Financial services strategy and operations research firm DALBAR Canada has released its Trends and Best Practices in Investor Statements report covering three of the most popular investment industry segments in Canada: mutual funds, managed portfolio, and brokerage (direct as well as full-service brokerage).

DALBAR reports that Dynamic Funds, a division of 1832 Asset Management L.P., secured the number one ranking once again in both the mutual funds and managed portfolio segments and Questrade Inc. earned the top spot for the first time, ranking number one in the brokerage segment.

Statements earned credit for including features that strongly impact an investor’s ability to act prudently and make financial decisions. These features include the ability to understand the significance of the information, answer pertinent questions and utilize design elements that enhanced their overall effectiveness.

These industry leading statements are already well on their way to the next stage of statement evolution in which statement recipients and others affected by statements become the central focus creating communication that is helpful and beneficial to all stakeholders, DALBAR notes.

Research from the firm suggests, clients are vehemently clear on the top features they want and expect on their statements. In the fall of 2013 DALBAR conducted a focused study with 300 investors about their preferences for statement content and design. The study asked investors to prioritize 60 possible statement features.

The top three elements deemed most valuable by clients were:

  • fees and expenses disclosed, 92.6%
  • transactions during the period, 92.1%
  • rate of return figures, 89.4%

“The top statement features identified in our Investor Statement Preferences’ study are well in line with CRM2 rule changes which now have providers rethinking their investor statements altogether,” said Anita Lo, vice president at DALBAR Canada. She added, “the statement document should not be taken for granted, for it’s one of the few direct mediums of communication between the client and provider where the opportunity is readily available for building a relationship, promoting client satisfaction, success, trust in the company and loyalty.”