People get things wrong. Clients have witnessed this time and time again. Most vivid is the memory of the economic downturn of 2008 - a people driven crisis. They've lost trust in people, not just wealth managers but just about everyone in the system from the government to the so called smartest guys in the room. The only thing they still trust is math. And Bitcoin - the transaction network and means of exchange - is based on math. I don't care how good a "relationship" we have, I still trust that 2 + 2 = 4 more than any advice you'll give me.

All hope is not lost. I'm not suggesting you hang it up today (though if you're still advising clients to dry their skins for trading in the winter months then it may actually be time you retired). There are tools that wealth managers can use to adapt and stay relevant. Addepar is bridging the data gap for advisors and giving them the tools to compete against Rosie. And the Digital Currency Council is providing advisors with an understanding of the math and the network on which it rests, so they can adapt to Bitcoin rather than be displaced by it.

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