Economy

Financial advisers bullish about economy and advice market

Published

11 years ago

January 22, 2014

Simon Leadbetter

Two-thirds of financial advisers saw a growth in client numbers over the last 12 months, up from two-fifths in 2012. This is according to Blue & Green Tomorrow’s fourth annual Voice of the Adviser survey, which also found 78% now see the economy getting better over the next 12 months, up from 35% in 2012, and only 7% in 2011.

Looking forward, 73% of advisers expected an increase in client numbers over the coming 12 months, compared to only 51% in 2012.

The biggest competition was those people not getting advice at nearly half. Online advice sites overtook the mainstream media and platforms remain a strong contender for investors.

Each year, Blue & Green Tomorrow surveys the universe of financial advisers to explore the state of the overall market and sustainable, responsible and ethical advice specifically.

The survey found there had been a marginal rise, from 73% to 76%, of advisers receiving requests for sustainable, responsible and ethical advice from clients.

Meanwhile, Friends Provident, Ecclesiastical and Aberdeen emerged as the most popular fund managers for financial advisers giving advice to clients on ethical investment.

Simon Leadbetter is the founder and publisher of Blue & Green Tomorrow. He has held senior roles at Northcliffe, The Daily Telegraph, Santander, Barclaycard, AXA, Prudential and Fidelity. In 2004, he founded a marketing agency that worked amongst others with The Guardian, Vodafone, E.On and Liverpool Victoria. He sold this agency in 2006 and as Chief Marketing Officer for two VC-backed start-ups launched the online platform Cleantech Intelligence (which underpinned the The Guardian’s Cleantech 100) and StrategyEye Cleantech. Most recently, he was Marketing Director of Emap, the UK’s largest B2B publisher, and the founder of Blue & Green Communications Limited.