By Steve Conley, Founder of the Academy of Life Planning Adviser platforms are seeing record-breaking inflows — and yet, paradoxically, the AUM-based advice model is showing signs of terminal decline. According to new data from the lang cat, adviser platform outflows hit a record £17.94bn in Q3 2025 — the highest on record — even … Continue reading 💥 Is Budget Anxiety Killing the AUM Adviser Fee Model?
Tag: economy
Detached, Ignorant, and Selfish? The Real Crisis Isn’t in the Treasury — It’s in Our Thinking
By Steve Conley | Academy of Life Planning A City broker’s outburst this week branded the UK Treasury “detached, ignorant, and selfish,” accusing policymakers of strangling enterprise and misunderstanding the very nature of economic growth. It’s a strong statement — but one that echoes a deeper truth we at the Academy of Life Planning (AoLP) … Continue reading Detached, Ignorant, and Selfish? The Real Crisis Isn’t in the Treasury — It’s in Our Thinking
The Paradox of Progress: What the Data on Human Capital Teaches Holistic Wealth Planners
“When education becomes privilege, progress turns to paradox.” For decades, we’ve been told that education and upskilling are the keys to prosperity. Economists, politicians, and business leaders have repeated the same story — invest in human capital, and inequality will fall. But a recent study by Onur Ozdemir (2020), “Distributional Effects of Human Capital in … Continue reading The Paradox of Progress: What the Data on Human Capital Teaches Holistic Wealth Planners
Beyond Money: How Human, Social, and Psychological Capital Drive Real Economic Growth
“Wealth is not just what you own. It’s what you know, how you connect, and who you become.” For decades, mainstream economics has taught us to measure prosperity through the narrow lens of financial capital—land, factories, investments, balance sheets. Yet a growing body of research, including a fascinating study from the Annals of the Constantin … Continue reading Beyond Money: How Human, Social, and Psychological Capital Drive Real Economic Growth
Finance Lobbying Is Out of Control – Here’s How We Take Back Balance
The financial lobby has more influence over UK policy today than at any time since the 2008 crash. Ministers and regulators are being nudged—some might say coerced—into promoting the growth of finance as if it were an unquestionable good. But history tells us otherwise. When finance grows unchecked, inequality widens, crises multiply, and society pays … Continue reading Finance Lobbying Is Out of Control – Here’s How We Take Back Balance
The Deregulation Time Machine: From Lehman to Sizewell — Same Plot, Higher Stakes
Deregulation Across Sectors: The Hidden Risks to People, Planet, and Prosperity We have seen the dangers of deregulation before. In 2008, the global financial crisis cost the world economy an estimated $10 trillion. Beyond the economic damage, research shows it directly contributed to more than 10,000 suicides in Western countries alone. Entire communities lost jobs, … Continue reading The Deregulation Time Machine: From Lehman to Sizewell — Same Plot, Higher Stakes
Unfit for Purpose: Why the UK’s Financial Intermediation Model Is Structurally Untrustworthy
By Steve ConleyFounder, Academy of Life PlanningMember, Transparency Task Force Advisory Board For decades, consumers have been assured that financial institutions act in their best interests. From glossy advertising to friendly face-to-face meetings with brokers and advisers, the public is encouraged to believe that customer-facing staff—whether in banks, insurers, or wealth firms—are working for them. … Continue reading Unfit for Purpose: Why the UK’s Financial Intermediation Model Is Structurally Untrustworthy
When Will We Wake Up? Human Capital, Not Tax Hikes, Drives Growth
By Steve Conley, Founder, Academy of Life Planning Economic growth comes from one place: investment in people. Not balance-sheet trickery. Not tax rises. Not deregulation. But in human capital—the skills, health, knowledge, and potential of individuals. And yet, here we are again. According to the National Institute of Economic and Social Research, Chancellor Rachel Reeves … Continue reading When Will We Wake Up? Human Capital, Not Tax Hikes, Drives Growth
If Rachel Reeves Were a Financial Adviser, She’d Be Facing an FCA Misconduct Ruling
By Steve Conley | 25 July 2025 If a regulated financial adviser made the claims Rachel Reeves has just made about ISA returns, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) would likely uphold a complaint against them for misleading financial promotion. If not the FCA, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) would surely step in. But when it’s … Continue reading If Rachel Reeves Were a Financial Adviser, She’d Be Facing an FCA Misconduct Ruling
💼 The Three-Headed Lobby: How UK Finance, TheCityUK, and the City of London Corporation Shape the Rules of Extraction
“The system isn’t broken. It was built this way.” If we want to understand why so many financial reforms in Britain benefit institutions over individuals, we must look beyond surface policies to the power structures that design the game. Three key organisations stand at the heart of this architecture: UK Finance, TheCityUK, and the City … Continue reading 💼 The Three-Headed Lobby: How UK Finance, TheCityUK, and the City of London Corporation Shape the Rules of Extraction
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