Advisers reveal concerns about using DFM services

Rathbones research

Tom Ellis
clock • 2 min read

Almost two-thirds (64%) of advisers are concerned they would struggle to justify their own fees if they outsourced their investment offering to a discretionary fund manager (DFM), according to Rathbones research.

The study, which assessed the views of 100 advisers, also found one-quarter (27%) believed DFMs might try and steal clients from them, half thought they would lose control of the investment or value chain (55%), while three-quarters (76%) said they were worried about losing control of the cost. The advisers who use a DFM, however, said the quality of client contact, trust and performance improved with the use of an external investment manager. DFM users also said they spent one-quarter (25%) of their week meeting clients - compared with the 19% of non-users - while half (55%) said client...

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