Transparency is top of clients’ wish lists, but wealth managers are simply not delivering, a new report from SEI - which was carried out by Scorpio Partnership - has found. But the picture isn’t entirely gloomy, as the report indicates that only small changes are necessary for firms to meet expectations.

The kind of transparency that clients would like to see from their wealth managers is not being delivered, but could be without major changes, says a new report by SEI.

The research paper Tackling Transparency is based on a series of interviews conducted by Scorpio Partnership that compared the views of 25 private clients and 25 wealth management firms, and found a gulf between the opinions of wealth managers and their clients.

While 100 per cent of private clients interviewed answered "no" when asked whether the wealth management industry was transparent, 100 per cent of wealth managers answered "yes" when asked if transparency is important in rebuilding client confidence.

The research found that clients would like to see openness in areas such as why decisions have been made, on what basis and how they fit with their goals, but the information they receive is “a large quantity of…complex information on transactions, fees, tax, products and services,” said SEI.

The good news for wealth managers is that the paper concludes that the changes clients would like to see do not require a major re-engineering of current processes, but are more a matter of style, tone and language. It should therefore not be too difficult for wealth managers willing to make these changes to cultivate a more transparent relationship with clients, said the firm.