TSB has partnered with robo-adviser Wealthify in a deal which will give its five million banking customers access to the latter's investment platform.
TSB customers are now able to invest with Wealthify via their online banking, with a choice of five risk profiles ranging from cautious to adventurous.
Customers are able to invest a minimum of £1 with a choice of funds including shares, bonds and property.
Wealthify will charge a management fee of 60 basis points, with additional investment costs amounting to 22 basis points on average.
ESG funds are more expensive as they are actively managed, at an average total annual fee of 1.26 per cent.
Pella Frost, director of everyday banking products at TSB, said the partnership strengthened TSB's digital banking drive and would "help build customer money confidence".
Wealthify, which is backed by Aviva, has seen an 85 per cent growth over the year in client numbers, now boasting more than 30,000 active customers.
Andy Russell, chief executive at Wealthify, said: "This partnership is about giving customers more options when it comes to their savings.
"We’re extremely proud to work with TSB, and to offer their customers a simple-to-use investment solution which complements their existing service, and creates opportunities to grow their savings, without the cost or complexity that comes with traditional investing."
TSB is not the only bank in recent weeks to have bolstered its presence in the digital space, with rival Barclays last month offering £100 cashback to new customers who signed up to its newly launched robo-advice service.
Barclays launched the service in July for current account customers with a minimum of £5,000 to invest. It said it was in a bid to help close the much-talked about advice gap.
The robo-advice sector
The advice industry has not been an easy one for robo offerings to infiltrate, but the sector has attracted capital from large financial services firms such as Schroders, which backs Nutmeg.
But some have not fared as well as expected. In May last year it emerged Investec was closing its Click and Invest robo-advice business following two years of losses while Moola shut its doors in January this year.
Commentators have said the challenge faced by many robo-advice firms was the heavy cost of advertising and marketing to acquire new customers, while others have predicted they will have to evolve into technology providers in order to survive.
rachel.mortimer@ft.com
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