Otivo, the future of financial advice

Otivo is doing something no one thought was possible – providing quality personal financial advice online. In fact, they’re the only ones who have managed to crack this in Australia. This is not only a game-changer for the millions of Aussies who say they’d use financial advice at the right price, it’s also a boon for the many financial institutions struggling to service all of their clients.

The industry is starting to take notice…

Although Otivo has been around in various guises for a few years, this last year has seen them grow to a new level.

Firstly, they took the brave decision to completely revamp their product by investing heavily in a new user-centred approach which culminated in a complete reimagining of their product design and entire code base. The result has handed them platitudes from industry heavyweights such as Sue Viskovic (Elixir Consulting managing director) who described Otivo during the recent Professional Planner Licensee Summit as:

“The likes of Paul Feeney, founder of Otivo and what they’re building out with that is… I hate the term gamechanger, but that is going to make a significant difference to a lot of firms who will be able to provide that simple advice for clients that don’t necessarily need or want the relationship at that point.”

More important than industry platitudes, is the feedback they’re getting from users. Not only are they now one of the fastest growing financial advice firms in Australia with over 5,000 customers, but they’re also revolutionising how Australians are accessing financial advice. Before its existence, Australians were largely limited to receiving traditional face-to-face advice from advisers. While this worked perfectly for the 11% of Australians who could afford it, many millions of Australians missed out.

Financial Advice firms are also taking stock with Ford Scott, one of Tasmania’s most prominent financial planning firms, recently partnering with Otivo to bridge the industry-wide challenge of unaffordable advice and orphaned clients.

“With the cost of providing advice becoming more expensive, an increasing number of Australians have been unable to access personal financial advice. By partnering with Otivo, we’re able to service these clients and their extended family members in an online format they feel comfortable with”

Tim Scott, Managing Director of Ford Scott.

“We don’t look at Otivo as a competitor. Instead, we see them as a technology-enabler. And importantly, because they have their own AFSL, their process is fully compliant”.

Tim Scott, Managing Director of Ford Scott.

With falling adviser numbers and increasing advice costs, Adviser Ratings1 research highlights there are hundreds of thousands of clients who are no longer able to access advice. Likewise, there are now millions of orphaned clients without advice throughout various platforms and superfunds.

“Otivo’s technology overcomes this dilemma by automatically updating its advice to any changes to a client’s financial situation. This not only benefits the end client, it’s also a valuable tool for planners, super fund members and wealth providers seeking scalable advice”.

Paul Feeney, founder of Otivo.

In addition to their financial advice clients, Otivo has also partnered with some of the biggest brands in Australia by providing financial advice services to employees of Rio Tinto, Suncorp, University of NSW, Latitude, Sun Super, Ernst & Young and many more.

Otivo has also been making a splash in the media, with their CEO Paul Feeney featured in both industry and mainstream press such as the SBS Television News, Channel Nine Nightly News, News.com.au, The Australian, The Australian Financial Review and many more.

Paul has also been invited to speak at various industry forums and podcasts. More recently Paul and Otivo COO Ross Barnwell have been singled out by the Quality of Advice Review to document how Online Financial Advice can help provide advice to more Australians.

How does Otivo work?

Otivo combines state-of-the-art technology with fully licensed financial advice, to provide financial help to people at a previously inconceivable scale. This scale means they’re able to keep their prices under $3 a week which is a fraction of the fees charged by most advisers.

Customers start their journey to financial freedom with Otivo by answering a few questions about their current financial situation and future goals. They then have a choice of either entering their info manually or linking their financial info with Otivo securely — this latter option ensures Otivo’s advice remains up to date without the user having to lift a finger. Once Otivo processes all of this information, the customer is presented with instant advice on how to manage their money — all personalised to them.

This includes detailed advice on:

  • How to manage their debt
  • Helping customers save up to $485K2 by the time they retire
  • Pay off their credit cards up to 3 times quicker.*
  • Helps customers compare different loans to help them make an informed decision about which might be right for them.

Depending on their situation, they might recommend optimising their loan to better suit their needs. Otivo might also recommend other things such as using offset accounts to further reduce the life and cost of a loan.

If customers have the funds to support it, Otivo may recommend they make extra payments. To make it easy, Otivo even tells them how much and when they should do it. These could be one-off payments or regular payments throughout the year – all designed to reduce the length of their loan and lower their interest payments.

Otivo helps customers plan for a comfortable retirement by working out how much could be sacrificed from their salary to increase the longevity of their desired income. They also help people find and select suitable investment options inside their super which could boost their retirement funds.

Otivo can also help customers save up for something exciting like a new home, holiday or new set of wheels.

Otivo helps people by calculating how much personal insurance cover they need then looks inside their current super to optimise their cover. This not only protects their way of life but helps protect their bank balance too.

Lastly, Otivo is a great tool for people to see all of their money and investments in one place. This helps customers stay on top of their cash flow, understand how and where they spend their money, allow them to grab a summary of their overall wealth and even check when they can afford to retire!

 

© Otivo (Map My Plan Pty Ltd ABN 47 602 457 732, AFSL and Australian Credit Licence no. 485665, trading as Otivo). The information and resources provided are current as at 26 July 2022 and are for general educational purposes only. The content has been prepared without taking into account a person’s objectives, financial situation or needs. Sources: 1 Adviser Ratings data – consumer survey of 1,500 Australian, Jan 2022. “What everyday Aussies would pay for Financial Advice” 2 * Based on averages using data provided by Otivo users.