Some 202 IT decision makers in the financial services sector across Europe were interviewed for the study.

A survey of the wealth and asset management sector says the "buyside" industry is closer to taking up new technologies than sell-side players such as banks and brokerages, a finding that might surprise industry-watchers familiar with complaints about tech-shy wealth management houses.

Around 87 per cent of IT executives at wealth and asset management firms said their chief executives understand the importance of technology within business, according to an Excelian, Luxoft Financial Services survey. By contrast, 75 per cent of IT executives working in banking and capital markets are frustrated by a lack of understanding of technology in the boardroom.

The survey conducted by Luxoft Financial Services, which is the financial services consultancy division of global IT service provider Luxoft, interviewed 202 IT decision makers in the financial services sector across Europe.

On both the buy-side and sell-side, most firms still understandably spend most of their technology budgets on implementing regulatory compliance and cyber-security systems. Despite this, wealth and asset management firms appear to be taking a longer term view about how technology could impact their business. The report found 65 per cent of respondents working on the buy-side believe technology is fundamental to the survival of their business, whereas only 56 per cent of respondents working in banks agree.

The top priority for technologists working on the buy-side is moving the business onto the cloud – 81 per cent agree this is a strategic priority, whilst 76 per cent also believe improving automation is a high priority. While both IT departments on the sell-side and buy-side are concerned about a lack of investment in technology, the frustrations are more acute in banks – 86 per cent of respondents working for banks complain about a lack of investment in IT, compared to 77 per cent of those working on the buy-side. 

“There is clearly a growing chasm between how those on the sell-side and the buy-side view technology,” said Roman Trachtenberg, group managing director and global head of Excelian, Luxoft Financial Services. “Investment banks have been bogged down by regulatory compliance costs for the last ten years, whilst wealth and asset managers have been able to experiment more freely with technology. Balancing technology projects that keep the lights on against those that encourage innovation and growth has been more of a strategic priority for buy-side executives. As a result, disrupters are emerging on the buy-side with firms using technologies like Alexa to service investors whilst robo-advice is undercutting traditional business models.”

The make-up of the respondents within the survey consisted of 102 employees in the UK; 50 in Germany; 30 in Switzerland and 20 in Austria.