Schroders Personal Wealth announces launch of new investment platform
Schroders Personal Wealth (SPW) is launching a new investment platform, due to arrive in summer 2024, in an active departure from its current business model.
SPW announces new investment platform
Founded in 2019 through a joint venture between Lloyds Banking Group and asset management firm Schroders, SPW provides wealth management services, including retirement planning, savings and financial advice.
The London-based firm describes its incoming investment platform as a “key strategic development”, and will bring its management and supervision of client funds in-house.
Pending the approval of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), SPW is also planning to become the platform’s regulated operator, custodian and ISA plan manager in an effort to take responsibility for the safeguarding of client assets and the issuance of ISA accounts.
This intention marks an active step away from its current business set-up, which is presently dependent on the Fusion Wealth platform of affiliate company Benchmark Capital for accounts and ISA plan management, while the European arm of US technology and investment solutions provider SEI Investments acts as custodian.
Despite the shift, SPW says it will continue to maintain a working relationship with the two companies, leveraging the “expertise, business process outsourcing and technology” of SEI, while Benchmark shall continue to “provide administrative services and technology for the platform”.
Graham Bastin, CFO at SPW, emphasises the move is an attempt to enhance customer experience, claiming that “clients will only hear from one brand, instead of three”, through “better-integrated technology”.
The firm says this announcement is the first of “many new developments”, and it is also expected to launch a client mobile app in Q2 2024.
