AI adoption shaped by regulation, despite openness among advisers

An increasing openness to adopting AI in the wealth management space contrasts with the practical realities of deploying it safely within regulated environments, according to GBST.

The wealth management technology provider warned that the broader debate around the impact of AI on financial services has become “oversimplified”.

GBST’s warning follows a recent study by the lang cat which indicated that over three in five UK advisers (62 per cent) are already comfortable with the concept of agentic AI being used in investment platforms.

For wealth managers, GBST suggested there’s a “significant opportunity” to improve efficiency, speed up processes and cut errors, but only within strict limits and controls. With people’s financial security at stake, the group said that the priority is to ensure AI operates reliably every time, delivering outcomes that clients and regulators can trust.

GBST CEO, Rob DeDominicis, said: “At the moment, there’s too much focus on the disruption AI could cause and not enough on how it can be used safely to transform complex, manual processes.

“Platforms and wealth managers in the UK have come a long way in automating routine processes in the last 15 years, but human intervention is still required in too many situations, adding risk, cost and delay. AI can deliver the next round of efficiency, but only if it operates within existing controls, executing processes consistently and transparently.

“Firms are starting to move away from AI experimentation and are looking for real operational impact. But for AI to become genuinely valuable, we need it to meet required industry standards. We’re responsible for millions of people’s long-term financial security so there’s no room for shortcuts.”

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