“Technology is here to stay and, done properly, an engaging, well thought-through scientific process to help the adviser prompt the discussion and look into the corners of what a client means in terms of his or her capacity for risk is incredibly useful.
“But, perhaps more importantly, clients are beginning to expect a certain level of technology, especially because now a lot of private wealth sits with entrepreneurs and sports people, who are comfortable with technology. Firms that are not could well lose out,” Goss says.
He adds: “By the time my children are in their 40s, they are going to expect to access their portfolio online, running a lot of it with automated algorithms and doing self-diagnosis. In 40 years’ time that will happen. The next generation of people will not expect the level of face-to-face contact the current generation demands.”
In the meantime, however, Goss says 800,000 people have retired so far this year. “We are on the crest of a tsunami of retiring baby boomers. That is where the money is now.”
