PNC also found that the wealthy are ambivalent about the results provided by their financial institutions during the market upheaval.

While 47 per cent are optimistic and just 16 per cent pessimistic about their own investment decisions as reflected in their portfolios, one-third (34 per cent) are negative about the prospects of the stock market and 57 per cent have a gloomy outlook for the economy in the next six months.

Their mood is significantly darker than a year ago when just 47 per cent had a negative outlook heading into 2010, according to PNC’s seventh annual Wealth and Values Survey Investors' Outlook.

Asked to assign a letter grade to their financial institution, 44 per cent give a "C", saying they "didn't make much of a difference one way or another."

Thirty-one per cent responded with a "B", saying "they helped some but could have done more." Only one in 10 (11 per cent) feel their financial institution's actions were personally harmful in some respect and rate it either a "D" or an "F".

Just 15 per cent said their advisors "really made a huge positive difference," or an "A", according to the survey of 1,097 affluent individuals, all of whom have at least $500,000 in investible assets.

"This should serve as a wake-up call in the financial advisory business," said Thomas Melcher, executive vice president and managing director of Hawthorn, the division of PNC Wealth Management that serves clients with $20 million or more in investable assets. "These results clearly tell us that most wealthy investors are willing to listen to a provider who has a better story and that managing wealth is more than managing their investments."

The survey indicated that three quarters (74 per cent) also expect greater transparency from their financial institutions and more than half (57 per cent) want more comprehensive wealth management solutions, while 43 per cent are looking for more attention from their financial advisors.