Consumer Composite Investments and Structured Products: A Better Fit for Advisers

The shift from PRIIPs to CCI gives UK advisers clearer, more practical disclosures.  For structured products and deposits, that means better client conversations, stronger suitability, and cleaner compliance.

The move to Consumer Composite Investments, or CCI, is more than a label change.  For UK advisers, it represents a genuine improvement in the way structured products and structured deposits can be explained, assessed and used in client portfolios.  In a market where clients want clarity and regulators want evidence of understanding, that is no small thing.

For years, many advisers found PRIIPs KIDs helpful in theory but awkward in practice.  The framework was often criticised for being rigid, formulaic and, in some cases, more confusing than clarifying.  That mattered because structured products depend on being explained properly.  If the disclosure does not help the client understand the trade-offs, the advice process starts on the back foot.

CCI changes that tone.  The regime is more principles-based and better aligned with Consumer Duty, which means the emphasis shifts toward meaningful disclosure rather than box-ticking.  That gives manufacturers and advisers more scope to communicate risk, return, costs and payoff structure in a way that actually makes sense to clients.  For structured products, this is a welcome reset.

The practical advantage is simple: structured products are easier to position when the disclosure tells the same story as the advice.  A client can see the potential outcomes, understand the barriers and grasp what is being exchanged, whether that is capital protection, capped upside, barrier-based protection or a fixed maturity term.  For some clients, that clarity is more reassuring than a vague promise to “stay the course”.

The same logic applies to structured deposits.  Under CCI, they should be risk-rated and disclosed in a more consistent, consumer-friendly way, making them easier to compare with other retail investment options.  That is useful because structured deposits often appeal to clients who want capital-oriented outcomes without venturing into full market exposure, and advisers need a clear framework to show where they fit.  A more transparent risk rating helps the adviser explain the balance between protection, return potential and any conditions attached to the deposit.

From an advice perspective, CCI helps structured products and structured deposits look less like awkward specialist corners of the market and more like legitimate planning tools.  That is important because these products are not suitable for everyone, but they can be highly relevant for clients seeking defined outcomes, downside buffers or a more structured route to medium-term growth.  In the right circumstances, they can sit neatly alongside traditional funds rather than competing with them.

The compliance opportunity is just as significant.  Under CCI, advisers have a stronger framework for documenting suitability, explaining scenario outcomes and demonstrating that the product matches the client’s needs and risk appetite.  That is good news for firms trying to evidence Consumer Duty outcomes in a way that is robust but not oppressive.  The regime encourages better advice, not merely more paperwork.

Structured deposits also bring an additional compliance benefit.  Clearer risk-rating should make them easier to place within a client’s wider plan.  If the product is labelled and explained in a way that reflects its true characteristics, advisers can have a more grounded conversation about whether it belongs in a cautious, income-focused or capital-preservation strategy.  That improves suitability, strengthens file notes and reduces the scope for misunderstanding later.

That said, CCI does not make structured products or structured deposits automatically suitable.  The fundamentals still matter – time horizon, liquidity needs, risk tolerance, and whether the client genuinely understands the return profile, credit exposure and product conditions.  The difference is that advisers now have a disclosure regime that is better suited to making those conversations productive rather than purely defensive.  In other words, it supports good advice instead of getting in the way of it.

There is also a broader commercial benefit for advice firms.  Structured products and structured deposits can help widen the planning toolkit, particularly for clients who want something more outcome-oriented than a conventional equity allocation but do not want to retreat entirely into cash or low-yielding defensive assets.  Used well, they can add depth to client conversations and create a more differentiated proposition. That is not a compliance gimmick – it is a professional advantage.

Perhaps most importantly, CCI gives advisers a better story to tell.  It allows the profession to talk about structured products and structured deposits in a more balanced way.  Not as exotic add-ons, but as regulated, explainable solutions that can serve defined client needs when used with care.  That helps move the conversation away from stereotypes and towards suitability, which is exactly where it should be.

The shift from PRIIPs to CCI will not make every structured product or structured deposit suitable, and it will not remove the need for careful advice.  However, it does give UK advisers a better regulatory foundation, a clearer client conversation and a stronger route to demonstrating good outcomes.  For a sector that has often been misunderstood, that is a meaningful step forward.

In short, CCI is positive news for structured products and structured deposits because it improves the quality of the conversation around them. And in advice, as in investing, better conversations usually lead to better decisions.