A 2016 study by the CIRANO institute in Montreal showed that investors receiving professional advice for at least 15 years had on average 3.9 times more assets, and that gap widened with the length of time investors received professional advice. This increase in wealth is referred to by CIRANO as "the Gamma Factor"; in contrast to the increase in assets attributable to greater investment performance discussed in, the Gamma Factor is based on the value of professional advice.

Which aspects of professional advice contribute to the Gamma Factor?

The value changes as investors increase their wealth. In the earlier stages of wealth accumulation, an advisor plays a key role in helping investors save more by staying on track with contributions, developing a financial plan to adhere to, educating investors on the use of registered investment accounts, and hopefully doing so early on. The diagram below from RBC Global Asset Management shows how engaging professional advice early leads to significantly increased lifetime wealth accumulation using just a 4% annual average return on investment.

Once investors reach the latter stages of their wealth accumulation they tend to gain access to more tailored advice, such as that of an RBC Dominion Securities advisor. For investors in this stage the value of professional advice makes a shift toward more complex tax management and estate planning; issues dealing not just with accumulating wealth, but also preserving wealth. This often includes access to dedicated specialists in areas like Private Banking, trust services, estate law, tax management, business succession, and equity monetization for business owners.