Platforms

Old Mutual Wealth's investment platform expert Mike Barrett (pictured) explains the thinking behind the group's plan to bulk-convert clients to unbundled share classes in 2015.

Old Mutual Wealth, the UK's third largest adviser platform with funds under administration of £30bn, will begin bulk converting any remaining clients in bundled share classes to unbundled in February 2015.

Nucleus has boosted assets under administration by 25% year-on-year in the third quarter after a strong summer for gross inflows.

Assets under administration at platform and self-invested personal pension (SIPP) provider James Hay hit £16bn in the third quarter of the year, however, expected profit forecasts at the business have been cut.

Investors wishing to move from direct-to-consumer to adviser platforms face "punitive" exit fees, according to analysis by the lang cat.

Platforms are stepping up their white-label investment offerings to advisory firms as an increasing number of orphaned clients presents a challenge ahead of the 2016 legacy commission ban.

'There could be disasters in the D2C space'

Andy Pomfret, former chief executive of Rathbones, has joined the board of Interactive Investor as a non-executive director.

Retail sales at AXA Wealth were up 3% to £2.5bn in the third quarter, with funds under management hitting £27bn, while the group's platform saw assets grow by over a quarter year-on-year.

Hargreaves Lansdown has said the low interest rate environment will continue to impact its revenues for the remainder of the year, with the business also ruling out any further moves on price for now as investor confidence wanes.