Assets in Model or Managed Portfolio Services (MPS) continue to rise – but the growth is uneven. The largest share of assets is invested via adviser managed model portfolios or AMPS and while assets in discretionary MPS continue to rise, growth is slow. NextWealth’s latest report shows that DFMs enjoying above average growth tend to be consolidators or they are transferring existing assets. Regulatory change, market shifts and changes to the size, structure and processes in adviser businesses make this a fast-moving part of the market, worthy of on-going research.

This report, updated yearly, forms part of NextWealth’s research and insight on the investment propositions of financial advisers. NextWealth also publishes research on the rise of segregated mandates in retail, moderates bespoke distribution strategy workshops and hosts a quarterly Forum for Retail Investment Distribution. Email enquiries@nextwealth.co.uk for further information.

Who this report is for:

This market report is intended for people in strategy, proposition, distribution and marketing roles in asset management firms, platforms and DFMs. The report quantifies assets in discretionary MPS, compares propositions from leading providers and tracks changes over time. It is for anyone who wishes to understand the UK MPS market more, including for strategic planning, market assessments, board reports and broader general research purposes. The report can be used by:

• DFMs to benchmark their proposition against the competition, including pricing, VAT charging, compliance framework, platform availability, assets and asset growth.
• Asset managers to identify the fastest growing DFMs, fine tune distribution efforts and better understand the ambition of their DFM partners.
• Platforms to prioritise DFMs to add to the platform, develop functionality to support DFMs in managing money on behalf of advised clients on platform, and better understand emerging platform DFM propositions.
• Financial advice businesses to understanding the proposition and differentiators of their DFM partners and to benchmark their own outsourced investment proposition.
• Private equity firms and consolidators to identify takeover targets and to position their pitch to suit the needs of this changing market.

Topics covered

• Market size, fastest growing DFMs and assets in on and off platform model portfolios for the 31 DFMs considered
• Trends, threats, new entrants and opportunities
• Pricing: race to zero and OCF and MPS fees for DFMs
• Approaches to charging VAT
• Compliance framework used by DFMs: agent as client versus reliance on other
• ESG integration: DFMs with ESG models and share of assets in those models
• Profile of 31 leading DFMs including a proposition update, assets, share of assets in passive and active products, platform availability and charges