For years, access to top-class equity research has been expensive and a preserve of professional investors. That is changing, say the developers of a new platform in the UK.

Research Tree, a new online investment research platform launched this week, aims to put the kind of information in private investors’ grasp that it says is currently only available to professionals.

The platform, which was established by former equity and research analyst Rob Mundy, offers private investors real-time access to reports on UK-listed companies as well as macro and industry analysis.

The reports are written by regulated analysts from 20 research providers, a statement from Research Tree said. The platform so far covers 85 per cent of FTSE 100, 50 per cent of FTSE 250, and 65 per cent of UK small-cap companies. Investors get access on a monthly subscription basis.

In the UK, equity research is typically produced by corporate brokers and independent research firms and paid for by institutional investors such as fund managers and banks. The 1.5 million private investors, of which over 820,000 are high net worth individuals, tend to be reliant on a limited amount of information, Research Tree says. 

“We are keenly focused on narrowing the gap between the analysis that is available to institutional investors and the growing number of us who are taking control of our own investment portfolios,” Mundy said.

“We launch at a time when the UK government is actively encouraging people to have greater autonomy over their investments,” he added.

The firm believes it is “well placed” to offer research providers an additional route through which they can distribute and make money out of their ideas.