Independent RIAs are approaching year-end with renewed optimism, Interactive Brokers, an automated global electronic broker, reported Tuesday.
Fifty-one percent of financial advisors in a survey said they are bullish on U.S. markets, and 47% hold a positive outlook on global markets. This is a sizable shift in sentiment from earlier in the year, the report said.
In a spring survey, only 31% of advisors said they were bullish on U.S. markets, and just 38% said the same about global markets.
Despite their growing optimism, advisors remain mindful of potential risks, according to the survey. The possibility of a market correction is their top concern, cited by 22% of respondents, followed by geopolitical instability, 19%, and changing U.S. policies, 15%.
For their part, 41% of their clients focus on the effect of volatility on their investments, and 30% on retirement planning and income security. The unexpected rise in gold prices was among the year’s biggest surprises to advisors, second only to renewed trade tensions and tariff developments.
“[The year] 2025 has been a wild — but generally satisfying — ride for most in U.S. equity markets, but markets rely heavily on investor psychology,” Steve Sosnick, chief strategist at Interactive Brokers, said in a statement. “It would not be surprising if advisors and investors become more reflective about the balance between risk and reward as we get closer to the end of the year.”
Interactive Brokers’ survey, conducted in September, received responses from 116 of the firm’s fee-based financial advisor clients, who have an average of 16 years’ experience and $79.6 million in client assets under management. Respondents indicated that they work at firms with an average of $307 million under management.
The survey found that advisors’ confidence extends beyond their market outlook to their businesses. Nineteen percent said they are very confident they will grow their firm this year, 43% are confident they will do so and 10% are somewhat confident.
Meanwhile, advisors’ adoption of generative artificial intelligence tools continues to rise. Fifty-eight percent reported that they use AI-enabled tools more than they did in the start of the year, while 21% said they still do not use them in their business.
See the accompanying gallery for how advisors are adjusting their clients’ holdings in nine assets classes to reflect their current market views.
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