Innovators who are transforming the future of wealth management - Business Insider

The wealth management industry's evolution is dizzying.Technology is changing the lives of advisers and clients while a new generation of investors grows accustomed to some firms' dirt-cheap financial advice, trading, and investing options.At the same time, much of the business remains deeply institutionalized. Armies of advisers at legacy wirehouses — massive, full-service broker-dealers — oversee trillions in wealth, and large shops can be slow to change. For Business Insider's inaugural list of wealth management innovators, through interviews with industry insiders, analysts, and executives, we've pinpointed seven people shaking up recruitment, digital advice, and investing today.Visit BI Prime for more stories.We've called this moment for the wealth management industry “crowded, competitive, quickly aging,” and there's a good reason for that.A wave of financial advisers are expected to retire over the next five years, posing an urgent need for firms to build next-gen talent. And wealth executives and analysts see further consolidation in both the wealth and self-directed investing spaces ahead.After all, customers have so many options from automated services and humans alike, and many big banks are leaning more on wealth to produce steady revenues to help balance out more volatile businesses.McKinsey's latest estimate pegs global wealth management assets at a record $49 trillion, a pile that's grown steadily in the wake of the global financial crisis as markets have charged higher. For Business Insider's inaugural list of wealth management innovators, through interviews with industry insiders, analysts, and executives, we've pinpointed seven people who have been busy shaking up the business.