There is an advertisement by Interactive Brokers on CNBC TV. It shows an independent adviser describing her job as helping clients to monitor their investments and trading through a low cost internet platform offered by the advertiser. The adviser gives value to the clients by getting access to the suitable financial products traded on the exchange, at the lowest possible cost.
I hope that independent financial advisers will move to this business model, i.e. give value to the clients and earn a fee for their service. This fee is adequate for the time spent and is not so large as to make the client poorer off.
It is possible for a finacial adviser to make a living with this model, just as a doctor makes a living by giving medical advice for a fee.
Tan Kin Lian
