Lloyds Banking Group will be axing its mass-market investment advice service from November and only consumers with a minimum of £100,000 will be able to access face-to-face advice through the firm's private banking services, a Lloyds Banking Group spokesman told SRP.
"An extensive review of how the market will evolve after the Retail Distribution Review (RDR) has shown that for the majority of our customers, demand for a fee-based financial planning advice service decreases when they have lower amounts to invest," he said. "As a result, from November we will not offer an investment advice service for customers who hold less than £100,000 in savings and investments. We will however continue to offer protection advice."
The bank said that existing retail investment customers with less than £100,000 of investable assets will be able to access a non-advised service through Halifax, Bank of Scotland and Lloyds TSB.
"We will give customers information and help with savings products on a non-advised basis and during 2013 we will increase the range of savings products available," he added.
Lloyds Banking Group is planning to develop its bancassurance business. "It will be a simplified business with transparent products that add value and protect our customers," said the spokesman. "Bancassurance remains part of our overall strategy to become the best bank for customers."
The banking group unveiled plans to split its advice offering between basic protection advice and a financial planning service, and is the latest financial firm to eliminate its advisory teams before the RDR comes into force in January 2013.
Other financial firms in the structured products market leaving the advisory space include Barclays, which closed its financial planning arm in January 2011 and exited the market for retail consumers. It now offers advice to high net worth clients only through Barclays Wealth.
Most recently, HSBC announced in April that it was scrapping its advice service while continuing with its whole-of-market advice and execution-only services; and in June, the Royal Bank of Scotland announced the axing of its independent financial adviser arm and move to a restricted advice model as part of an overhaul of its advice business ahead of the RDR.