In 2024, the Italian private banking sector recorded another significant increase, with assets under management rising to €1,257 billion, up +14.1% compared to the previous year (source: AIPB). At the same time, asset management in Italy closed the first quarter of 2025 with a total of €2,363 billion in assets, supported by an average performance of +2.9% (Assogestioni). However, this growth raises a strategic issue: the pricing of services. Fee-based advisory services with a fee-on-top model are now a given for some operators, but Consob states that it disapproves of this model as it does not protect against conflicts of interest. In a constantly evolving market increasingly oriented toward personalization, structures operating in wealth management—whether traditional banks or advisor networks—are being called to rethink their advisory models. Pricing can no longer be detached from the quality and quantity of services delivered to clients.
TOWARDS A MORE SOPHISTICATED PRICING MODEL
For decades, pricing was based on a single variable: a percentage applied to assets under management. This model, still dominant today, is now being questioned from multiple sides. Clients are increasingly aware, demanding, and informed. On the one hand, they seek transparency; on the other, they do not want to pay the same for very different services, or for the same service delivered with different quality levels. As we were among the first to argue, “scientific” pricing is the inevitable path forward. It is now more necessary than ever to adopt a system that considers the complexity of the advisory service, the time dedicated by the professional, the skills deployed, and the actual interaction with the client. This approach allows for rewarding the efficiency and actual quality of the service provided by the advisor, leveraging the value perceived by the client. For example, an “autonomous” client who uses digital platforms and robo-advisors should be charged a lower price than a client seeking wealth planning, protection, generational transfer, and support on alternative assets—while still benefiting from the support of a financial advisor.
INNOVATION AMONG BANKS AND NETWORKS
In Italy, several leading institutions are decisively moving in this direction. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking, Banca Generali, Allianz Bank Financial Advisors, and Fineco are exploring more flexible and modular pricing models. International banks with a presence in Italy—such as UBS, J.P. Morgan, and Goldman Sachs—are also developing innovative proposals, where pricing depends on the type of interaction: from fully digital to hybrid, to one-on-one relationships with a senior advisor or multidisciplinary teams. Additionally, Intesa Sanpaolo (with its “Isybank” platform) and UniCredit (with “Buddybank”) are investing in the digital segment, bringing younger and more technologically savvy targets closer to digital wealth management services with transparent and dynamic pricing.
THE PUSH OF AI
Artificial intelligence is providing new tools to analyze data, profile clients, and optimize service pricing management. AI-based solutions will allow, in the future, the generation of investment proposals, personalized reporting, and forecasts of future scenarios with less time required from financial advisors—and consequently more dynamic pricing.
PERSONALIZATION AND SCALE: SCIENTIFIC PRICING AS A SOLUTION
The real turning point lies in the ability to combine personalization with scalability. Large networks must be able to offer tailor-made solutions even to a broad and diverse client base. To do this, they must transition from a vertical logic (a single advisor for everything) to a horizontal and multidisciplinary model, similar to that of law firms or specialized medical practices. Some are already trying. Fideuram ISPB, for instance, has made personalization at scale one of its hallmarks, focusing on an ecosystem where advisors, digital platforms, and artificial intelligence work together. Pricing becomes scientific because it changes according to the different intensity of use each client has with respect to each relationship channel.
PRICING AND COMPLEX NEEDS: THE CASE OF SUCCESSION PLANNING
Pricing can also vary depending on the complexity of the service. A clearly relevant area in which complexity-linked pricing is needed is succession planning. This topic, always central to wealth management, requires skills ranging from civil law to international taxation, from heir protection to the use of instruments such as trusts, life insurance policies, asset protection funds, and family agreements. The advisor must be able to identify effective solutions, safeguard the client’s confidentiality, and ensure orderly wealth transfer. It is clear that a service of this type must be priced differently based on the complexity of the case.
