October 01, 2012
--- Increasing distribution costs and
adviser movement in the asset management industry are causing asset managers to
look more closely for growth opportunities. ---
Cerulli's latest research study
focuses on intermediary distribution and how to optimize channel strategies,
product focus and sales team effectiveness. For firms focusing
on wirehouses, it includes a prognosis that these firms will cede market share
by as much as 7% in the next three years.
“A key part of this annual report
is the intermediary market sizing. It’s even more comprehensive this year as we
were able to increase our base of adviser survey respondents from 1,500 to more
than 6,000 across channels,” explains Bing Waldert, director at Cerulli
Associates.
According to Waldert, the survey
findings indicate a shifting adviser base between channels, with a lot of
activity moving away from the wirehouse firms.
Cerulli attributes some of the
cause for the shift between channels to merger activity among the large
wirehouse firms, which has naturally fueled restructuring efforts.
“Any time a merger takes place, a
number of integrations arise, whether it’s physically combining offices, or
integrating operating platforms and synching technology,” said Tyler Cloherty,
senior analyst at Cerulli.
As a result of the projected reductions in market share at
wirehouses, sales resources allocated to the channel have also been reduced.
The strong growth in the registered investment adviser (RIA) channel has caused
a shift in focus from wirehouses to RIAs.
“Asset managers have started
looking at the big distribution picture,” said Cloherty. “Many have begun
adjusting their focus on distribution and are reallocating resources
accordingly.”
PLANADVISER staff