25 May 2023
Quilter is significantly reducing charges on its platform benefiting new customers from June and existing customers during Q3.
The move follows the success of Quilter’s new platform technology and will see an average 15 per cent reduction in platform charges for customers. A customer with £300,000 on the platform can benefit from a £750 reduction in charges over five years, while a customer with assets of £600,000 could see their charge reduced by £1,500 over the same period.
Quilter has a simple tiered charging structure that is based on the value of all products held on the platform, with the option to link family accounts to reduce the charge for all family members. It has no additional charges for activities such as pension drawdown.
|
Current charge: |
New charge: |
||
|
Total amount invested |
Percentage charge |
Total amount invested |
Percentage charge |
|
First £25,000 |
0.50% |
First £50,000 |
0.35% |
|
£25,000 to £250,000 |
0.30% |
£50,000 to £250,000 |
0.25% |
|
£250,000 to £750,000 |
0.25% |
£250,000 to £750,000 |
0.20% |
|
£750,000 + |
0.15% |
£750,000 + |
0.15% |
Active cash management
Quilter has also been enhancing its treasury function over recent months to actively manage cash holdings and offer one of the most competitive cash interest rates in the platform market.
While continuing to pay a competitive rate of interest to platform customers who typically hold marginal amounts of cash, Quilter will retain an element of the cash interest rate its treasury team negotiates, which will be clearly explained on its website.
Retaining an element of interest on cash, when combined with the efficiencies gained through the wider adoption of online services, means Quilter has been able to announce a meaningful reduction in the price of investing on its platform.
Quilter’s automated cash management also ensures minimal cash balances are held for the purpose of paying fees and charges. The approach significantly reduces the effect of cash drag in comparison with some platforms which mandate higher minimum cash account balances.
Tiered adviser charging
In addition, Quilter is responding to the growing demand from advisers to allow more flexible ways to set client fees and will launch tiered adviser charging this summer. This allows advisers to more easily tailor charges based on different customer segments.
Advisers will be able to construct their own tiered charging models with up to 11 tiers on Quilter’s platform, which they can then apply to one or more clients. The effective rate for each customer will be clearly displayed on the platform and disclosed in documentation.
Steven Levin, chief executive officer, Quilter said:
“Since launching our new platform technology in 2021 it has always been our intention to share our success with customers as we realise efficiencies as more clients and advisers transact online.
“Having achieved the highest gross sales in the advised platform market for multiple quarters in a row, we want to make it even more cost effective for advisers’ clients to invest with us. This will also make our platform more attractive to a wider range of clients, including those with smaller portfolio sizes.
“Our new approach to cash interest rates has allowed us to make a more meaningful price reduction. Our platform cash account is not intended to be a home for long-term savings and our automated cash management feature ensures that platform cash is kept to a minimum. Our proposition is aimed at customers that want to predominantly invest in funds for the long term, and we have a range of money market funds should customers need to hold more cash.
“The ability to build and maintain tiered adviser charging is not widely available within the platform market. This functionality will become essential for advisers that have segmented their client base and are tailoring their advice fees in response to the Consumer Duty. I’m delighted we can support advisers with an enhancement like this that enables them to deliver real value to a range of client segments.
“We have further developments in our platform roadmap for 2023 and we look forward to sharing these with advisers and customers.”
