Standard Life has cut the charges on its Elevate platform by up to 15 basis points.
The company stated having "integrated" the Elevate platform, it was now in a position to cut the fees.
New fees will continue to be tiered according to the size of a client's portfolio, with charges ranging from 0.30 per cent for investments below £150,000 to 0.10 per cent for those with more than £5m to invest.
This marks a reduction of 6 basis points for smaller portfolios and 15 basis points for the largest ones.
Elevate, which was acquired from Axa in 2016, completed its integration with Standard Life in April 2018.
The business operates as a standalone platform alongside Standard Life's Wrap platform, both overseen by head of UK propositions David Tiller.
Elevate wrote a loss in 2017 but the company said at the time it expects the platform to be profitable in 2019.
Mr Tiller said: "This new pricing is a demonstration of Standard Life’s commitment to Elevate for the long term, and it was important to approach it in the right manner.
"We had to know that we had put in place the scalable, sustainable model required to underpin this really competitive price point.
"With ‘A’ rated financial strength and proven service stability at a great value price point I believe Elevate is now the most relevant financial planning platform proposition on offer to advisers.
"And, there is more to come, as we continue to invest in our platforms to support advisers to deliver for their clients today and in the future. I look forward to delivering a Wrap update later in the year."
The new fees, which will apply from April 1, are as follows:
Portfolio Value | New charge | Current charge |
£0-£149,999 | 0.30% | 0.36% |
£150,000-£749,999 | 0.25% | 0.36% |
£750,000-£999,999 | 0.25% | 0.33% |
£1,000,000-£1,499,999 | 0.20% | 0.30% |
£1,500,000-£2,499,999 | 0.20% | 0.25% |
£2,500,000-£4,999,999 | 0.15% | 0.25% |
£5,000,000+ | 0.10% | 0.25% |
Mark Polson, principal at consultancy firm the Lang Cat, said: "The change that matters is £150k to £750k – 0.36 per cent down to 0.25 per cent.
"That’s quite aggressive, especially considering Elevate has stepped pricing, which means that the entire pot is charged at that amount, rather than the blended, tiered trick-of-the-light approach adopted by most platforms.
"I’ve always liked Elevate’s stepped shape; I’m glad to see it’s staying."
He said another important point was that Elevate was flat priced, meaning the Sipp, the Isa, and the general investment account all cost the same.
He said: "So you’re all in for 0.25 per cent for a ‘core’ adviser client, I’d say, and there are no fund trading charges either."
Minesh Patel, an adviser at EA Solutions in London, said: "I like the reduction in costs which makes it appealing for consumers.
"The challenge for advisers is knowing which one of Standard Life’s platforms are best for their clients. Nevertheless, advisers are more likely to consider the platform as a consequence of the change."
david.thorpe@ft.com
