A first impression is arguably one of the most important. This can shape how someone perceives another person and can be difficult to change. However, these first impressions are equally important for a new customer of a wealth manager.
For a wealth manager, their onboarding process serves as the real first impression. Yohan Lobo, Industry Solutions Manager for Financial Services at M-Files, said, “Onboarding sets the tone for the relationship with the firm, giving a first impression of what clients can expect from their advisor. It must cover a complex range of requirements from regulatory compliance to accurate data capture, all while ensuring client satisfaction and building loyalty.
“A smooth and efficient onboarding experience builds trust and confidence, fosters long-term relationships, and minimizes regulatory and business risk. A poor onboarding process could mean the difference between growing assets under management or not, especially for clients familiar with a more seamless consumer experience or those looking for their first wealth manager.”
Echoing this, Fredrik Davéus, CEO and co-founder of Kidbrooke, noted, “It’s where you can influence the decision making of the client. Onboarding sets the tone on the relationship and is also a go/no-go decision for a customer. If the process is cumbersome, the potential customer might even stop the process and choose to go somewhere else.”
A recent report from Wealth Dynamix found that around 68% of clients abandon onboarding processes halfway through. The wealth management sector is as competitive as ever. Traditional firms are adopting technology to streamline their processes and a range of WealthTech providers are also supporting customers with streamlined services. As such, customers are spoilt for choice and will seek a provider that matches their needs.
Common issues with current onboarding
Jurgen Vandenbroucke, managing director at everyoneINVESTED believes “A perfect investor onboarding process is more than just a formality—it’s the foundation of trust.”
Despite this, he believes many firms are just treating onboarding as a compliance requirement or a data collection task. Due to this, they establish clunky, impersonal, and confusing experiences, he said. The real challenge is to strike the right balance between three critical goals: User convenience, business impact, and regulatory compliance.
Davéus also believes one of the biggest problems with onboarding processes is their wasted opportunity. While onboarding is an important part of compliance, it is a great opportunity to start forming the relationship with the client. He said, “It’s before the client has signed up you’ve got a chance to influence the decision making and lay the foundation to a long and successful relationship. The customer usually understands that they need to provide information but, in many cases, it is more a compliance driven ticking the box exercise.
“When it is not customer friendly, onboarding usually has too many steps, too much information gathering as well as not re-using already entered data or pre-populated screens. The goal is simple, from a compliance perspective, it should be as few clicks or entered text as possible from a customer perspective. Also, onboarding is an opportunity to bring in value added data for a customer – fact finding. This as well should be streamlined with clear intent of the data. One should also prove to the customer the added value of the factfinding.”
As for Lobo, he believes there are many firms that are reliant on time-consuming and error-prone manual processes. These not only make the onboarding experience complex, but frustrating for both sides.
He added, “Disconnected systems lead to data silos, process inefficiencies, and an overreliance on people to maintain regulatory compliance. Time gets wasted on the “work about work” of tracking down information or rectifying errors all of which takes away from relationship development and value creation.”
The perfect onboarding
For those wondering what the perfect onboarding process might look like, Davéus believes it is one that equally focuses on fact finding, compliance and value for the client in terms of decision making.
“It’s iterative and adaptive to client needs and wants and injects valuable and relevant decision-support at the right time in the process. It’s also flexible enough to adapt to the client’s specific situation and stays relevant throughout the entire process.”
From the compliance side, the process should also be refined to require the customer to complete as few clicks or data entry as possible, whilst still meeting compliance requirements. Davéus also noted the process should also be transparent on why the information is needed and how the data will be used. Finally, from a fact-finding perspective, the customer should be engaged to the level they want.
From the perspective of Lobo, the perfect investor onboarding process enhances the client experience and streamlines operations for wealth management firms. He said, “A digital-first approach simplifies the capture and classification of client information allowing it to be connected to automated workflows that can handle document creation, review, and approval with compliance built-in. This minimizes manual intervention and speeds up the process. Integrating the onboarding with CRM platforms or practice management ensures a seamless data flow and a unified view of the client.”
Additionally, personalised communication will allow clients to stay informed at each stage, boosting their experience and trust. Compliance automation can also help ensure all regulatory requirements are met without over-reliance on staff as well as reduce the risk of compliance failures.
“All this not only enhances the client experience but also frees up time for advisors to focus on high-value activities like building relationships and providing personalized advice. A connected, curated and compliant data & information structure creates a good foundation on which to explore how new tools like GenAI could help firms drive better outcomes for their clients.”
Finally, Vandenbroucke believes that a perfect onboarding experience will be easy for anyone to complete without assistance. It must also be persuasive to help build trust and motivate investment decisions. Finally, it should also meet all regulatory requirements to protect both the investor and the firm. This is a delicate balance, but it’s not impossible.
He said, “The key is to make onboarding easy, personal, valuable, and reliable. That means intuitive interfaces, clear language, and smart guidance. It means tailoring the experience to each investor’s goals, knowledge, and emotions. It means delivering insights that feel relevant and actionable from the start. And it means embedding compliance into the process without making it feel like a burden.”
An important aspect of getting this done correctly relies on getting the right technology. Just implementing a digital tool doesn’t mean the onboarding process will become any better. It needs to be a system that is designed to meet the complex demands of investor onboarding.
“We need systems that understand the emotional side of investing. That can interpret hesitation, build confidence, and adapt in real time,” Vandenbroucke said. “We need algorithms that reflect human thinking while staying fully compliant. This is not about replacing advisors—it’s about scaling their empathy and insight. A perfect onboarding journey should feel like a conversation, not a questionnaire. It should guide, not interrogate. It should reassure, not overwhelm. And it should leave the investor feeling understood, empowered, and ready to act. Firms that get this right will see higher conversion, stronger loyalty, and better outcomes.”
He concluded, “So the advice is simple: design onboarding not just for data—but for people. Use tech to connect, not just to collect. That’s how you turn onboarding into a competitive advantage. everyoneINVESTED is your experienced companion on this journey.”
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