The AI Readiness Reality Check for Financial Services

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January 30, 2026

1. AI Readiness Gap in Financial Services

New research warns that a large portion of financial services firms, especially legacy players, are not yet mature in their AI adoption, signaling operational and governance gaps as generative AI moves from experiment to execution. Read more.

2. Major Asset Manager Reports Large Net Outflows

Aberdeen reported £3.9bn in net outflows with notable pressure on institutional and wealth channels; a signal that market conditions and client sentiment are shifting materially. Read more.

3. Goldman Boosts Private Markets Allocations

Goldman Sachs' EMEA wealth leadership is increasing client allocations to private markets, reflecting a broader industry push for diversified sources of returns amid macro uncertainty. Read more.

4. FINRA Sanctions Highlight Supervision & Evidence Gaps

FINRA enforcement actions involving Cetera and Osaic reinforce that firms must demonstrate how advice, supervision, and approvals occur, not just that policies exist. Regulators are scrutinizing documentation, escalation workflows, and supervisory controls tied directly to advisor activity. Read more on both cases:

Cetera firms face an $11 m fine.

American Portfolios Financial Services to Pay $4.6 Million

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Wealth Management Outlook 2026

The 2026 outlook explores the intersection of hyper-personalized client services and the evolving regulatory landscape that is redefining the modern advisory model. Read on.

Suvrat on recent FINRA actions (Cetera + Osaic / American Portfolios). Recent FINRA actions make clear that supervision failures are often rooted in fragmented data, manual workflows, and the absence of a defensible evidence trail behind advice. Read on.

AI Adoption in Wealth Management AI is moving from experimentation to execution in wealth management, forcing firms to rethink how insight generation, supervision, and accountability work together. Read on.

Data Governance Has Shifted from Control to Explainability. Modern governance is no longer about restricting access. It's about ensuring every insight can be traced, explained, and defended across advisors, compliance, and regulators. Read on.

RIA Growth Is a Discipline Problem, not a Scale Problem. Sustainable RIA growth comes from operational discipline, consistent workflows, and repeatable processes, not simply adding more tools or chasing scale. Read on.

Complex Data Shouldn't Slow Down Good Decisions. When advisors spend time assembling data instead of interpreting it, decision quality and client experience suffer—clarity must be built into the operating layer. Read on.

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