Platform guru Mark Polson told the UK's leading Paraplanner Conference today that most clients were paying more for platform services post-RDR but were "getting a better experience."

In a speech on 'Paraplanners v Platforms' at the IFP Paraplanning Conference 2014, Mr Polson said that one unexpected consequence of the RDR was that clients were paying more for investments although he expected competition to force down charges soon. He said the average "take" by fund managers and platform owners post-RDR was up 11 basis points.
Mr Polson said costs had risen because of the investment required to fund the move to clean share classes and improve platforms for the post-RDR world.
But he said there was much more to be done and platforms should be "slimmed down" to make them more suited to the modern world of Paraplanning and Financial Planning.
He believes the average platform costs post-RDR of 75 bps was too high and this should come down as it was a random figure used by most platforms and not justifiable in the long term.
He said that much of the pressure for change to reduce charges would come from "Paraplanners in this room" who understood the investment process and the cost of advice and fund management.
He said: "I think the change will come from the demands of Paraplanners. That's how we'll get something which is much better for clients."
He said there was also room for improvement in the way that adviser firms used platforms. He said he saw too many adviser firms who used platforms in a "haphazard" way, particularly when it came to suitability for clients, and they needed to use platforms much more efficiently and integrate them better with the advice process and other business processes.