As we put the finishing touches on our new Platform Analysis Tool for launch next week (yes, PAT is getting a new frock), we’ve seen some really dramatic changes to the environment of even a year ago.

Price has been dynamic. Although the incumbents haven’t changed THAT much, there are some impertinent new players all pitching their wares to the adviser market. Hindsight’s a great thing – new propositions have seen that spending a lot of money building tools and shiny stuff on platform isn’t necessarily a great idea.

Ok Coconut Man, Moonhead and Pea, welcome to Friday (to copy popstrel Jessie J and it’s been making me laugh as a random standard greeting this week).

A week where the relentless trudge of News is a perfect microcosm of what is unfolding around us. Hargreaves profits jump; IFAs are talking to providers about execution-only solutions; Mattioli Woods is considering a move to restricted advice; DFM is in the blogs as advisers banter about needing to charge their clients VAT if they offer them an outsourced discretionary fund management (DFM) service. There are lots of adviser questions flying around about these topics. Following on from an event we ran for advisers 2 weeks ago, we have put together a little summary of answers to some of the most pressing questions adviser delegates had – this touches on many of the points raise in the news stories above. Thanks to our sponsors and contributors, AXA and BNY Mellon. There’s also some thoughts from us, Resources Compliance and Technical Connection so take a look.

A bit of a Pick n Mix this week my friends. Firstly congratulations to everyone at Nucleus who announce today they have hit the £3.5bn mark and now work with more than 100 adviser firms.

Congratulations to Novia who pass the £1 billion hurdle and get an improved AKG rating of B this week. Great effort from the team in Bath.

In a sure sign that platforms are expanding we report £73bn in direct platforms in our latest research to be published next week.

We think there's a pool of 6.5 million active private investors in the UK. Of these, 2 million are hard-core investment aficionados. The rest think it's a bit dull.

Interesting news this week about Cofunds using Barclays Stockbrokers to add listed securities to their proposition. A good step forward. Listed securities have typically been poorly integrated onto platforms with a mutual fund background and the devil can be in the detail – settlement, inclusion in model portfolios and rebalancing tools etc We look forward to seeing the outcome.

Sometimes we read a story which we think shines a strategic torch on the road ahead, providing an illustration beyond the company in question of some general market moves.

So, it is upon us. 2012 has been bandied about in numerous articles, on PowerPoint slides and in meetings across the UK for years now. Roll up, roll up for the RDR.

As we are collectively blown back into our offices, you can almost hear the clock ticking and it’s time to get the house in order. For some newer business which have been built with awareness of the RDR, it’s not such a dramatic year. Some advisers are fee-based, platform-adopters and well prepared for the challenge.