By Emma Napier, NextWealth
The number of firms giving retail investment advice has fallen 15% since 2022, but adviser numbers have barely moved. The market is not shrinking, it is concentrating, and three forces are driving it.
Each year, the FCA’s retail intermediary market data, drawn from the annual RMAR return every intermediary firm must file, gives the clearest read on the shape of the market, and this year’s numbers continue a familiar trend. The number of firms giving retail investment advice has fallen again, down to 4,406 from a peak of 5,190 in 2022.
15% fewer firms, but adviser numbers hold steady
The number of firms has dropped by 784, or 15%, since 2022, falling steadily to 4,970 in 2023, 4,683 in 2024 and 4,406 in 2025. Adviser numbers tell a different story. The count of retail investment advisers has remained broadly flat throughout, at around 37,500, dipping only marginally in the most recent year. Advisers are not leaving the profession, simply regrouping into larger businesses. Three forces are driving that shift.
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