Four potential operators of pensions dashboards are coming together to form a new industry coalition, namely the ‘Dashboard Operators Coalition’, aiming to support the delivery of highly effective pension dashboards to consumers as early as possible.
Just Group, a UK financial services group focusing on the UK retirement income market; Legal & General, the financial services provider; Moneyhub, the data and payments fintech; and Standard Life, a life assurance, pensions and long-term savings company, represent the founding members of the Dashboard Operators Coalition – but all potential operators of commercial dashboards are welcome to join.
Working closely with government and regulators, the Dashboard Operators Coalition, will look to support the safe, secure and successful early launch of multiple pension dashboards; ensure dashboards meet different users’ needs effectively at launch, and provide rich consumer feedback to inform future iterative dashboards enhancements.
The new coalition is being set up now as, earlier in March, new HM Treasury enabling legislation came into force which made operating a pensions dashboard service a new FCA-regulated activity.
Sam Seaton, CEO of Moneyhub, explained why the collaboration surrounding pension dashboards is so important: “International evidence strongly shows that consumers prefer to see all their pensions in a familiar, trusted app they already use, such as a banking, pension, or money management app.
“Through open finance, these apps also enable connections to users’ other finances, showing consumers the broader context of their financial position as it develops over their lifetime.
“So, as an industry, we urgently need to collaborate to launch commercial pensions dashboards for consumers as soon as possible. Working with the FCA and PDP, the Dashboard Operators Coalition will be instrumental in bringing an open and collaborative environment to commercial pensions dashboards, and in doing so, help millions of consumers achieve a healthier financial future.”
Close collaboration is ‘the key’
Richard Smith, an independent dashboards consultant and newly appointed chair of the Dashboard Operators Coalition, is leading the initiative. He also commented: “My research tour of five continental pensions dashboards teams in 2023 confirmed to me that launching dashboards is a highly challenging endeavour. But the key to getting them done is very close collaboration, both across the industry, and also between industry and government.
“On the supply of data to dashboards, the Pensions Administration Standards Association (PASA) is working very closely with the government’s Pensions Dashboards Programme (PDP).
“Now, for the ‘front-end’ consumer experience of dashboards themselves, there needs to be an equivalent industry coalition, where dashboard operators can come together to share their questions, ideas and feedback to develop and maintain best practice for operating dashboards.
“We know from research reports that consumers desperately want to use commercial pensions dashboards, on apps they already use and trust (such as their banking or pension app). And they want to do this as soon as possible. So I’m very grateful to the first four firms for taking the lead with this new coalition. I hope other firms will see the benefits of joining the coalition too, as they decide to offer their own dashboards.”
