Mercer UK and Wealth Wizards have announced a collaboration to provide digital financial advice through Mercer Jelf Financial Planning.
The partnership will begin with an automated defined benefit (DB) transfer robo-paraplanner, designed and developed by Wealth Wizards, to help Mercer Jelf Financial Planning to service its clients.
Mercer said defined benefit pensions make up a significant part of its business and it has been working with Wealth Wizards over the past 12 months to build and test this service.
Andrew Firth, founder and chief executive of Wealth Wizards, said: "We are committed to improving the financial well-being of the UK workforce by making all areas of advice accessible and affordable through effective and highly efficient digital advice solutions.
"We are therefore delighted to be working with a like-minded and forward-thinking partner such as Mercer UK.
"By jointly creating the DB pension transfer solution, together we have addressed one of the most complex and topical issues in advice provision today."
Mercer Jelf Financial Planning, which is a chartered financial planning firm, was launched in 2016 after Mercer's parent company bought Jelf Group in a £260m deal.
At the time the company said the merger of Jelf Financial Planning with Mercer would increase the latter’s ability to provide financial advice to companies and their employees.
Richard Wilson, UK leader for defined contribution and individual wealth at Mercer UK, said: "The new strategic partnership with Wealth Wizards will ensure that we can efficiently service more clients with quality, cost-effective and personalised advice, and ultimately help employers advance the financial health of their most vital asset – their people.
"The partnership is routed in shared values and an ambition to deliver positive automation, and the launch of our new automated defined benefit pension transfer robo-paraplanner is a key milestone in our on-going drive to deliver the best, affordable and accessible advice to all of our UK clients."
Wealth Wizards, which is majority owned by LV, recently launched a new artificial intelligence service called Turo which learns how advisers serve their clients and replicates that house view.
damian.fantato@ft.com
