CFS outlines how adviser feedback helped its Edge development
CFS has launched its Edge wealth management platform, developed with advice firms and powered with FNZ technology.
The platform was created in 18 months, the firm said, and features two-way integration with financial planning software, including Iress Xplan and AdviserLogic, and plans to include other technology providers in the future.
Fintech providers will have the ability to access a developer portal to build their own connections on the platform.
It offers super, pension, investment and managed account capabilities as well as advanced modelling tools to support portfolio analysis.
Other additional features, such as ESG preferences and an expanded range of investment options, will be released in the future.
Speaking to Money Management, Bryce Quirk, group executive for distribution, said the firm worked with 12 to 14 advice practices to gather their feedback throughout the build process.
“They’ve been involved for the last 12–18 months, and we have taken their feedback on board as we’ve tested the usability of the platform. They’ve been integral to the design and the rollout of it, that’s been pretty insightful for us.
“We’ve got some single advice practices, some self-licensed, some from large licensees, and they are geographically spread across Australia in both CBDs and regional areas.
“What’s topical for all of them is the cost to serve and profitability, and the requirements for advice practices to be efficient, and a lot of the Edge design is targeted at meeting those needs which has ultimately reduced the time to use the platform and improved the accuracy of the data.”
When asked what feedback they had taken on from advisers, Quirk noted there are several issues that the advisers said are important to them.
“The first thematic [from advisers] was get the basics right and get the service to a premium standard; expectations around service delivery are critical. The second is about finding a way for the platform to sit within their existing advice processes rather than asking them to conform with us. That’s a key differentiator for Edge which is the ability to personalise the experience on the screen and the software they integrate into.”
Kelly Power, chief executive of CFS Superannuation, added: “CFS Edge is the first major new platform in the Australian wealth management sector in almost a decade. It utilises the best global wealth management technology and has been uniquely co-developed with financial advisers from the very start.”
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Laura Dew
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I was a Dover adviser, CFS don't care about advisers
When CFS employed Josh Frydenberg's Chief of Staff , Martin Codina, who was instrumental in the decimation of the advice industry, I decided CFS were no longer aligned with me. Or my ethics.