Wealth management is one of the most attractive sectors within financial services for at least two reasons: First, wealth management businesses tend to have greater growth prospects, lower capital requirements and a higher return on equity than most other retail banking businesses. Second, its offerings are essential to attracting and retaining profitable retail customers. For instance, mass affluent customers can typically represent 80 percent or more of the net income generated by retail banks and they often regard their relationship with a provider of wealth management services as their most important financial relationship. As a result, many diversified financial services firms are doubling down on their wealth management businesses.

The wealth management industry is in the midst of significant change: a new generation of investors — whose expectations and preferences have been shaped by new technologies and by their living through the last financial crisis — have bro