Speaking to Pensions Management, chief executive Mike Kellard confirmed plans were afoot to continue to grow the Elevate platform in conjunction with moving some of the smaller brands, such asWinterthur, under the company’s Axa Wealth banner.
“There’s no consumer marketing planned at present, but we’re starting to roll out some changes to the look and feel of the brand by the end of the year,” Kellard said.
“Architas [Axa Wealth’s independent multi-manager] will remain a separate brand, but everything else will come under Axa Wealth.”
Elevate will also benefit from investment in a facelift to make the user interface more intuitive, and Kellard hinted at ultimately making the platform direct to consumer.
“Once the wrap platform is completed, it’ll be comparatively easy to move forwards towards a corporate wrap offering,” Kellard continued. “There are massive opportunities in this space, but for now we need to ignore some of the noise and concentrate on what we’re doing. We’re about 18 months to two years away from moving into that market.”
Speaking about the future of platforms, he added: “Those providers who don’t create an explicit charging structure will die off. The differentiation between platforms will come down to userability; being able to use the technology available without any hassle.”
Kellard also stated his confidence in maintaining a good relationship with IFAs to promote Axa Wealth’s offerings, adding: “We believe we can get better traction through IFAs, rather than using an advertising push.”
