Netwealth tops platform rankings

Netwealth and HUB24 have again emerged at the top of the rankings in the latest Investment Trends Platform benchmarking and Competitive Analysis Report.

However, it was a close contest between the two companies, which both scored over 90% in the Investment Trends analysis.

The rankings are as follows:

1. Netwealth (overall score of 91.5%)
2. HUB24 (91.1%)
3. Praemium (89.3%)
4. BT Panorama (85.1%)
5. Mason Stevens (82.6%)

Commenting on the findings, Investment Trends chief executive, Sarah Brennan said all platforms had been raising their games.

The Investment Trends analysis said that all platforms reviewed in both the 2020 and 2021 reports showed an increase in their scores with Mason Stevens posting the largest relative increase in score of +8.9% over 2020. Macquarie Wrap, CFS First Choice, Praemium and North also posted solid improvements over their 2020 capabilities.

“Platforms have emphatically heeded calls for support from advisers,” Brennan said. “To address the new fee consent obligations, all platforms have offered digitised templates, enhanced tracking and notifications. With respect to DDO, we note with interest HUB24’s integrated online chat tool through which advisers can raise complaints and report significant dealings.”

The Investment Trends analysis said that with the covid-induced trend towards digital client engagement showing no sign of abating, platforms were finding innovative ways to stand out and be seen with notable focus on digital consent and workflow. All platforms are now integrated with digital signatures with Macquarie WRAP and Mason Stevens now offering the ability to track progress of their requests including date and time stamps.

“We are seeing advisers continue to bring more technology into their practices to generate efficiency gains which in turn is generating greater demand for integration and streamlining of the tech stack,” said Brennan. “Some platforms have responded by building planning tools while others have partnered with or acquired third party solutions.”

End-client mobile access was also materially improved with Wealth02 launching its mobile app and BT Panorama, CFS First Choice, Mason Stephens, Netwealth all refreshing their respective mobile front-end.

Separately and in acknowledgement of the move by advisers to focus on better servicing their HNW client base, platforms have enhanced their ability to identify sophisticated investors, strengthened their product offering and upgraded their reporting tools.

The growing importance of ESG was also illustrated in developments by BT Panorama, Macquarie WRAP and Praemium to allow advisers to compare ESG options. CFS First Choice and North have added ESG options as discrete investment strategies.

“These results showcase the agility with which all platforms have been able to respond to the dynamic business and regulatory environment. It is an exciting and fast moving space that we’ll continue watching with keen interest,” said Brennan.