Advisor Types
The people, grouped by how they get paid.
Titles tell you almost nothing. The way a money professional is paid tells you almost everything, because it quietly decides whose side they are on. So we sort them not by their card, but by who hands them their money, and show the products each one deals in.
Paid by you
A direct fee
You pay them, openly. They earn nothing from the products they recommend, which removes the biggest conflict in money advice. Fewer conflicts, not zero, and a visible cost.
SEBI Registered Investment Adviser (RIA)advice fee
The only legally defined adviser title. Fee-only, product-neutral, and able to recommend low-cost Direct plans and even implement them for you.
SEBI Registered Research Analystresearch fee
Sells research and stock calls for a fee, not advice tailored to you. The regulated home of the "tip".
Deals in
Portfolio Manager (PMS)management and performance fees
Runs an individually-held portfolio for larger investors, paid by you rather than by product commission.
Deals in
AIF Managermanagement fee and carry
Runs a pooled alternative fund for sophisticated investors, paid by management fees and a share of profits.
Deals in
Paid by the seller
Commission
You are rarely handed a bill, so it feels free, but you pay all the same, through commissions taken from your own money. Useful for what they do, and quietly tilted toward what pays them.
Mutual Fund Distributor (MFD)trail commission
Sells and services mutual funds, paid a commission built into the Regular plans you hold.
Deals in
Insurance Agent and Brokercommission from the insurer
Sells and services insurance, paid most on the products that bundle investment with cover.
Deals in
Bank Relationship Managersalary and sales targets
Works for the bank, not for you, and sells from the bank's chosen shelf, weighted toward what it earns most on.
Sells the bank's shelf
Stock Brokerbrokerage on your trades
Provides the rails to buy and sell, and earns more the more you trade, which is its own kind of incentive.
Deals in
PMS Distributortrail commission from the manager
Sells you a PMS that someone else runs, and earns a commission for the introduction. Not the manager.
Deals in
AIF Distributorcommission from the manager
Sells you an AIF that someone else runs. Ask for the Direct plan to skip the commission entirely.
Either way
Depends on the setup
For these, the label does not tell you how they are paid. You have to ask, because the same title can sit on a fee or a commission.
Certified Financial Planner (CFP)fee or commission
A qualification, not a pay model. A CFP can be a fee-only adviser, a commission distributor, or a salaried employee. Ask which.
Family Officefee or product-linked
Coordinates a wealthy family's whole financial life. Clean when fee-based, conflicted when it earns from the products it places you in.
Robo-advisor and Investing Appfee, commission, or flat
Could be a fee-charging adviser, a commission-earning distributor, or an execution-only platform. The tell is whether it puts you in Regular or Direct plans.
Deals in
Chartered Accountant (CA)fee for tax, commission if selling
Paid a clean fee for tax and accounts, where they are excellent. Treat any product they also sell like any other commission pitch.
Their lane is tax and accounts, not investment products.
Some things have no salesperson at all. You set them up yourself, which is exactly why no one calls to offer them, the PPF, EPF and NPS trio, fixed deposits, gold and real estate. You can find all of these, and every guide, on the Guides page.