Vanguard Asset Management has reported a 100 per cent increase in the number of adviser partnerships it has forged compared to this time last year.
The company claims this rise in business is a result of changes to the market brought about by the Retail Distribution Review.
Tom Rampulla, head of Vanguard AM in Europe, said: “We have always posited that once full transparency and a conflict-free business model are in place, advisers will have the tools necessary to focus entirely on providing the best solutions for each client.
“As a result, many advisers are now offering low-cost passive solutions for the first time. As a low-cost provider, we’ve seen a large jump in flows this quarter, due to both a 100 per cent increase in adviser partnerships since this time last year, and pent up demand from platforms that have only just added our funds to their line-up.”
He predicts that the UK will in time come to resemble the US model, wherein fee-based businesses make up roughly two-thirds of the adviser market and passive assets account for about 30 per cent of the market.
He added: “We witnessed downward pressure on fund fees in the run-up to implementation of the RDR, but there is still a long way to go if investors are to fully benefit from the... opportunities presented by the new regulation.”
