Wealth managers find suitability tests 'unsuitable'

Tests too subjective, Oxford Risk study shows

Julia Bahr
clock • 2 min read

Wealth managers said their suitability systems and processes for assessing client portfolios were not suitable for the task, a study from behavioural finance experts Oxford Risk has shown.

Independent research company PureProfile interviewed 150 wealth managers in the UK, France, Italy, Spain, and Ireland, who collectively manage assets of around €327bnn, during September 2022. The study found that nearly two out of three (65%) agreed that current systems were too reliant on subjective human judgement. Just one in 20 (5%) of wealth managers questioned in the UK, France, Italy, Spain, and Ireland, disagreed there was too much subjectivity, while 30% were neutral on this issue. Advisers that were questioned criticised existing suitability processes and systems for bein...

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