Imagine a potential client who wants investment advice but whose earnings, while relatively high, don’t put them in the right bracket for your company’s full services. Perhaps they don’t meet the minimum investable asset threshold or their disposable income isn’t steady enough to be able to comfortably cover your fees. Is your only possibility to turn such a client away?Thanks to the rise of financial technology (fintech) for wealth management, the answer is no. Financial advisory companies now have broader options for capturing and nurturing clients like those high-earning, not-rich-yet (HENRY) millennials before they seek out other, lower-cost options for investment advice.Robo-advisors are the name given to the relatively new fintech that has opened up avenues for cooperation with mass affluent clients. They use algorithm-driven software to select strategic investments that match an individual’s profile. Services include personalized investment recommendations, rebalancing and financial planning.In essence, robo-advisors provide a way for investors to get portfolio management strategies at lower cost. However, they are not a huge threat to traditional financial advice with a human factor – quite the opposite. Many of the leading wealth management and investment giants are investing in them as a way to broaden their offering and some companies have even found ways to combine robo-advisor suggestions with human input – the so-called cyborg approach.How will your company respond to the rise of robo-advisors? They are certainly here to stay and will hopefully help ensure that clients with considerable potential don’t have to be turned away.Want to learn more about robo-advisors and cyborgs and their impact on wealth management as an industry? Read the new Industry Insights article, which explores the topic in more detail.
