Half of advisers see protection as their primary growth area for 2009. Research from 1st The Exchan...
Half of advisers see protection as their primary growth area for 2009.
Research from 1st The Exchange on business and technology found protection being targeted by 48% of advisers, while 31% were focusing on pensions. A further 10% thought equity release was set for growth with a further 15% believing investments were the highest growth opportunity.
Advisers were also canvassed on technology while being asked to consider regulatory pressures and efficiency gains. Most (57%) intermediaries already use a recognised back office system to store and manage client data. A quarter use basic spreadsheets and, somewhat surprisingly, 15% are still paper based. A recent white paper from 1st The Exchange concluded that, in light of the upcoming Retail Distribution Review (RDR), back office services would need reviewing.
When asked if they would meet RDR qualification requirements, the majority (72%) were confident of meeting qualification deadlines, while 16% believe they are already qualified. Of the remainder, 8% were not confident they could qualify and 4% would consider a status change or leaving the industry altogether.
David Child, managing director of 1st The exchange, said: With such massive regulatory and cost pressure impacting so many firms at the moment, it's very worrying to see that 15% are still supposedly managing sensitive client data using manual, paper based methods."
