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If you have ever explored a private investment opportunity in the UK, you will almost certainly have encountered a firm described as an "introducer." You may also have been told, at some point in the process, that the firm you are speaking with is not a financial adviser and that you should seek independent financial advice before proceeding.
For many investors, this distinction raises more questions than it answers. What exactly is an introducer? What is a financial adviser? And if the firm presenting the opportunity is not authorised to advise you, what precisely is its role — and how should you think about the information it provides?
These are entirely reasonable questions, and at Oros Consultancy, we believe in answering them directly. Transparency about our role is not a compliance formality. It is the foundation of the relationship we have with every investor we work with.
What a financial adviser does
A financial adviser, in the UK regulatory sense, is a firm or individual that is authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority to provide personal financial advice. This means they are permitted to assess your individual financial circumstances, consider your needs, objectives, and risk tolerance, and make a specific recommendation about whether a particular investment is suitable for you personally.
This is a meaningful and important service, and it carries significant regulatory responsibility. An FCA-authorised adviser is bound by strict rules around suitability, conflicts of interest, and the disclosure of charges. If they recommend something that turns out to be unsuitable for your circumstances, you have recourse through the Financial Ombudsman Service and, in certain cases, the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.
To provide this service, advisers must meet rigorous qualification standards, maintain ongoing professional development, and operate within a comprehensive regulatory framework designed to protect consumers.
What an introducer does
An introducer occupies a different and more specific role. Rather than assessing your individual circumstances and making personalised recommendations, an introducer identifies, evaluates, and presents investment opportunities to qualifying investors. The introducer's function is to source and communicate information about an opportunity — its structure, its investment thesis, its risks, and its potential returns — and to connect qualifying investors with that opportunity if they choose to proceed.
Critically, an introducer does not tell you whether a specific investment is right for you. That judgement is yours to make, ideally informed by a conversation with an FCA-authorised adviser who knows your complete financial picture.
This is not a limitation designed to protect the introducer. It is a clear and honest delineation of roles. The introducer knows the investment opportunity in depth. The adviser knows you in depth. The investor — you — sits at the centre, drawing on both sources of information to make your own informed decision.
Why the distinction matters in practice
Understanding the difference between an introducer and an adviser matters for a straightforward practical reason: it helps you know what questions to ask, and of whom.
When you speak with an introducer, the right questions are about the investment itself. What is the structure? Who is the management team and what is their track record? What is the exit strategy and what milestones need to be reached? Where do investors sit in the repayment hierarchy? What are the realistic downside scenarios and how has the investment been constructed to mitigate them?
A good introducer will answer all of these questions thoroughly, provide you with comprehensive documentation, and give you the time and space to consider the opportunity without pressure.
When you speak with an independent financial adviser, the right questions are about your own circumstances. Given my overall financial position, my existing assets and liabilities, my income, and my investment objectives, is this type of investment appropriate for me? How much of my portfolio, if any, should be in illiquid private market assets? What are the tax implications of this investment for my specific situation?
These are questions that an introducer is not positioned to answer, because they require a detailed knowledge of your personal financial circumstances that an introducer does not have and is not authorised to act upon.
How to find an independent financial adviser
If you are considering a private investment opportunity and do not already have a relationship with an IFA who is familiar with alternative assets, finding the right adviser is a worthwhile investment of time in itself.
The FCA register allows you to verify that any adviser you speak with is properly authorised. Unbiased is a useful directory for finding regulated advisers in your area. When approaching an adviser, it is worth asking specifically whether they have experience with private market investments and alternative assets, as not all advisers are equally familiar with this area.
What this means for Oros Consultancy
Oros Consultancy operates as a specialist introducer. Our role is to identify high-quality private investment opportunities, conduct thorough due diligence on the businesses and management teams behind them, and present those opportunities clearly and honestly to qualifying high net worth investors.
We work only with Certified High Net Worth Individuals and Self-Certified Sophisticated Investors, as defined under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. We provide comprehensive information about every opportunity we present, including investor information documents, term sheets, and supporting materials. We make ourselves available to answer questions and to walk investors through the detail of any opportunity at whatever level of depth they require.
What we do not do is tell you whether any specific investment is right for you personally. That is not our role, and we would not want you to mistake it for one. Our strong recommendation, for every investor we work with, is to discuss any opportunity with an independent financial adviser before committing capital.
If you would like to understand more about the opportunities we currently work with, or simply to have a conversation about how the introducer model works in practice, the Oros Consultancy team is always happy to talk.
Your capital is at risk. You may lose all the money you invest. This article does not constitute financial advice and should not be relied upon as such. These investments are intended for Certified High Net Worth Individuals and Self-Certified Sophisticated Investors as defined under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005. If you are in any doubt as to whether this investment is appropriate for you, please seek independent financial advice from a person authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority.