Nutmeg Review

Nutmeg Review: Most recognised robo advisor in the UK offers low fees over £100K

Nutmeg is the United Kingdom’s largest robo advisor with assets under management of over £600 million.

Nick Hungerford, the co-founder of Nutmeg, started the robo advisor because he was frustrated with the lack of transparency in the investment management industry, as well as how difficult it was for regular investors to get access to world class professional advice.

In doing that, Nick and his partners have created an online robo advisor service that breaks down the walls that traditionally existed with good investment advice and made it accessible at a low cost for all investors.

Here are the following details about Nutmeg that potential customers should be aware:

• Assets Under Management: £600 million .
  
• Minimum Deposit Amount: £500, however investments below £5,000 require clients to set-up a recurring contribution of at least £100 per month. In addition, the Nutmeg pension has a minimum initial investment of £5,000.
  
• Portfolio and Asset Allocation Details: The Nutmeg investment team uses a broad range of exchange traded funds to build sophisticated, globally-diversified portfolios.
  
• Fees: The fully managed portfolio fee is 0.75% up to 100k and then 0.35% after that. The fixed allocation portfolios fee is 0.45% up to 100k and then 0.25% after that.
  
• Account Types Available: Nutmeg offers individual savings account (ISAs), a personal pension, and a general dealing account. 
  

Nutmeg Minimum Deposit Requirements

Some robo advisors do not require any minimum deposit to sign up for their services. However, Nutmeg does require a £500 minimum investment to get started. In addition, if your initial deposit is less that £5000, then new clients are required to set up a monthly automatic investment of £100.  

They require these initial investments in order to build out a properly diversified portfolio. With anything less than £5000, the portfolios can be too concentrated so they want to encourage long term saving by requiring these initial investment amounts.

Nutmeg Portfolio and Asset Allocation Details

Nutmeg uses exchange traded funds (ETFs) for the various assets that customer portfolios are invested in. By using ETFs, clients are getting fully diversified investments at a low cost.

In order to build a customer’s portfolio, Nutmeg first gets to know the risk profile and time horizon for the customer. With that information, the right portfolio is built using ETFs across multiple asset types, countries, and industry sectors. This spreads the risk out across multiple assets while increasing the opportunity for higher returns.

As a final and ongoing step, the portfolio is monitored periodically and rebalanced as the asset allocation changes due to how well the market does or doesn’t do.

Nutmeg also offers two types of services for clients. The first is the “Fully Managed Portfolio” which is continually monitored by a team of advisors with strategic opportunities implemented based on the client’s needs. The second is the “Fixed Allocation Portfolio” which does not provide that strategic advice on an ongoing basis.

No matter which service is chosen, a Nutmeg asset allocation may look like the following screenshots from their website. Note that we have provided both the asset type as well as geographic allocation:

By Assets

Nutmeg Fees and Additional Pricing

Nutmeg charges low fees, especially when compared to traditional investment services. Here is a table that summarizes the fee structure:

In addition to these fees, the average exchange traded fund fee that will be paid is approximately 0.19%. This fee is on top of the fees changed by Nutmeg, however it will be transparent to investors as it is taken directly by the fund.

Nutmeg Account Types Available

The more account types available to investors, the more options there are to utilise the professional services offered by a robo advisor. In the case of Nutmeg, they offer the following account types:

• Individual Savings Account (ISA): Nutmeg offers only Stocks and Shares ISAs. If you are 18 years or older and a UK resident then a Stocks and Shares ISA can be opened. 

• Nutmeg Personal Pension: The Nutmeg pension is a personal pension plan, called the Stocks and Shares Personal Pension Plan. UK residents can get tax relief on up to £40,000 per year or the value of an annual salary, whichever figure is lower. Depending on your tax rate, the government will add 25% to your pension as additional contributions.

How to Get Started with Nutmeg 

The process to signup with Nutmeg can be done completely online. The process is very simple and only takes a few minutes to get started. 

If you still have questions after going through the site, they have a phone number you can use to talk to a customer service agent who will be able to help you with any specific questions you may have. In addition, they have prepared a video that walks customers through the required steps to open an account and get started with Nutmeg.

 If you are looking for a solid robo advisor, and are a UK resident, then Nutmeg is one service you should strongly consider due to its low fees and portfolio management approach.