Robo-advisers do not appear to be rushing to change the way they operate following the publication of the Financial Conduct Authority’s guidance on streamlined advice.
Last week the FCA published guidance on how to deliver this service appropriately.
Streamlined advice is an umbrella term for simplified and focused advice and the FCA said it includes automated robo-advice services as well as more traditional face-to-face or telephone models.
But the guidance recommended that advisers looking to offer the service should filter the products they offer to make sure they are appropriate and triage their clients.
Some of the robo-advisers told FTAdviser they were content with their offering already.
Martin Harris, head of advice at Wealth Wizards, said: “Providing clarity around streamlined advice, with a focus on suitability can only help the automated advice market develop and mature.
“We don’t anticipate making any specific changes because of the paper, although we will continue to evolve our propositions taking into account client feedback and market best practice.
“As a result we expect to see more great value advice and guidance services coming to market from well-known brands powered by our Smart Platform technology.”
Meanwhile Adam French, the founder and chief executive of Scalable Capital, said he would take the guidance into consideration when changes were made to the robo-adviser.
He said: “The FCA's paper goes so far as to clarify a few of the outstanding regulatory issues for companies offering advisory services.
“In the design and ongoing running of our online discretionary investment service, we have taken on board many of the best practices outlined in the paper.
“As a data-driven business we will continue to shape our service based off feedback and behavioural insights of our clients to ensure the principles outlined in this guidance are followed.”
Last week’s paper was published as part of the FCA’s continued work on the Financial Advice Market Review.
To offer streamlined advice, advisers must determine the target market for this service and then decide which products should be offered through this process.
The regulator has said advisers should not offer products through streamlined advice if they are incompatible with the needs and objectives for the target market.
Advisers should consider issues such as minimum contributions, which may not be affordable for their target clients, the risk and volatility of each product, and access and flexibility, including whether their target clients need to be able to change contribution levels easily.
Wealthify, WealthSimple and Nutmeg did not respond to a request for comment.
damian.fantato@ft.com
