Online due diligence fintech DD|hub has launched diligence data for inheritance tax (IHT) planning portfolios to help planners meet FCA expectations ahead of new Consumer Duty rules.

It includes services from Brooks Macdonald, Close Brothers, Investec, Octopus, Thorntons Investments and Whitman Asset Management.

As the Consumer Duty approaches in July, advisers must take due diligence seriously, the company warned.

It said its new service streamlines the diligence process for advisers, giving them free tools to evidence their reviews.

Chris Jones, director of DD|hub, said: “This is another step in our journey to supply advisers with the information they need to meet the FCA’s due diligence expectations."

He pointed out that the FCA’s TR16/1 said advisers can’t rely on marketing information from providers: “So we built a streamlined online system to help them, with scoring and reporting tools to evidence their compliance process.”

He said advisers can also follow providers to get automated updates when things change, which will help them meet their PROD and Consumer Duty monitoring requirements.

IHT planning is a fruitful area for Financial Planners as more and more clients are being sucked into the tax net with one planning strategy gaining attention being investing in shares qualifying for business relief.

But the shares are higher risk investments and the rules around gaining the tax relief need to be applied diligently, which means careful research, analysis and monitoring is needed, the company warned.

Several investment managers specialise in the area, offering discretionary management of portfolios designed for clients looking to mitigate their IHT exposure.

But because of the complexities, advisers will want to understand how each investment manager delivers the service and how it works in practice.

The FCA’s proposals for Consumer Duty requirements look set to make due diligence more important, with a new cross-cutting rule requiring firms to avoid causing foreseeable harm to customers.

Where the FCA has identified potential risks or harms to customers via Dear CEO letters or other publications, advisers are likely to have to consider these for their clients and check what protections their preferred providers will give.

DD|hub was set up by former Defaqto founder David Lee and Chris Jones, formerly strategic partnerships director at SIPP provider Suffolk Life.