M&G has signed a multi-year deal with technology provider Fintel to help it scale its distribution service.
The investment manager will use Fintel’s data - which is made up of behavioural insights and product research - to tailor its services and distribute them through financial intermediaries.
Fintel, the parent company of SimplyBiz, has already signed up 20 partners to use the subscription-based service in the past year, including the likes of Aviva, Fidelity, Schroders and Just.
Its latest deal covers M&G’s retail and savings business, primarily Pru UK and M&G Investments.
Fintel said the deal will further increase its level of recurring revenues. In 2021, the fintech's software-as-a-service [SaaS] and subscription revenues represented 66 per cent of core revenues.
Fintel and M&G have already partnered on other projects over the past 15 years.
The fintech’s joint chief executive, Matt Timmins, said the deal strengthens its commitment to providing the best quality, most relevant support to the financial services intermediaries
“Fintel operates as an industry connector to improve and simplify this complex market and achieve better outcomes for all,” he explained.
“We both [Fintel and M&G] look forward to the positive impact we will continue to have in supporting advisers to deliver the best possible outcomes to consumers.''
Fintel saw a £2.9mn uptick in revenues last year which it put down in large part to the rapid digitisation of its SaaS and subscription-based business.
In 2020, the parent firm’s bosses had taken a pay cut, salaries and bonuses were frozen, and its mortgage valuation teams on the government's furlough scheme for a time, all in the wake of the pandemic and as part of a "short-term" cost saving plan.
But following 2021, Fintel’s board said “high levels of recurring income” from its SaaS and subscriptions business, combined with a “strong customer base” and “positive market dynamics”, meant it remained confident it will deliver future earnings growth.
Some advisers have also called on M&G to speed up its own digitisation process. The Ascentric platform owner sent an email on May 11 laying out a series of developments for the year, which include paperless transactions by year end.
This followed adviser complaints that the platform was "so far behind the game" in terms of digitisation, and that there has been a “real drop-off” in service levels since M&G took over Ascentric in May 2020.
M&G told FTAdviser it expects full digitisation of all its key processes to complete in early 2023.
ruby.hinchliffe@ft.com
