THINK DIFFERENTLY
ZUGO is a business which set out to solve a big industry problem – how can you consistently provide advice to clients of different wealth levels and ensure profitability across them all?
Rather than simply rely on tech wizardry alone to solve this problem, our experience in the industry as financial advisers convinced us that much more was required – a combination of process and technology innovations in building an altogether new way of approaching advice.
This approach was drawn from a number of fundamental beliefs...
A belief in the power of advice in delivering the very best client outcomes, and the scope for good-quality guidance beneath to deliver good client outcomes as a secondary alternative.
A belief that advice can be part algorithmic rather than purely individualistic, and that this is a basis for automation without compromising suitability.
A belief that there is scope for parallel use and combination of a core investment advice engine, other product advice engines and simpler product curation. These can be used to provide a ‘whole of life’ solution within and across different client need areas, products and services and tax wrappers
A belief that doing this properly is a means of maximising compliance and conformance across even the most eclectic client base.
A belief that there is scope to enhance the client experience in such a transition, bringing it into line with higher expectations set in other sectors.
Beat the robots…
We’re by no means anti-robo at ZUGO, but we are pro-advice in the first instance, and believe that where robo IS offered (as we do) it must offer more than what’s been launched in-market thus far.
We can understand why things have played out the way they have though.
Obviously, building a digitised robo proposition is far easier than automating advice to begin with, and especially so if you’re a tech firm lacking a full understanding of everything involved in the advice world. Robo solutions were therefore an easy choice for many tech firms to focus on.
That clients haven’t gone ‘all-in’ on them, however, (committing the bulk of their assets to them) says a lot about the weaknesses of the propositions built – and the need to do better.
ZUGO’s response to this has been two-fold...
1 – To take on the challenge of building automated advice others haven’t.
2 – To build a better robo proposition than those currently available in-market.
The 2 propositions share a lot of common ‘componentry’ at the client interface – including fact find input, portfolio holdings, plan projections, interactive scenario modelling and both suitability and ongoing reporting.
They also share use of the AI-enabled advice engine that generates annual tax-optimised cash flows that lie at the heart of the financial planning process.
The hybrid advice solution additionally benefits from a ‘right-sized’ cash flow forecasting tool that dramatically reduces adviser time needed in its use.
Please everybody…
ZUGO’s solution delivers all the following (keeping everyone happy)...
Clients
Get a proposition they want
Advice Firms
Build a better-
quality business
Address the big
issues of today
The Regulator
Can see a
Consumer Duty-
friendly evolution
Cater for everyone’s different needs…
ZUGO recognises the different needs of different stakeholders, and has built different portals to ensure everyone has ready access to the information that matters to them most...
