UK wealth managers serve an average of 82 clients, 44% more than the global average of 57, Avaloq research has found.
Avaloq’s wealth insights 2026 research, which surveyed 480 wealth management professionals and 4,256 investors worldwide, also uncovered that UK wealth managers spend 32% of their working time on admin, compared with 21% globally.
Of these, 63% identify administrative workloads as a barrier to spending more time with clients, while 40% point to insufficient automation.
Most UK wealth managers believe their firm’s technological systems fall short. Only 28% say they are satisfied with their firm’s technology, while 58% believe their organisation is moving too slowly on digital transformation – compared with 50% globally.
UK wealth managers were also dissatisfied with their ability to deliver personalised client services. Almost 63% cited poor internal collaboration as a barrier, with 55% highlighting limited client data analytics and 53% reporting difficulties accessing client data.
Suman Rao, managing director for the UK and Ireland at Avaloq, said: “UK wealth managers have bright futures ahead, but our research shows that they are also under considerable pressure and not always able to fulfil their full potential.
“Technology has a critical role to play in addressing this challenge, but our findings suggest that many firms are not yet getting the support they need from their existing systems.
“As firms grow, they need to ensure their technology can support larger client books without placing unnecessary additional demands on their people. The decisions firms make about their technology today will shape how effectively they can grow over the next five to 10 years and beyond.”
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