7. Navigate regulatory complexity strategically
As an organization or leader, we resolve to comply with ever more complex regulation while developing an iterative, strategic framework that can manage regulatory complexities across multiple markets efficiently.
Faced with varied regulatory regimes across markets — and global investors with footholds in several jurisdictions – wealth and asset managers not only need to comply with a multitude of evolving rules, but also to handle regulatory issues for their clients. This places a heavy burden on costs and operating models.
What has changed from 2024?
In 2024, firms resolved to collaborate — and innovate — on regulation, and this remains vital in 2025. Staying on top of increasing regulatory risks across various domains is critical.
Goals for 2025
- Transform regulatory compliance through greater consistency and a holistic framework, instead of meeting evolving requirements through incremental additions.
- Put customer protection at the heart of all efforts to build trust and transparency. Deploy agile compliance frameworks adaptable to new demographics, channels, products and geographies.
- Take a transparent approach to evolving regulations around new technologies and sustainability.
- Ensure adaptable compliance and risk management strategies, considering the democratization of alternative asset classes and respective policy changes.
6. Broaden investor access, increasing engagement and inclusion
As an organization or leader, we resolve to enhance investor access to a full range of products, advice and education — increasing investor engagement and providing better outcomes to a larger pool of clients.
Firms are offering more products to retail investors, stepping up their focus on private wealth, and incorporating new features into existing strategies. Education, engagement and responsible innovation will be more crucial than ever in 2025.
What has changed from 2024?
This resolution has moved up from ninth in 2024. Broadening and deepening investment offerings is a crucial strategic priority for 2025, especially given the backdrop of unprecedented intergenerational wealth transfers, the rise of new profiles such as female investors and the continued democratization of alternative assets.
Goals for 2025
- Tailor products and services that cater to a full spectrum of clients across life stages, including wealth inheritors, younger heirs and retirees.
- Educate investors (and financial advisors) with a deep understanding of the investments they are making, including behavior, risks and potential outcomes.
- Ensure the appropriate distribution, marketing, talent mix, and operating models are in place to provide alternative asset class access for retail and wealthy investors.
- Design robust strategies for growth — be it to bring in new client profiles or step up distribution of new products — that align trust, transparency, technology and talent around a revised set of capabilities.
5. Harness technology to transform client engagement, build transparency and trust
As an organization or leader, we will harness the power of ecosystems to acquire capabilities that go beyond our core expertise, using a full range of technology and talent to provide differentiated services to our clients.
Wealth and asset managers are seeking to customize their offerings, creating new revenue streams and providing frictionless experiences. Firms continue to view technology as the greatest enabler of improvement — not least by unlocking the power of partnerships. Identifying gaps in firms’ own capabilities is crucial to this process.
What has changed from 2024?
In 2024, the resolution was to integrate in-house technology and external ecosystems. This year the resolution has expanded, highlighting the power of a well-integrated ecosystem to support growth and differentiation. In 2025, wealth and asset managers should leverage technology further, creating an infrastructure that builds trust and transparency across areas such as risk, security, reporting and client experiences (CX).
Goals for 2025
- Leverage technology to fuel differentiation in product propositions, be it by focusing on opportunities around the active exchange-traded fund (ETF) space, direct indexing or alternatives.
- Leverage the best-in-class capabilities of partners to build strong distribution capabilities and develop a scalable technology and operating model, while leveraging innovation in FinTech and RegTech to spur transformation.
- Be intentional about outsourcing non-strategic processes to reduce cost, accessing best-in-breed capabilities.
4. Optimize the value of talent
As an organization or leader, we resolve to maximize the value of new and existing talent through a strategic program of reskilling and upskilling — readying our people for changes in client demand, technology, products and industry practices.
Widespread talent shortages, coupled with rising expenses and competition from technology-enabled new entrants, are increasing the demand for skilled wealth and asset management staff. Attracting skills in high-growth and high-priority areas is important, but retaining and enhancing enterprise-wide talent is even more vital.
What has changed from 2024?
Competition for talent — particularly for capabilities in key areas like private markets and AI – accelerated in 2024. This, together with reorganizations and leadership changes, make optimizing the value of talent a core focus in 2025. Firms need to build growth-oriented leadership teams and prepare for factors such as the aging of financial advisors.
Goals for 2025:
- Attract a new generation of workers for purposeful careers, enable a people-centric workforce strategy and remain focused on attraction and retention of key talent, while supporting an inclusive workforce.
- Empower talent with the right technology tools, such as portfolio and customer relationship management and AI co-pilots. Upskill staff to encourage adoption.
- Plug into talent in key offshore geographies to bring in strategic capabilities while ensuring cost efficiencies.
- Retain top talent through meaningful rewards and recognitions and allow greater degrees of internal talent mobility. Allow for upskilling key talent to power and lead firms of the future.
3. Modernize data to harness the power of AI and other disruptive technologies
As an organization or leader, we resolve to establish an integrated and secure data framework that can drive innovation and efficiency, harnessing AI and other technologies while maintaining high ethical standards.
Wealth and asset managers are increasingly reliant on extracting value from a range of internal and external data – the sources, volume and velocity of which are continually increasing. Firms are at different stages of maturity in their AI journeys, and clients increasingly expect them to adopt large language models (LLMs) and other AI tools. A robust data architecture is indispensable to harnessing the power of AI and generative AI (GenAI).
What has changed from 2024?
The number three resolution from 2024, to modernize data, holds strong among leading asset management firms. Many tried to improve their data “plumbing” in 2024, but it’s a complex task. A strong data infrastructure and strategy remain critical to deploying next-gen technologies such as GenAI and delivering positive return on investment (ROI) — something that will come under increasing scrutiny in 2025.
Goals for 2025:
- Develop a holistic data framework integrating public and private data.
- Capture data seamlessly across the value chain, mining information to new depths for proprietary insights and better investor advice.
- Take a transparent and ethical approach to AI, with controls and testing over output, alongside strong controls over the security and privacy of data.
- Accelerate investments in data resources, technology platforms, AI infrastructure and training their talent, people and staff.
- Explore and leverage opportunities around data-as-a-service to reduce cost, drive innovation and create data ecosystems.
2. Strike the right balance between growth and profitability
As an organization or leader, we pledge to focus on delivering profitable growth, making strategic investments in areas of growth while also driving operational efficiencies.
Rising costs remain the leading concern of wealth and asset management leaders. Despite expanding industry assets and revenues, operating margins continue to be squeezed by global volatility, increasing competition, compliance costs and product development.
What has changed from 2024?
In 2024, the resolution outlined was for firms to build a scalable platform for profitable growth. This continues to be an uphill battle. In 2025, firms will prioritize growth, but profitability will be most important. More M&A can be expected that will impact firms' expenses while adding to their scale and capacity. Strategic offshoring, nearshoring and outsourcing activity can also be expected to continue as firms internally focus on core competencies, mission critical activities and areas of competitive advantage.
Goals for 2025:
- Be opportunistic in using acquisitions to develop niche capabilities, enter new markets or scale. This is especially important in strong growth areas such as private markets and AI.
- Understand where there is maximum efficiency and profitability achieved via outsourcing.
- Use new operating models, integrated platforms, automation and external ecosystems to reduce costs and build an efficient infrastructure.
- Leverage managed services, particularly in areas such as finance, to drive efficiency, scalability and resilience.
1. Have a sharper focus on brand value and culture
As an organization or leader, we resolve to align brand strategy with culture and our core value proposition to ensure it resonates with our clients and staff.
Clients are drawn to wealth and asset managers that deliver strong financial performance and are aligned with their vision and values. Firms need to clearly define their core purpose and use a strong brand strategy to defend their competitive advantages. This is equally important to attract and retain talent. Brand allure may bring talent in, but it’s culture that retains staff and motivates them to drive firms forward.
What has changed from 2024?
In 2024, organizations resolved to build a strong brand identity. Increasing competition, industry M&A and profitability pressure have only made that more vital. In this environment, it is essential for firms to establish a differentiated value proposition —ensuring that their brand identity and messaging resonates with clients and staff.
Goals for 2025
- Use impactful brand messaging to set out differentiated strategic visions, underpinned by a distinctive offering rooted in firm-specific DNA.
- Create strategic alliances and partnerships to reimagine value propositions, enhance their offerings and strengthen their brand positioning.
- Ensure continuous and transparent engagement with clients, staff and alliance partners to differentiate the firm in the market.
- Exhibit purpose-driven thinking in activities and market investments, effectively highlighting firm values.
Adam Gahagan, Senior Manager, Wealth and Asset Management, contributed to this article.
