Over 600 delegates and 95 speakers attended the third PIMFA Women’s Symposium at London’s Excel centre.
The symposium has been running since 2024 and brings women in the wealth management and Financial Planning industry together to discuss personal development, company culture, the latest investment and technology trends, and client management.
Sessions spanned personal development, company culture, investment, client management, and technology and disruption.
Speakers included Jessica Rusu, chief data, information and intelligence officer at the FCA; former Cabinet Minister Baroness Nicky Morgan of Cotes; Dame Julia Hoggett DBE, CEO of the London Stock Exchange Group and Sneha Shah, head of SEI Next.
The conference was hosted by PIMFA CEO Liz Field.
Ms Rusu warned delegates that regulated firms risk falling behind criminals if they do not adopt AI at the same pace, describing firms as “the first line of defence” in protecting consumers from fraud.
When asked whether the FCA would move towards “robo-regulation”, Rusu described automation as a “wonderful opportunity”, but stressed that human judgement remains essential, and that a fully automated system remains “some way off”. Rusu also argued that the UK is well positioned for responsible AI adoption.
Liz Field, CEO at PIMFA said: “A huge thank you to all our speakers, partners and attendees for making this year’s Women’s Symposium such a success. The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, with delegates sharing how they plan to embed what they’ve learned into their careers and personal lives.
“The event provided a forum to share best practice, to motivate and inspire individuals at all levels, provide a space for honest conversation, highlighting the importance of male allyships.”
PIMFA is a trade body for wealth management. It was created in 2017 as the outcome of a merger between the Association of Professional Financial Advisers (APFA) and the Wealth Management Association (WMA).