Starting next month, the former OUTvest digital investment platform will be fully integrated into Alexforbes, aligning with the group’s goal to advance its digital transformation.
Last year, Moonstone reported that OUTsurance Holdings Limited had concluded an agreement to sell OUTvest to Alexander Forbes Group Holdings Limited.
The acquisition of the platform was concluded in February.
In an extract from the audited results for the year to the end of March 2024 published on SENS, the financial services company stated it implemented elements of its digital ecosystem over the past two years and has now reached the point where the integration of these platforms will “unlock efficiencies, enhance our client experience, and enable retail growth”.
“OUTvest is a critical component of this ecosystem, and the integration of this business and the adoption by our advisers will change the landscape of how we provide advice to our broader membership base,” the extract reads.
The concept behind OUTvest is to enable the distribution of a range of high-quality, simple, and low-cost wealth products through direct and intermediated channels to a range of customer segments. The platform integrates automated advice, human advice, administration, and asset management.
During a webcast discussing Alexforbes’ annual results, chief executive Dawie de Villiers announced that the lift-and-shift date for OUTvest integration is set for 1 July. He stated that within six months, the system will be fully integrated into Alexforbes, making it indistinguishable as a separate entity.
De Villiers explained that the product will no longer be called OUTvest. Internally, some functions will be referred to as AF Invest, but this name will be used only within the company. For clients interacting with Alexforbes, OUTvest (or AF Invest) will serve as a capability for various transactions, including purchasing new products and utilising the platform’s integrated advice framework.
He added that the goal is to ensure that clients, whether they are advised by an Alexforbes adviser or an independent intermediary, or are direct clients, have a much smoother transaction journey to manage their assets with the company.
“If you think of something like a tax-free savings account, any client can now go already onto the system directly through the Forbes portal and buy any product through the mechanism without having to talk to an adviser and be fully advised and signed within five minutes,” said De Villiers.
Discretionary fund management market – making inroads
In April, Alexforbes announced its entrance into the R500-billion discretionary fund management (DFM) market with the launch of Investment Solutions by Alexforbes.
The unit provides independent financial advisers (IFAs) with access to previously inaccessible asset classes, such as hedge funds, private markets, and infrastructure investments.
At the time of the launch, De Villiers said Alexforbes’ partnership with Mercer, a global investment leader, “equips IFAs via our DFM with world-class insights covering more than 11 000 global strategies to empower their advice”.
Commenting on the roll-out last week, De Villiers said the IFAs were excited to partner with Alexforbes.
“We are latecomers to this industry, to this specific proposal and proposition, but the guys are excited to partner with us given our research, service, and capabilities.”
He added that the unit has already signed up one or two IFAs.
De Villiers said it will take time to build up assets in the first year. He added that the focus is on attracting more IFAs to join Alexforbes, and he would be disappointed if they did not write at least R2.5bn in the first year.
“Having said that, we’re not there where we are going to open up corporates for independent IFAs in terms of advice framework, in terms of the thinking of advising on where we are with existing savings plans, pension fund plans, so that might be a natural transition into the future. But at the moment, that has not been part of the DFM proposition.”
