As the wealth management sector becomes increasingly digitised, platforms have become an integral part of the advice industry. Advised platform assets under management (AUM) have continued to grow, reaching £671.4bn at the end of June 2025, according to recent analysis from The Lang Cat. This growth is expected to continue, with the consultancy predicting that 2025 could be a record-breaking year for new business.

The Lang Cat senior analyst, Rich Mayor, noted that advisers they had spoken to said just over half of the business they wrote in the second quarter of 2025 was new money coming into platforms, rather than a transfer of existing assets from one to another.

The rise of platforms has given clients unprecedented access to their investments and data, forever changing client expectations and the role of advisers in the wealth planning landscape.

“Platforms have become an essential part of the wealth management landscape,” TFAS CEO, Jeff Lange, tells Wealth Investment News. “They are no longer just custodians of assets but form part of the overall client experience.”

The Platforms Association CEO, Keith Phillips, concurs: “Platforms have evolved from being a competitive advantage to becoming table stakes in today's wealth management landscape.”

Client expectations

The digital age has changed the expectations of clients, who are now able to access their financial and investment information at the touch of a button. These evolving expectations have not only altered the role of the adviser, but the services that wealth management and advice firms offer to clients.

“Client expectations have fundamentally shifted,” says Phillips. “They’re increasingly demanding seamless digital experiences, real-time portfolio visibility, and integrated service delivery that traditional advisory models can struggle to provide at scale.”

This transformation was accelerated by the Covid-19 pandemic, Phillips adds, with clients becoming more accustomed to digital-first interactions across all aspects of their financial lives.

“Advisers who haven't embraced platform technology may find themselves at a significant disadvantage in both acquiring new clients and retaining existing ones,” Phillips argues, “particularly among younger demographics who view technological sophistication as a proxy for professional competence.”

The evolving role of the adviser

These rapid changes in the wealth management sector have forced advisers to adapt to spending more time analysing data and distilling it for clients to help guide them through financial decisions, rather than working to obtain and collate information.

Phillips describes the adviser’s evolving role as from being an ‘information gatekeeper’ to a ‘strategic interpreter and behavioural coach’.

Lange agrees, adding: “Clients today expect to be able to see their policy details and valuations at the touch of a button. That expectation is not going away.

“What this does is shift the role of the adviser. Instead of spending time chasing information or producing basic valuations we are freed up to interpret the data, to explain what it means, and to guide clients through complex choices around retirement income, tax planning or investment strategy.”

With platforms providing clients with unprecedented access to real-time data, performance analytics, and market insights, advisers need to shift their value proposition toward higher-order services, Phillips says.

This includes “helping clients understand what the data means in the context of their specific goals, providing emotional guidance during market volatility, and offering strategic planning that goes beyond simple portfolio management”.

Phillips argues that the transparency that platforms give clients strengthens the adviser/client relationship by building trust and enabling more sophisticated discussions about wealth planning.

However, he warns that this requires advisers to continuously upskill and demonstrate clear value beyond what clients can access independently through their platforms.

The AI revolution

The digitisation of the wealth sector is continuing to accelerate with the emergence and development of sophisticated artificial intelligence (AI). The technology promises to revolutionise the investment industry, with Phillips highlighting that the convergence of platform technology and AI is creating opportunities for entirely new service models in wealth management.

These new models include hybrid advisory services, which combine human expertise with algorithmic efficiency, enabling advisers to serve a broader client base while maintaining personalised service quality, Phillips says.

Lange also believes that advancements in technology are beginning to “reshape the picture”, noting that TFAS Wealth is already using AI to improve operational efficiency.

“We have automated the letter of authority process, which has historically been a major source of frustration for advisers and clients,” he explains. “By reducing the need for constant chasing we can free up time for more value-add work. We are also starting to integrate platforms more deeply with our CRM systems so client data can flow through without repeated re-keying.”

AI is also expected to revolutionise the platform sector, with Phillips stating there is “no doubt” that AI will fundamentally reshape how platforms deliver value, moving beyond simple data aggregation towards truly intelligent wealth management ecosystems.

“We're already seeing how AI is enhancing client onboarding through automated risk profiling, enabling more sophisticated portfolio rebalancing algorithms and providing predictive analytics that help advisers anticipate client needs before they're explicitly expressed,” he continues.

“Perhaps most significantly, AI is democratising access to institutional-grade investment insights and analysis tools that were previously available only to the largest wealth management firms.”

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