網路理財平台商業模式與策略分析

Abstract

民眾於長期低薪環境下，理財需求更是迫切。但由於景氣變動加劇，國家及產業競爭優勢趨弱，加上全球低利率環境下，投資理財報酬亦轉為低落，因此，架構去中間化，便宜交易成本，嘉惠普羅大眾的理財平台應有一定的市場與商機。 網路理財平台已出現爭奪傳統銀行券商資產管理業者的功能，平台經濟有其發展所需的要素，也面臨發展中的問題及困難，本研究希望藉由文獻分析及個案探討，進而剖析理財平台應有的商業模式及策略。 本研究看到以下問題並提出看法： 1. 平台的低價補貼策略只是進入競爭市場的門票，但絕非萬靈丹，必須要有其他的功能或科技技術於整體投資交易流程中為投資人去中間化，真正節約所有的成本，提供便捷的交易過程，為客戶，創造整體性收益。 2. 必須突破法規的不友善，在未盡合宜的金融規管中利用進步的金融科技，協助投資人以合法合規的狀況尋求最佳投資解決方案。 3. 吸引參與者加入平台，使平台生長為良性生態系 ，於系統內得以形成互利生態體系：上下游關係、策略聯盟或互補效益，應能有多邊參與者進入，若平台內未能集結多邊，無法集結大量使用者，則遑論網路外部效益的發生。 4. 商業模式中需有健康現金流的產生：交易平台中收入來源需以互惠增值為基礎，須由參與者之間利益增值後再分潤，可以是對總資產增值的分潤，對提供新創技術或服務的參與者以共贏的概念進行分潤，這樣才能吸引好的產品好的技術好的人才進入平台，才能持續擴大網路外溢效益。 5. 平台本身必須要有獨特的技術或研發能力，互聯網發展至今，要建立平台並非難事，但在同領域中要勝出，真的需要先有核心競爭力，才能將產業中最優秀的技術產品人才吸引進來，因此平台本身的核心競爭力的建立是非常重要的。 6. 平台要有能力發展跨境業務，跨境跨領域往往因政策、法規或地域的限制，產生服務缺稀，互聯網平台是最有機會補足這個缺稀的，要能以核心競爭力突破這些限制，平台才能進入國際，發揮網路無邊際的優勢，因應投資全球化的趨勢，形成經濟規模，如此才能做大做好成功存活。

我們樂見投資理財平台興起，金融產業應善用網路平台，創造理財平台成為好的生態系，解決投資人所需解決的痛點，讓有品質的理財服務，不再是有錢人的特權。 台灣理財平台的興起仍在初期階段、但能如何打造，如何以對的策略及商業模式運作，則仍有待有心的業者的努力，希望能早日見到好的理財平台於台灣營運成功，也希望能早一點看到普惠金融能成功地於台灣實現。

People’s needs for financial planning became more prominent in the continuously low-salary environment nowadays. However, due to drastic economical changes, down-sliding of national and industrial competitiveness as well as the globally low-interest rates, the return on investment has also declined significantly. Therefore, the market and business opportunities for financial planning platforms with framework disintermediation and lowering of transaction costs that could benefit the vast majority of people arose.

As the online financial planning platforms provide functions that overlapped with existing traditional financial services providers such as banking, securities trading as well as asset management, the factors required for platform economic developments are also encountering several dilemmas and challenges. This study wishes to dissect and analyze the business model and strategies that should apply to financial planning platforms by combing through existing literature and case studies.

This study provides recommendations to the following issues noted: 1. The subsidization strategy adopted by platforms may only serve as an entrance ticket to the market rather than a long-term solution. Overall revenue should derive from clients based on other solid functions or technology that may aid the investors to disintermediation, achieve real cost-saving, and provide easy and speedy transactional flow. 2. Reliance is placed on advancing financial technologies to overcome the stringent and business-unfriendly legislation, adapt to the yet to fine-tuned governance environment and assist the investors in benefiting from the best solutions that are in compliance with current law and regulations. 3. Attract participants to join the platform and grow into a positive and mutually beneficial ecosystem: upstream and downstream, strategic alliance or complementary efficiency shall accomplish by having diverse participants. On the other hand, platforms that could not assemble online diversity would not even attract voluminous users, let alone generating offline efficiency. 4. Business model that generates healthy and stable cash flow: the revenue source of the platform shall base on incremental mutual benefits and profit appropriation amongst the participants, e.g. the total increase on asset values. The win-win concept for participants who contributed innovative technologies or services shall attract better products and technicians to join the platform and thus continue to expand the external benefit of the platform. 5. The platform should possess unique technology or research and development capability. It’s easy to build an online platform at this internet era but requires core competency to standout in this heavy competitive field. 6. The platform should internationalize. Global and multi-faceted platform is scarce due to restrictions imposed by politics, legislations, and across different regions, yet an internet platform has the best opportunity to overcome such dilemma. However, core competence is first required to internationalize and unleash the borderless advantages that an online platform possesses. The key ingredient of success is to adapt to the trend of globalized investments and form an economy of scale.

We are delighted to see the emergence of investment planning platforms. The financial industry should utilize these online platforms wisely, form a healthy ecosystem, and solve the pain points of investors, so that quality financial services are no longer privileges of the wealth.

The emergence of financial planning platform is still sprouting in Taiwan, pending on the efforts of service providers to forge and operate with suitable strategies and business model. We wish to see the great success of a sound financial planning platform operating in Taiwan and also the attainable financial services available to all people of Taiwan in the near future.