AJ Bell has extended its contract with platform technology provider GBST.
The agreement means GBST’s Composer platform will continue to power AJ Bell’s advised and D2C channels.
David Simpson, head of EMEA at GBST, said: “We have built an extensive knowledge of AJ Bell and its architecture, people, and processes, which helps to make the platform such an overwhelming success for advisers and end investors alike.
“AJ Bell will continue to benefit from our commitment to an ongoing investment in Composer. This includes the new modern architecture that underpins Composer which will enable AJ Bell to continue to improve its platform functionality, control its operating costs, and further enhance the user experience (UX) of the platform in both the advised and D2C markets.”
Michael Summersgill, chief financial officer at AJ Bell, added: “GBST is a long-standing technology partner, and this continuity will ensure we can continue to develop our investment platform in line with the needs of financial advisers and customers. We aim to be the easiest platform to use in the market and the underlying technology and service model our key technology providers deliver are important to achieving that ambition.”
In November last year the competition watchdog CMA halted GBST’s merger with fellow platform technology firm FNZ after finding that their merger would lead to a loss of competition in the platform technology market.
Following an in-depth phase two investigation, the Competitions and Markets Authority ordered FNZ to sell GBST as the deal raised “significant competition concerns” in the UK where the two platform providers are two of the leading suppliers and the combined entity at the time would have held almost half of the market share.
sally.hickey@ft.com
