to enhance our existing functionality, recently improving the speed of ad hoc income payments. The new online process reduces the time it takes to request ad hoc income from flexi-drawdown accounts, simplifying cash generation and client payments, while maintaining the same high standards of security.

We also introduced a range of resources in Q1 to support you through the busy tax year end period. We hope you found our dedicated TYE hub helpful – featuring drop-in clinics, videos on key processes and tailored guides for financial planners. As always, our goal is to make your experience as easy as possible, so do let us know which features you found most useful and if there is anything else you’d like us to include in future.

I’ll close by extending my warmest wishes for a peaceful and refreshing Easter. These are undeniably unusual times, with heightened global volatility creating additional challenges for investors and their advisers. At Wealthtime, we remain fully committed to supporting you through these choppy waters and helping you stay focused on delivering long-term value for your clients.