There was a lot of talk about fee compression, both at the fund level and the advisory level. Advisors aren’t giving up their margins, so they’re turning to product companies that have lower fees to keep a lid on the all-in costs they’re showing to clients. As a general rule, “Whoever is the closest to the customer almost always eventually wins.” Put another way, the advisor who owns the relationships (distribution) will survive the downward pressure on fees better than the fund companies will. This is regardless of the “active-passive debate” or anything else.

http://thereformedbroker.com/2017/04/05/the-state-of-wealth-management-in-2017/