5 ways our platform delivers the ease-of use, choice and value you want

You’ve been telling us what you need from your platform. Here’s how we’re responding, says Sarah Hills, Head of Platform Proposition Strategy.

An investment platform is always a work in progress. No matter how much has been delivered – there’s always more that can be done to make a platform more useful to advisers and their clients. But how?

Adviser feedback has been critical to improving the experience we provide on the M&G Wealth Platform. In 2023, we launched several in-platform updates. So, what can you expect from us in 2024?

1. Do more, more easily online

At the end of last year, we held a series of adviser roundtable sessions. What was evident is the desire for a platform that’s really simple and intuitive to use from Day One. A platform where more can be done online – with minimal need to call us or get to grips with new processes.

We delivered an end-to-end digital application process for SIPPs and are removing more paper from the investment journey, to create a frictionless experience for you.

We’re connecting more steps, for example, information put into a SIPP illustration now feeds directly into the product application. We’re introducing a new ‘tracking hub’ to the platform dashboard so advisers can follow the status of client applications and we’ve made the online ‘client card’ more intuitive and easier to follow.

2. Make the most of our funds

There are more ways for advisers to meet their clients’ financial planning needs: The M&G Wealth Platform is unique in hosting a range of investment funds and is the only one with which you can access PruFund smoothed funds.

Being on platform means the PruFund range can be easily combined with other investments and held within ISAs, JISAs and SIPPs. PruFund has an established smoothing mechanism which aims to protect clients from the full impact of short-term ups and downs of the investment markets.

Offering compelling investment solutions is at the core of our strategy. So, whatever your clients' needs by adding PruFund to the platform, we've given you access to an even wider range of funds.

3. Manage regulatory change

One reason why platforms constantly have to evolve is regulatory change. So this year, we’ll look to help advisers manage the changes to ISAs announced in the last Autumn Statement and the abolition of the pensions lifetime allowance, which comes in this April.

On Consumer Duty, we’ll continue to work with industry bodies and lobbying groups to determine common standards in areas such as product information and assessing value for money.

4. Supporting better client outcomes

One way we are helping advisers demonstrate value for money is on client cash holdings. We’re one of a few UK platforms that has an all-in-one platform fee, with absolutely no ancillary charges on top for, say, fund switching or securities dealing.

We’ve also broadened the range of family members who can be included in family linking – allowing more family groups to benefit from our tiered charging. Put those two features together –a competitive all-in-one fee and family linking – and, we believe, the M&G Wealth Platform can be one of the most transparent and best-value platforms available.

5. A platform for more of your clients

In short, our aim in 2024 is to help deliver the ease-of-use, choice and value that you’ve told us you need to support a wide range of clients. That includes clients with smaller portfolios who primarily need straightforward, competitively-priced solutions that can still be fully tailored to their changing needs.

What’s next

Looking back on the updates to the M&G Wealth Platform in 2023, it's clear that an investment platform is a continuous journey of improvement. There's always scope to enhance its usability for advisers and their clients.