UK PLATFORM AWARDS 2024

About
2023 Winners
Charity

Schroders UK Platform Awards


This year, the Schroders UK Platform Awards dinner will be held on 24 September at the London Hilton on Park Lane. This will be the 18th platform awards ceremony. Once again, we will celebrate the very best of platforms and technology in retail investment and financial planning. The wonderful Kate Silverton will host the event for the 15th year running.

The platform sector continues to evolve. One expert has forecast that platforms will cease to exist in 5 years’ time! What nonsense. There will always be some form of technology between the product – share, fund, ETF or whatever, and the customer. One day that might have blockchain at its core, with AI around the edges. Platforms will continue to evolve.

We are now seeing platforms with new cloud-based tech battling for market share with established platform with older, maybe more proven, tech. We are seeing platforms buying distribution, as are asset managers, whilst some advisers are becoming platform managers whilst others are manufacturing products; or both!

This is all happening with Consumer Duty in the background, or perhaps foreground. How does a platform demonstrate value without a price war driving service to the floor?

The role of the Schroders UK Platform Awards is to keep up with these trends and identify which platforms, etch providers and advisers provide the best products and services and value to their clients.

This year, the adviser awards will have a greater focus on their tech stack. We believe that it is near impossible to give clients top class advice on financial planning without great tech - hence our decision.

To enter an award, please click here

Adviser Voting

As you will see from the awards categories criteria, four of our awards are decided by the votes of financial advisers. The categories are:

  • Best platform provider (AUM over £50 bn)
  • Best platform provider (AUM up to £50 bn)
  • The best platform service award
  • Leading investment research, ratings, and data provider

Voting will close on 26 July.

If you wish to attend or are considering sponsorship, please email here

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Contact

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As a global asset and wealth manager, Schroders delivers a broad range of investments designed to meet the diverse needs of institutions, intermediaries and high net worth individuals.For over 200 years we have built principled partnerships with our clients, putting them at the centre of everything we do. They trust us to deliver sustainable returns through times of economic prosperity and of uncertainty.We are a global business, managed locally. Our international presence supports us in understanding the needs of our clients and delivering them the right expertise from across the business.

As an active investment manager we believe that we have an important role to play in driving better outcomes for our clients and society as a whole. We bring together people and data to identify the trends that will shape the prosperity of individuals, businesses and future generations.

We employ over 4100 talented people worldwide operating from 37 offices in 27 different countries across Europe, the Americas, Asia, Africa and the Middle East, close to the markets in which we invest and close to our clients.

The Awards 2024

These are the awards for 2024
Please click on award title to view criteria

  • Platform of the Year 2024

    This award will go to the intermediary platform that the judges deem to have made the greatest advance or been the most innovative in 2023/4 but, importantly, that also demonstrates consistency over a period, as platforms are for the longer term.

  • Best platform provider (AUM over £40 bn)

    The award for the best larger platform, with AUM over £40 bn. Voted for by advisers.

  • Best platform provider (AUM up to £40 bn)

    The award for the best smaller platform, with AUM over £40 bn. Voted for by advisers.

  • Best platform for service award

    This award will go to the platform delivering the best administration, functionality, ability to integrate with tools and usability. Awarded on adviser marks on these four criteria.

  • Leading platform for model portfolio services

    This award is for the platform that best supports advisers (and their clients) using model portfolio services (MPS) from discretionary fund managers. Awarded to the platform given the highest marks in a survey of leading discretionary managers.

  • Leading adviser practice (less than 10 advisers)

    The judges will be looking for evidence that a first-rate customer offering, demonstrating great value for money, is supported by the platform and other tech products. The judges will wish to know how your tech stack works for you and which platform, ATR, cashflow, practice management system et al you employ. They will also want to know how technology lowers costs and risk whilst increasing efficiency and the client proposition. The judges will wish to know how the issue of cyber security Is addressed.

  • Leading adviser business (10 advisers or more)

    The judges will be looking for evidence that a first-rate customer offering, demonstrating great value for money, is supported by the platform(s) and other tech products. The judges will wish to know how your tech stack works for you and which platform(s), ATR, cashflow, practice management system et al you employ. They will also want to know how technology lowers costs and risk whilst increasing efficiency and the client proposition. The judges will wish to know how the issue of cyber security Is addressed.

  • Leading adviser for sustainable investment

    A firm with all the best adviser qualities as itemised above together with a leading sustainable proposition matching their chosen target market. The judges will consider which of the six adviser finalists combines a compelling advice and financial planning offering with a well-resourced, sustainable investment solution that fits their customer.

  • Best Use of Platform Technology

    This award is for a project that is a partnership between a technology provider and a platform. Each winning partner will receive a trophy. The judges will initially wish to understand what business challenge the project was designed to solve. The winners will be the partnership that delivers the best solution to this, demonstrating successful use of technology and offering a superior service from a customer perspective and business results. Importantly, the judges will be looking for evidence of improved value for money for the customer. The judges will be looking at what business capabilities are enhanced, how it integrates with other systems, who are the key users and what are the key functions. They will also be looking at the impact on the business, on customers, market uniqueness, delivery on time and budget plus delivery on the basics such as security, reliability and regulatory compliance.

  • Leading digital platform

    The award reflects the growing importance of financial technology and automation for client engagement and user experience in investment and financial planning in both the direct to consumer, intermediated and hybrid sectors. The award will go to the platform, or the core component behind a platform, that is a leader in the deployment of technology to improve the quality of guidance or advice and that shortens and eases the customer journey, one that customers find easiest to use. This may include the use of non-obvious sources of data to add new insights, speed up the process and enrich the investor experience. It may involve the use of algorithms or even artificial intelligence to better inform an investor or adviser. Or, it may involve smart and novel ways to engage investors in a way that keeps them coming back to the platform to engage.

  • Leading retirement proposition

    This award is for the platform with the best all round retirement/drawdown solution - an on-platform retirement proposition that enables the customer to look across tax wrappers and manage all investments together, to enable genuinely holistic investment methodology, as well as offering a competitive personal pension proposition.

  • Leading Planning Tool Provider

    For the best smaller adviser firm with up to 10 advisers, with a first-rate customer offering, demonstrating great value for money, supported by the platform(s) and systems for processes such as research, cashflow, model portfolios, benchmarking, reviewing and reporting. The judges will be looking where possible for integrated technology that works for staff and for clients. The judges will wish to know how the issue of cyber security Is addressed. The judges will be looking at total customer cost - asset management, platform and adviser, and evidence that this represents great customer value. They will also want to see that the business is successful both in terms of overall turnover and margin. Differing client propositions might necessitate the use of more than one platform. In that case, the judges will be looking for evidence of appropriate client segmentation and informed platform selection. Once again, we are recognising the impact of sustainability on investment and the crucial role advisers will play.

  • Leading investment research, ratings, and data provider

    The advisers’ choice of the leading and most credible fund ratings and research provider. Voted for by advisers.

  • Leading innovation award

    This award quite simply celebrates innovation, whether a platform (conventional retail, robo or hybrid), planning tool or application that makes life better for platforms, advisers or investors, that breaks new ground in novel ways at a lower cost for the client or the adviser. We are quite simply looking for innovative technology application that makes the judges go “Wow!”. That said, the judges will, of course, wish to know exactly what the problem is that the innovative product is solving. The judges will look at products launched in the last 18 months, and which are live at the date of submission.

  • Best wealth management platform

    This award is for vertically integrated platforms providing integrated asset management and/or financial advice/planning capability. The judges will be looking for a proposition that offers a straightforward solution that meets the requirements of target customers and offers great value for money. Suitability and value for money will be key to winning this award. The platform should enable the adviser to offer a range of portfolios that meet the requirements of their customers in terms of risk and suitability. The judges will want to know exactly what segment of investors the proposition is targeted.

  • Leading platform for discretionary investment

    This award is for the best platform used by advisers wishing to run discretionary portfolios, either models or bespoke, under their own permissions or the platform’s. The judges will be looking for a high level of efficiency in execution and dealing. The judges will expect investment scope to match the needs of their target customers. The platform should enable the adviser firm to offer a range of portfolios that meet the requirements of their customers in terms of risk and outcome. The efficiency of trading and reporting will be essential. Entrants should ensure that all charges incurred by customers are shown clearly and they should demonstrate that they represent value for money for the end customer.

  • Leading innovation in workplace solutions

    The judges will be looking for the most innovative and effective workplace platform, platform component, or use of innovative technology; the proposition that meets the needs of members (most crucially), employer and adviser (where appropriate) and that offers a broad range of benefits and demonstrates success in gaining employees’ awareness and participation. The winner could be a flexible benefits platform, a corporate wrap or other forms of benefits hub. The judges will be looking for a product that has shown innovation in attracting employees to the scheme whilst demonstrating sound processes and efficient administration and support. The winner will have demonstrated innovative use of technology and expertise to build a proposition that addresses the challenging issues currently in the workplace market. The winner will have established some traction in the market and have demonstrated appeal to customers. The award will be open to both employee benefit and corporate platforms and other technology propositions that increase or improve engagement between employee and employer.

  • Best institutional platform

    The winner will be a regulated institutional platform that provides access to liquid and illiquid funds (primarily*), and ETFs and securities, over a wide jurisdiction, enabling specifically retail platforms and also wealth managers and third-party providers to access and trade funds. The judges will reward the breadth and quality of services offered to platforms and wealth managers.

  • Best strategic platform partner

    For the provider of essential or enriching solutions and services to platforms* that enables broader coverage, functionality, efficiency, or innovation.

  • Leading platform journalists

    The award for the journalist that covers the platform sector with a true understanding of what is going on and why and who pens original articles.

The Winners 2023

  • Platform Of The Year - 2023

    Winner: Transact

    Runner up: Fidelity Adviser Solutions

  • Leading adviser business

    Winner: EQ Investors

    Runner up: Clifton Wealth Partnership

  • Leading adviser practice (up to 10 advisers)

    Winner: Thomas & Thomas Ethical Investments

    Runner up: Britannic Financial Management

  • Leading adviser for sustainable investment

    Winner: EQ Investors

    Runner up: Clifton Wealth Partnership

  • Best use of platform technology

    Winner: 7 Investment Management & FINIO

    Runner up: 7 Investment Management and Dunstan Thomas

  • Leading digital platform

    Winner: Moneyhub Standard Life’s Money Mindset

    Runner up: True Potential

  • Leading Retirement proposition

    Winner: 7 Investment Management

    Runner up: Parmenion

  • Leading planning tool provider

    Winner: Dynamic Planner

    Runner up: Defaqto

  • Leading innovation award

    Winner: Fidelity Conquest

    Runner up: Moneyhub

  • Best wealth management platform award

    Winner: Benchmark Capital

    Runner up: Quilter

  • Leading platform for discretionary management

    Winner: Transact

    Runner up: 7 Investment Management

  • Leading innovation in workplace solutions

    Winner: Moneyhub Standard Life’s Money Mindset

    Runner up:EV

  • Best Institutional platform

    Winner: Clearstream Fund Centre

    Runner up: Multrees

  • Best strategic partner

    Winner: BNY Mellon||Pershing

    Runner up: Winterflood Business Service

  • Best Platform provider (AUM over £40bn)

    Winner: Quilter

    Runner up: Transact

  • Best Platform provider (AUM up to £40 bn)

    Winner: True Potential

    Runner up: Fundment

  • Leading investment research, rating and data provider

    Winner: FE fundinfo

    Runner up: Dynamic Planner

  • Leading platform for model portfolio services

    Winner: Aviva

    Runner up: abrdn

  • The intelliflo award for best platform service

    Winner: True Potential

    Runner up: Fundment

  • Leading Platform Journalist

    Winner: Ruby Hinchcliffe

    Runner up: Alicja Hagopian

Past Winners:

Judging

The winners of the awards will be found by adviser votes or through the wisdom and skill of our judges. The judges have been selected for both their expertise and their independence.

The judging panel will be chaired by Keith Richards, chair of the Financial Vulnerability Taskforce. The process of selecting the winners varies by award (see awards criteria) to ensure the best outcomes. A team of judges has been selected for each of these awards based on expertise and independence.

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