Advisers have been warned of the need to change the way they interact with their clients online or see their business die.
The Personal Investment Management & Financial Advice Association (Pimfa) fintech conference heard how technology could see clients change their expectations for how they interact with their adviser.
David Brear, chief executive of consultancy firm 11FS, said advisers should not compare their services to a company like Amazon, which offers the same products available on the high street, but instead focus on the product itself.
He said: "Amazon is basically selling the same stuff, just through a website. These are the same products you can buy anywhere else.
"The point [for wealth management] is to change the product. They are the same products which have existed forever.
"If a middle aged dude turns up at my house with a lovely briefcase and lovely shoes, telling me where to put my money, firstly, I will feel pretty intimidated by that dude."
Mr Brear highlighted how technology was changing the way people could interact with their GP, with services on offer that allow people to get medical advice through a video call on their phone or computer.
He also warned advisers who were hoping to bank on a generation of clients who were not interested in engaging with their adviser digitally, saying businesses based on this assumption will be threatened when their clients die.
Mr Brear said: "Overnight you get all of the people who don't care about digital engagement giving their money to the people who do care about digital engagement, and then you are screwed."
damian.fantato@ft.com
