Sam El Shammaa

ROAR Software has signed privately-owned licensee Finchley & Kent to its technology platform, providing its network of advisers with access to open architecture, choice and flexibility, tailored advice solutions and the opportunity to build business efficiencies across their practices.

The fast-growing licensee has also leveraged ROAR Software’s Highlighter tool, which coverts spreadsheet information from Excel into Apps. Finchley & Kent have used it to develop a unique fact find and file note tool which has effectively digitised advice.

By eliminating the quadruple entry of data, advisers save time and create efficiencies in their practice, whilst also facilitating compliance as automatic records are generated at every step of the advice process.

According to Finchley & Kent’s Managing Director, Sam El Shammaa, the purpose of a licensee is to provide advisers with a frictionless solution to provide advice.

“An out-of-the-box solution does not work for financial advisers who have their own value propositions and are seeking tools to help them deliver them. Using ROAR Software, we have developed a solution that our advisers can add information to and make their own.”

Finchley & Kent estimate ROAR Software’s capabilities are saving its financial advisers 40-60% of time on paperwork such as generating file notes and creating compliant and friendly SOA documents. This is time that could otherwise be spent with their clients, engaging with them and providing valued strategic advice.

These capabilities have also eliminated the need for a paper-based 60-page fact finder, which for many clients is their first experience of financial advice. By digitising this and adding in information to the broad transcript on topics such as insurance, income protection and retirement which can be tailored to an individual client’s needs, it provides a better client experience of advice.

According to El Shammaa, technology has to save financial advisers both time and money and cannot create a greater workload, which can be the case if the proper framework is not in place.

ROAR Software’s CEO Kevin Liao agreed: “Advisers are not looking for tech solutions that create more work, or to be mandated and told by their licensees what to use. At a time where many are putting together their partners of choice and reconfiguring their advice propositions, they want choice and flexibility.”

ROAR Software patented Highlighter in March, enabling financial advisers to develop fully functional software applications ready for a SaaS model and removing the traditional time and cost barriers of developing software for businesses. Last month, ROAR Software was awarded a Net Promoter Score of 52 by Adviser Ratings, the second highest rating in the software category.

“By leveraging technology such as Highlighter, advisers can reduce inefficiencies such as errors and multiple iterations of the same documents and protect themselves and their licensees with automatic compliance,” said Liao.

He added: “Working in partnership with licensees such as Finchley & Kent means we can support advisers in their business model choices and help set them up for success.”

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Matthew Walker

Leading Australian portfolio manager Dynamic Asset Consulting has announced that privately-owned financial adviser dealer group Finchley & Kent has added the Dynamic Asset managed account and investment management solution to its approved product list (APL).

The move echoes a trend across Australia’s advice sector as a growing number of self-licenced practices look to maximise the value of advice as well as efficient portfolio implementation during uncertain markets.

Finchley & Kent is an emerging dealer group that offers advisers a fresh approach from the traditional dealer group model. The business is centred on compliance, technology, streamlined services, processes and support, allowing advisers to focus more time on providing tailored, impactful advice to clients.

Sam El Shammaa, Managing Director of Finchley & Kent, said the Dynamic Asset approach was strongly in tune with the firm’s focus on how they could best add value by introducing more options to their adviser network.

“Dynamic Asset’s managed account solution and orientation to goals-based investing, supported by portfolios matched to client goals, helps our licensees deliver the advice and service that today’s investors expect. Furthermore, The Dynamic Asset solution is consistent with the ever-rising client best interest compliance obligations and the new Design and Delivery Obligations (DDO),” Mr El Shammaa said.

COVID-19 drives Managed Accounts surge

The adoption of managed accounts has seen huge growth in the advice sector as COVID-related volatility created major portfolio implementation challenges for advisers.

According to a 2021 joint report by Investment Trends and State Street Global Advisors, the shift to managed accounts among Australian advisers has continued to accelerate with 70% of advisers currently using or intending to use managed accounts, compared to 44% in 2012.

The study found that one of the key benefits for a growing number of advisers was freeing up their time which allowed them to focus on client relationships and reduce administration time.

Matthew Walker, Managing Director of Dynamic Asset, said Finchley & Kent represented a growing group of non-institutionally aligned advice and dealer groups that were rethinking their approach to servicing clients.

“We are honoured to be associated with Finchley & Kent. They are a group that is differentiated by their focus on leading-edge licensee support and enabling higher levels of client satisfaction. We’re pleased to have been selected to be part of their growth trajectory.”

Sydney-based Dynamic Asset Consulting provides end-to-end business solutions for Australian financial advice practices though actively managed discretionary accounts (MDAs). The firm was established in 2013 by a group of financial planners who were frustrated by the real-world limitations of conventional risk-based investment portfolio management.

In 2020 Dynamic Asset opened its portfolio management services to independent financial planners (IFAs) and has seen strong demand from advisers and dealer groups that are looking for turn-key business solutions that help meet increasing compliance obligations and client best interest duties in an efficient and scalable manner.

Mr Walker said the impact of COVID has served to reinforce the firm’s view that financial advice practices require a different way of managing client portfolios to generate absolute returns in challenging markets.

“Portfolios will be challenged by market dynamics going forward. To deliver what investors want they need to be managed actively, goals-based and able to respond rapidly to the everchanging economic environment,” Mr Walker said.

The actively risk-managed Dynamic Asset Long Term Wealth Builder portfolio has outperformed well-recognised institutional peers, delivering 7.18% per annum return over five years, 8.91% per annum over two years and 26.49% over the 12 months to 31 July 2020 (net of all fees).

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