Replicating the experience of financial advice in a digital world

Speaking on the ifa podcast, George Haramis, the chief executive of moneyGPS, said there are ways to implement a digital advice solution that doesn’t leave a client only interacting with an online platform.

“From our perspective at moneyGPS … we offer a fully client-led journey where someone can complete a fact find online,” Mr Haramis said.

“At the back of that, or underneath that, supporting the process is an advice engine, a rules-based engine that will determine from a strategic point of view what type of advice topics and services that individual should complete to better their financial situation, but also what type of advice topics they shouldn’t have access to because it’s not in their best interest to do so.”

Giving the example of someone wanting to invest to purchase a new car or boat in the next three to five years, but has a significant credit card debt, Mr Haramis said the engine would prioritise paying down that debt.

“The engine might say, ‘Well, no, you’ve got a $30,000 credit card bill, we’re not giving you access to that SOA topic. Go and pay off your credit card bill’,” he said.

“So, it’s client-led in our perspective. It looks at, undertakes a strategic analysis of a client situation. It covers best interests duty, and at the end of that, the client is able to access the appropriate advice topics which are in their best interest to access, but always having the ability to speak to an individual, a human.”

The final part in that process is something that Mr Haramis said is still vital to providing advice and something that he believes most digital advice providers agree with.

“We offer a hybrid service and I think most digital providers are moving down that track where you have that combination of the tech but also the human interaction to validate a client’s decisions, to answer any questions, and really to take them into the next step of implementation or on that next SOA,” he said.

“Because financial matters for most people are quite foggy, even quite well-educated people, as we found out at moneyGPS. They like the assurance of having a person to speak to, a real human to speak to.

“So that’s our definition of digital advice, a strategic review covering best interest and also providing a product recommendation at the end of that. We effectively replicate the experience someone would have with a financial adviser face to face in a digital world.”

Also speaking on an episode of the ifa podcast, Hans Egger, founder and managing director of Astute Wheel, expressed a similar sentiment.

“On the one hand, you’ve got robo-advice, which has no human interaction and is just the end user pushing in numbers and getting a result,” Mr Egger said.

“And then from there, the digital advice that we’re most interested in is when a financial planner can use tech to enhance the experience for their client by using digital means.”

To hear more from George Haramis, tune in here.