A survey on a sample of Italian intermediaries focuses on banks offering an investment advisory service. Suitability questionnaires are often set up in order to primarily respond to regulatory obligations and there is room to improve the engagement activity with the customers. Many institutions have similar suitability models, with a robust methodology, inspired to the models applied to the banking trading book. However, some subjects are applying less complex methods that carry out a suitability test through risk measures less exposed to short-term market shocks. In the customer advisory service, asset only models prevail; an area for improvement seems to be the adoption of financial planning models based on goal-based investing.
