What do independent RIAs rank as their top risks in 2025?

Independent advisory firms are signaling a meaningful reshuffling of their risk priorities, according to a new report.

The 2025 Bi-Annual Risk Survey conducted by Golsan Scruggs show that while cyber-breaches still rank as the foremost threat to registered investment advisors, concerns around wire fraud and AI-related mistakes have surged into the upper tier of business vulnerabilities.

The survey evaluated approximately 8,000 RIAs between May and August 2025, collecting input across ten risk categories encompassing technology, compliance, operational exposure, and fiduciary obligations.

It reveals that nearly eight in ten advisors now identify wire fraud and social-engineering schemes as a major risk to their organizations, overtaking regulatory action which has historically been a high-ranking fear.

Meanwhile, about four in ten firms reported that errors introduced by AI tools represent a meaningful new threat to their operating environment. It was the first time that the survey had measured AI-related concerns, reflecting how quickly automation and generative tools have become embedded in advisory workflows.

Although cyber-breaches remain at the top of perceived dangers, their relative share of attention has narrowed compared to prior editions of the research. The shift highlights how technology-enabled fraud and flawed automation can directly compromise client trust and institutional resilience.

“Independent advisors are clearly concerned about how sophisticated technology can negatively affect their practices,” says Ken Golsan, co-founder and managing director of Golsan Scruggs. “Whether it is wire fraud, cyber-attacks or mistakes from AI, we have seen increased desire to manage and mitigate those risks. It is telling that, as hacks to steal client information have become more successful, powered by AI and other new technology, advisors are turning their attention to those areas. We would not be surprised to see these areas top our surveys in the coming years.”

The report suggests that firms should intensify protections surrounding money movement and fraud-prevention workflows, given how frequently attackers target client wire requests and account-change authorizations.

Governance of AI systems requires greater scrutiny, particularly as decision-support models become more integrated into financial planning and research functions, and the expanded cybersecurity threat means incident-response testing, staff training, vendor oversight, and insurance reviews must now accommodate this new combination of technology failures and human-targeted attacks.

Additionally, errors and omissions insurance, operational controls, and internal audit frameworks may require reassessment as exposure categories shift beyond traditional cyber intrusion.