Mr Kirk predicts as long as there are platforms struggling to make profit, we will see more consolidation: “The process probably hasn't finished given the number of unprofitable or very low profit operations still around.
"The direct to consumer market will not be immune to this."
According to Mike Barrett, consulting director at Lang Cat consultancy, there are good reasons why it has been slow going with consolidation.
“The FCA report said platforms are not delivering high levels of sustained profits," he points out.
"From a financial perspective it is not always preferable to merge a platform, and that is before you consider the technology issues around that, and the fact it will be a lengthy process and you will have to be very committed, on costs and management delivery.”
Mr Barrett previously worked at Old Mutual and reflects on the challenges of the Skandia merger: “The merger was between what was the Skandia wrap and the Selestia platform.
"It was a natural fit because there was not a big overlap in terms of functionality. Skandia was strong in online portfolio management tools and post-sale reporting and the Selestia system was much stronger for new business and straight through processing.
“Unfortunately, the migration phase of that programme, migrating old Skandia clients onto that tech, took longer than expected and costs escalated."
He continues: “Bringing two systems together is bringing together two companies. There are going to be job losses and that will be tough for a business.
"The business loses its focuses, and the working atmosphere is not as good as it could be for a good 18 months afterwards.
"The bit you remember most is the people, the culture and relationships you have with new and old colleagues, with people coming and going.”
Indre Butkeviciute is founder and wealth coach at London-based Lily Advisory.
She is pragmatic about consolidation, saying it can make life easier for clients and advisers.
“Does it really make a difference going to one platform over the other one when they do similar things? Not really. It might actually be easier if they are all in one.”
She says she sees “old school” life company platforms struggling to meet the needs of today’s younger clients and said consolidation might be a way for them to get the more efficient functionality required.
Jane Hodges, director at Money Honey Financial Planning, is all about efficiency with her firm offering a paperless, remote service for clients.
Ms Hodges pointed out it is very hard to gauge if consolidations have been effective for improving platform functionality and service.
She notes: “If there is a need for mergers for additional investment for scalability, updated technology and financial stability then they can be very positive but it is hard to know if, to date, the investment in platforms that comes with consolidation has brought these outcomes.”
