AUM grabs pose risk to consolidators' long-term survival

The Advice Show

In this episode of The Advice Podcast, NMA reporter James Fitzgerald speaks to the chief executive of consolidator Truinvest, Mark Smith, about how his business not only survived but thrived during last year’s multiple lockdowns. Smith makes clear that consolidators who only buy firms to increase their AUM, and who do not take into account their new clients’ needs, are at risk of failing in the long term. This, he says, is because if AUM is all a consolidator is after, and if client service levels drop post-acqusition, then acquired advisers and clients will, more often than not, walk out the door with their assets in tow.