Tech revolution: Human touch will be irreplaceable in financial services

With the help of technology and greater access to content Indian financial markets are moving from a push market to a pull market.

Himanshu Joshi

Savings and Investments are like a good habits, the same as physical exercise and balanced diets. Infatuating but arduous in nature. Moreover, not everyone knows the trick of the trade, so you keep exercising or maintaining a good diet but your body doesn't take the desired shape, keeping hope alive requires emotional, mental, and physical endurance along with unstopping desire to win.

India has a large pool of working young force despite that there is an under penetration in equity investment only around 3 percent of the total population as compared to developed countries in the USA where equity investment is around 55 percent. Ironically, 75 percent of Demat accounts in India are inactive like our gym membership fees.

With the help of technology and greater access to content, Indian financial markets are moving from a push market to a pull market. Earlier, not everyone who invested volunteered themselves for such course, many have been push into the deep water, many have learned to survive, swim and create wealth, whereas today there is curiosity, interest, demand, and ability which brings investors in.

Technology in a way of various Quantitative tools, Robo advisor platforms, intelligent screeners, algorithm-based trading platforms, and so on are helping to find opportunities, Risk management tools can quantify your downside. But can they keep you moving in the journey of extreme financial, emotional turmoils? Can these things really make markets democratic, inclusive? I really have my own doubts but one thing is sure they fetch you Valuations, they make your service lucrative, they provide a sense to use.

Technology is a cheaper business alternative, you create one tool and many can use it, Technology makes the business scalable, make valuation attractive, Help to raise funds but how much it helps the consumer, therefore, the Investor in yet to be seen.

The personal touch is irreplaceable, innovation in medicine have not replaced doctors, but made them more able, self-help clinics would surely be a disaster as medicine is a subject that needs knowledge, experience, and expertise. Same goes with financial markets self-help financial tools look magical and flashy, but in the absence of basic knowledge and experience could make them counterproductive.

Who counts how much of such adventures have cost investors but they have surely made business models of such companies fatty, Scalable, and profitable. There is a huge rush among advisory and investment management firms to create faceless, quick, ready to use financials tool that promises to multiply your wealth, in recent time much traditional wealth and advisory firms have also started to follow the league like we see the cycle of waves before the cyclone, as it is making business.

Financial advice powered by relationships, trust with the foundation of knowledge not commissions. Investor objective is never 'pay less' but is 'gain more'. There is no doubt that cost-effective advisory is an advantage to customers but they are nothing more than execution platforms. Decision making is still the role where an investor needs to plan, understand, and create a holistic plan for future investment. Like today we have many commission-free mutual fund buying platforms but investors need to understand they are just execution platforms, they solve their 'How' problem but what, why, and when is required to make a financial plan that survives bad times.

No method is 100 percent fit neither is relationship-based Advisory nor the technology unless it brings a collaborative and collective model of goal and risk assessment. Advisory models that work on collective and collaborative decision making bring about solutions that fit investor needs, use of technology in such discussions, qualitative and quantitative models backed by expertise also bring solutions that have the future.

World's best wealth managers or PFAs' are still not robots they are humans who understand, provide an emotional, mental, and psychological balance that helps investors to make financial decisions that will shape tomorrow.

Think before you invest, wise decisions are not only those which solve your problems or get you a bargain deal but that makes your future more fruitful.

The author is Head Learning and Development at Globe Capital Markets.

Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment expert on Moneycontrol.com are his own and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.

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