The XY Planning Network this week rolled out two new services at the group’s annual conference in San Diego.
The new offerings are part of the network’s quest to crack the code in serving younger clients.
First up was a new billing package, called AdvicePay, to support the monthly retainer model that the founders of the XY Planning Network (XYPN) encourage their advisor/members to adopt. The new package adds to a list of technology tools members get with their $397-per- year dues.
Also introduced this week was a training program, XYPN Academy, which will begin with a module on how to start an RIA firm, followed by training on how to function as a chief compliance officer.
The monthly retainer model is designed to serve Generation X and Y clients who may be short on assets, but who need help managing debt, dealing with life events and starting an investment program.
“When you’re working with younger clients, they’re paying lots of monthly bills, their cable, mortgages,” etc., said Michael Kitces, co-founder of the network. “So billing monthly is much more natural for them.”
AdvicePay grew out of conversations with state regulators who were concerned about triggering custody rules with monthly pay plans and the refusal of payment processors to work with the financial services industry, Kitces said.
“They think we’re all scamsters,” he says of the processors.
And because payment systems allow merchants (i.e., advisors) to change the payment amounts, that could trigger custody rules that require expensive independent audits.
AdvicePay was built so that XYPN members need client approval to change and reauthorize payments, so triggering the strict RIA custody rules is avoided, according to the network.