When every wealth manager is calling, how to filter who is worth your time

Past a certain net worth the calls do not stop, and the callers all wear the same title and the same warm smile. You cannot meet them all, and you should not. This is a simple filter, so you can tell a fiduciary from a salesperson in one conversation, before you hand over your time or your numbers.

Why you, and why now

The attention is not a compliment, it is a consequence. Once your assets cross a threshold, you move from being nobody's priority to being everybody's target. Banks, distributors, portfolio managers and insurers all have products that pay more on a larger ticket, and lists of people like you. The warmth is real and the pitch is well practised. Neither tells you whether the person is on your side.

The one question that sorts most of them

Before anything else, ask how they are paid. Not what they charge, how they are paid. The answer drops almost everyone into one of three boxes, and the box matters more than the brochure.

Fee-only, fee-based, and commission, in plain terms

A fee-only adviser is paid only by you. This is the SEBI Registered Investment Adviser, who by law cannot also pocket commission on what they recommend. A fee-based adviser charges you a fee and also earns commission, so the conflict has not gone away, it has just been split in two. A commission seller, the bank relationship manager, the distributor, the insurance agent, is paid by the maker of the product, which quietly shapes the shelf they show you.

Source: SEBI, register of Investment Advisers

None of the three is evil, and a commission seller can be useful for what they do. But the box tells you whose side the incentive sits on, which is exactly what the smile is there to soften. For the fuller version of this idea, see who your advisor works for.

What a real fiduciary will happily agree to

• Put the fee in writing, and tell you every way they are paid.
• Recommend low-cost Direct plans, and earn nothing extra for doing so.
• Show performance net of fees against a benchmark, not a glossy model portfolio.
• Say "I do not know" and "this does not suit you", and mean it.

None of this is a big ask of someone who is actually on your side. Hesitation on any of it is information.

The lines that should end the call

• "This is a special, limited opportunity for select clients."
• "Guaranteed" or "assured" returns well above what a fixed deposit pays.
• Pressure to decide now, or to move your whole portfolio at once.
• An answer to "how are you paid" that is vague, offended, or "do not worry about that".

For the fuller catalogue of pitch lines and what each one hides, see the red flags guide.

Verify before you trust

Whatever the card says, you can confirm what someone actually is on the regulator's own register, in two minutes. An RIA appears on the SEBI list, a distributor on AMFI, an insurance agent or broker with IRDAI. Registration does not prove they are any good. It proves what they are allowed to do and how they are paid, which is the part the introduction leaves out. Every official register sits on the Verify page.

What to do with the ones worth a second look

For the few who pass, slow down rather than speed up. Ask the questions that cut through, meet without committing money, and take the time to read what they send. The good ones will not mind the wait, because the wait is exactly what they would advise you to do.

Related: who is your advisor actually working for? →

Related: the SEBI Registered Investment Adviser, the fee-only option →

This guide is educational and general, not advice on your specific situation. It describes how money professionals are paid and how to check them, so you can choose well on your own terms.