AIM on platform.. why wouldn’t you?

Last year’s unwelcome introduction of Covid into our everyday lives saw several trends and behaviours emerge. Family solicitors are seeing a significant increase in requests for will writing. And financial advice is no different, with financial advisers seeing an increase in demand for Inheritance Tax Planning (IHT) solutions.

Historically, IHT solutions had only been available directly with investment managers, with advisors forced to direct assets off their designated wrap platform in order to access these. This can be to the detriment of advisers and their underlying clients, as it makes management and monitoring, among other things, more difficult.

Adviser platforms have now evolved to allow clients to invest in individual stocks, including those listed on AIM, the London Stock Exchange’s smaller companies growth market. Many (but not all) AIM shares qualify for Business Relief, which means that if they are held for two years and until death, the holder of the shares is able to mitigate 100% of their potential IHT bill.

Platforms further evolved to allow Discretionary Fund Managers (DFMs), such as Fundamental Asset Management, to manage portfolios of AIM stocks on platform on behalf of clients. This means you can offer AIM for Inheritance Tax planning solutions to your clients and keep their assets in one place, thereby retaining the benefits a platform has to offer.

But what are the benefits?

Costs

Platforms have grown to become the dominant force in asset administration for retail clients and financial advisers in the UK. They are in a formidable position to take advantage of scale in terms of pricing. This is something they do well, allowing clients to benefit from reduced dealing, product, custody and investment costs.

Investments

Investment options for retail clients can often be limited due to the small amounts they are generally looking to invest. However, the growth of platforms has effectively made them the key distribution method for investment managers in the UK. As well as being able to negotiate preferential fees, they can give clients access to investment products they would not normally be able to access by going directly. As a result, clients benefit from a wider pool of investment options at a cheaper price.

Administration

Platforms in their most basic form are a technology which allows a financial adviser to retain and manage assets on behalf of their clients. Advisers benefit from being able to manage everything in one place, reducing time on administration and allowing for more time to be spent with clients. The platform technology itself allows advisers to take advantage of an advanced reporting system. On top of this, platforms are increasingly evolving to support and integrate adviser back office systems, including client portals. Platforms also facilitate custody which removes an element of risk from an advisor’s business model.

The benefits are clear for clients and advisers. However, platforms are also beneficial for investment managers like Fundamental.

The ability to manage client portfolios in one place and to remove custody risk from our own business model is a key advantage. As such, we are committed to the IFA and platform markets and work closely with our platform partners, including Standard Life Wrap, Elevate, Nucleus (listed on AIM), Transact, Ascentric, Funds Network and CoInvestor.

Enjoy your weekend!

Derek McLay; Business Development Manager; 077437 25659/ [email protected]

Join me and the Fundamental Asset Team at our next adviser webinar where we will be discussing another record-breaking year for AIM and what could be in store for 2021. 

Click the picture below to register for the session.

You can find out more about Fundamental Asset Management’s high performing AIM IHT ISA and AIM Inheritance Tax portfolio service, which has been delivering exceptional investment returns for more than 16 years, from the link here.

We also have an Adviser Centre with a wealth of information to support financial advisers including case studies, adviser webinars, guides and contact details.