In a context marked by the growth of passive management and new regulatory challenges, could they represent a scalable and sustainable solution? Experts and industry professionals discussed this issue during the event promoted by Objectway.
Today, SMAs are finding a place within asset management and advanced advisory services, thanks to a cultural shift involving all stakeholders in the supply chain: asset management firms, clients, technology partners and regulators.
This model could represent a strategic response to the growth of passive management, such as ETFs, which, despite gaining market share, do not guarantee greater profitability for operators and pose growing challenges to the world of active management. This was discussed in a dedicated roundtable during the event "Separately Managed Accounts, the Path to Advanced Management, Consulting and Value?" organised by Objectway, a pan-European provider of as-a-service solutions for Wealth, Banking, and Asset Management. We discussed the issue with Max Renzulli, Market Solution Director at Objectway.
SMA: not a product, but a service model
“The real turning point,” Renzulli begins, “is that SMAs cannot be defined as a simple container of securities, but as a framework that evolves over time.”
The statement reflects a growing awareness in the industry: Separately Managed Accounts are now a service model that combines the efficiency of managed accounts with the flexibility of advisory services. This hybrid formula responds to the need to build portfolios aligned with the client's specific objectives, without sacrificing customisation, transparency, control and strategic coherence.
As emerged from the discussion between industry operators, Mauro Panebianco, partner and head of Italy and EMEA AM and WM of Pwc Italia, Lorenzo Palleroni, CEO and General Manager of Vontobel Wealth Management SIM and Gianmarco Zanetti, General Manager of Euromobiliare Advisory SIM, the SMA is no longer just a proposal for high-net-worth individuals, but a scalable opportunity for a wider clientele, provided that it is possible to combine customisation of the service and industrialisation of the processes.
The Italian context: between regulation, taxation and cultural change
While SMAs have become market standards in the United States, their development in Italy has been slowed by regulatory and fiscal obstacles. "Overregulation in the sector has led to a standardisation of management services," Panebianco emphasised, "and the push to align with benchmarks has progressively impoverished the variety and quality of Italian management services."
However, something is moving: a discussion has begun to introduce in Italy an option between taxation on accrued or earned income , bringing the Italian tax model closer to the American one.
In parallel, the adoption of European regulations such as the RIS (Retail Investment Strategy) and FIDA (Financial Data Access) will push for transparent and value-driven solutions for clients, as an alternative to retrocession- based models and will enable an integrated view of client assets across other banks, creating the foundation for more advanced advisory services based on open and interoperable data. "With the introduction of these regulations," Renzulli specifies, "the opportunity opens up for a key shift towards a truly holistic '2.0' advisory service."
From full delegation to the dual model: how the relationship with the customer is changing
Another important evolution concerns the type of relationship SMA allows for. SMAs can trigger a virtuous synergy: professional management that maintains a high level of client engagement.
This shifts from a purely delegated model to a "dual" model, where advisers and managers collaborate, sharing every step of the process with the client. This builds trust and strengthens the relationship. As Lorenzo Palleroni explained, Vontobel, for example, has developed a service model that combines wealth management modules with insurance components, geographical specialties and thematic strategies.
Euromobiliare Advisory SIM has also made a shift. Gianmarco Zanetti explained how the bank has moved beyond the traditional approach of balanced and flexible lines to a model based on more transparent and measurable building blocks. The result? Greater clarity, client engagement, and the ability to monitor performance more easily and consistently.
Technology and platforms: the key to scaling personalisation
The evolution introduced by SMAs would not be possible without a technological infrastructure capable of supporting customisation and scalability. Flexible, scalable platforms are needed, capable of managing advanced profiling, portfolio optimisation, automatic rebalancing, simulations and goal-based investing.
"Technology is not just operational support; it is a true enabler of relationships and personalisation at scale," Renzulli observes. "Our goal is to provide simple and intuitive tools for advisers and clients, but with sophisticated backend logic, such as dynamic portfolio optimisation and rebalancing, risk analysis and conversational AI to support advisers."
Objectives, profiling and change management for the new customer centricity
The real transformation, however, occurs at a cultural level. As Zanetti observes, "Today, profiling can no longer be a sterile regulatory requirement. It is the key moment to engage the client, to get to know their life, their business, their family; this is where the real consultancy process begins." And it is from here that the logic of objective-based advisory, increasingly widespread in Italy, develops. It is no longer just about asset allocation, but about concrete goals: children's education, succession, wealth protection and pensions.
To support this evolution, not only adequate technological tools are needed, but also organisational and operational changes . "The artisanal model, based on a single banker, is no longer viable," says Palleroni. "We need an integrated and complementary approach, where the manager works alongside the adviser to capture all the nuances of the client profile." The goal is to ensure consistency between the message emerging from research and the operational proposal in the field, avoiding the "telephone bug" short circuit.
Towards an integrated, flexible and sustainable model
"It is not just about expanding the offering with a new solution," Renzulli concludes, "but about redefining the entire approach to the client-consultant relationship, building trust through transparency, engagement, and consistency with individual objectives. In this sense, SMAs present themselves as catalysts for cultural and strategic change, capable of generating lasting value for both the client and the industry."
"It is a new grammar of consulting where technology does not replace the consultant, but rather amplifies their role. SMAs are not just a technical evolution; they can spark a new way of understanding the consultant-client relationship. A model that integrates management and relational components, combining advanced consulting with professional management." — Max Renzulli, Market Solution Director at Objectway
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