Advisers face technological hurdles to meet the demands of a younger client base, according to new FE fundinfo research

The 2026 Financial Adviser Survey shows an industry under growing pressure to deliver seamless, AI-driven client outcomes, and the foundations needed to achieve them

FE fundinfo, a leading financial data company connecting the investment industry across the UK, Europe and Asia Pacific through its Nexus platform, today published its 2026 Financial Adviser Survey, the annual report gauging the state of play for the financial advice profession. It reveals the demographic changes to financial advisers' client bases and the steps advisers are taking to modernise their operations.

96% of advisers reported an increase in clients under 50, hinting at the great wealth transfer – a multi‑trillion‑dollar generational shift expected to accelerate over the next two decades. Already, 32% of the client base for respondents’ practices is under 40. Advisers are thus having to cater for a younger demographic, and it comes with different expectations. 86% stated the ESG interest of their clientele has grown over the past three years, and a seamless technology experience will likely be vital to meet younger clients’ demands.

The research also revealed how artificial intelligence (AI) adoption is already reshaping the profession for advisers. Financial advisers are scaling their use of AI, directing the technology towards high-impact areas such as meeting notetakers. 95% of advisers said they have onboarded AI tooling, with 51% saying the technology is yielding ‘significant’ time savings of over five hours per user each week. However, these AI time savings are being offset by fragmented systems, with half (50%) spending between four and six hours each week reconciling data across different software tools.

The number of disconnected systems advisers use is creating inefficiencies that are increasingly difficult to manage. An overwhelming 95% of advisers say they use too many software tools, and 91% report that the number of investment platforms they rely on has increased over the past two years.

Managing this complexity is a critical operational challenge for advisers. Firms believe their data is usable, but fragmented systems and manual rekeying increase the risk of errors that standard data quality checks won't surface. Without unified tooling and greater integration, the efficiency benefits of AI may be difficult to fully realise, and the demands of a younger client base harder to serve. This is the capability gap that connected, end-to-end platforms are increasingly being asked to close.

Jodie Gallagher, Head of UK IFA Product at FE fundinfo, said: “Intergenerational wealth transfer is well underway, bringing with it a younger client base that, like most consumers today, expects services to be faster and seamless. Meeting that expectation is increasingly difficult for advisers who are dealing with fragmented systems and manual, outdated processes.

Advancements in AI can meaningfully reduce this operational burden, but only when the technology operates within a unified framework. At FE fundinfo, we see that advisers who consolidate their data and workflows onto a single, connected platform move faster and serve clients more effectively. The firms best positioned for the next generation of clients will be those that treat integration as a strategic priority, not just an IT project.”

For more details, you can find FE fundinfo’s 2026 Financial Adviser survey here: Financial Adviser Annual Survey Report 2026.

Press release

02 Jun 2026

FE Investments

Advisers face technological hurdles to meet the demands of a younger client base, according to new FE fundinfo research

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