Investors of Heera Islamic Business Group, better known as Heera Gold, are in a panic over payment delays and rumours about financial difficulties faced by the group, which has amassed vast sums of money by specifically targeting the Muslim community by invoking the name of “Allah” in its sales pitch. The trigger for people gathering to protest at Heera Gold’s plush offices in Bengaluru, Hyderabad and other cities is the decision to 'share profit' once in three months instead of every month. But that is not the only issue.

 

Videos sent to us show that officials at Heera Gold's corporate office at Hyderabad refused to meet people and had locked the office from outside while staying inside. The controversial group is under investigation by the Enforcement Department and the Serious Frauds Office of India (SFIO) for several years, but the community continued to be lured by the high monthly returns offered by its Ponzi-like business. 

 

 

Interestingly, the group is headed by Dr Aalima Shaikh Nowhera (Nowhera Shaik), Chief Executive of Heera Group, who investors say is no longer in India. Typical of Ponzi operations that are in trouble, she has released a video to allay fears of investors and run down critics and those who are panicking at the payment delays. Source say that its immediate financial troubles follow its foray into politics. In 2017, Dr Shaik, CEO of Heera Gold formed the All India Mahila Empowerment Party under the banner of justice for humanity. This party even contested 221 out of the 225 seats in the recently concluded Karnataka Assembly elections with a 'diamond’ as its symbol. It is rumoured to have lost large sums of money. This and other rumours has triggered panic among people who want their money back. 

 

Many wealth managers struggle to maintain their top-line margins despite strong growth in personal financial wealth and assets under management. But they can help reverse this trend-and strengthen their competitive position-by using advanced analytics to better address clients' individual needs and by adopting smart revenue practices to generate new pools of opportunity, says a study report.

 

The report, 'Global Wealth 2018: Seizing the Analytics Advantage' prepared by The Boston Consulting Group (BCG), highlights the need for delivering highly personalised service to clients. "Delivering standardized experiences to clients will no longer suffice," says Brent Beardsley, a BCG senior partner, wealth management expert, and co-author of the report, adding, "Wealth managers have begun to invest in personalisation, but many still struggle to effectively combine an enhanced client experience with the underlying management of data, processes, organization, skills, governance, and behavioural change. Firms that do not take the necessary steps in these areas run a high risk of being left behind."

 

 

BCG feels firms that deliver smart, individualized products, services, and prices-digitally and through a relationship manager or financial advisor-will significantly bolster their top-line growth and occupy a differentiated position in the market. It says, "Seizing this opportunity requires deployment of cutting-edge capabilities in advanced analytics-encompassing such elements as new technology platforms, fresh development capacities, next-generation tech and data architectures, updated data and digital organizational structures and skills, and improved access to internal and external data. A full transformation along these lines can lead to top-line growth of 15% to 30% and drive efficiency gains of 10% to 15%". 

 

"The stakes for wealth managers can be enormous," says Anna Zakrzewski, a BCG partner, global leader of the firm's wealth management segment, and co-author of the report. "And many players have already undertaken efforts in these areas. But realizing the full opportunity will require fundamental changes across the entire organization. We expect leading firms to further separate themselves from the pack over the next few years, a gap that will be increasingly difficult for slow-moving players to close," she adds.

 

Unleashing the Value of Advanced Analytics

 

BCG research suggests that over 70% of wealth management clients see highly personalised service as a key factor in deciding whether to stay with their current provider or switch to another. 

 

"The stakes for wealth managers can be enormous. And many players have already undertaken efforts in these areas. But realizing the full opportunity will require fundamental changes across the entire organization. We expect leading firms to further separate themselves from the pack over the next few years, a gap that will be increasingly difficult for slow-moving players to close," Zakrzewski says.

 

The Evolution of Personal Financial Wealth

 

According to BCG, during 2017, global personal financial wealth grew by 12% to $201.9 trillion. This expansion more than doubled that of the previous year, when global wealth rose by 4%, and represented the strongest annual growth rate in the past five years in dollar terms. 

 

 

"Main drivers were the bull market environment in all major economies-with wealth in equities and investment funds showing by far the strongest growth-and the significant strengthening of most major currencies against the dollar. In general, developed markets held a higher share of wealth in non-investable assets-particularly pension fund entitlements-than developing markets. The Middle East accounted for the highest share of wealth held in investable assets, while residents of Oceania had the lowest share. The share of global wealth held by millionaires increased to almost 50% in 2017, compared with just under 45% in 2012. If recent patterns of wealth expansion continue, under an optimistic scenario, personal financial wealth could rise at a compound annual growth rate of around 7% from 2017 to 2022," the Report says.

 

The Offshore Perspective: Swiss magic continues 

The amount of global offshore wealth held in 2017 was around $8.2 trillion, 6% higher than the previous year. Switzerland remained the largest offshore centre, domiciling $2.3 trillion in personal wealth in the country. The next-largest booking centres were Hong Kong ($1.1 trillion) and Singapore ($0.9 trillion), which have grown at yearly rates of 11% and 10%, respectively-more than three times the rate (3%) of Switzerland over the past five years. 

 

 

According to the Report, net offshore inflows from 2012 through 2017 totalled over $800 billion, with Hong Kong and Singapore the key destinations. At the same time, some offshore centres, notably the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, saw net outflows during the same period.

 

"As the regulatory climate has tightened over the past ten years, we have seen significant flows back onshore, generally from lower high-net-worth individuals," says Zakrzewski, adding, "new inflows into offshore centres have generally offset these outflows as financial institutions that provide offshore services have successfully redefined their value propositions to target clients also from mature markets."

 

Bridging the Revenue Gap 

 

According to BCG industry data gathered from more than 150 wealth managers, top performers-defined as the quartile of institutions with the highest pre-tax profit margins-achieved a significant lead over average performers in overall revenue growth and return on assets (RoA) over the past three years. They also enjoyed a cost edge, although this was much less pronounced than the RoA advantage, implying that the prime driver of higher profit margins resides on the revenue side, the report says. 

 

BCG estimates that wealth managers can achieve a revenue uplift of 8% to 12% by adjusting price levels, correcting unnecessary discounts, and simplifying overall pricing structures. It says, "Product and service bundling can contribute to higher revenues if properly linked to the pricing architecture and to the value proposition for each client segment. Overall, smart revenue practices can accomplish the dual goal of increasing the top line and enhancing client satisfaction".