LF comments on the Rathbones/Castle situation for Citywire

Advisers - what are your thoughts on Rathbones pocketing millions from its subsidiary Castle instead of passing on discounts to clients?

Rathbones made £7.1m in profits last year from Castle Investment Solutions, an unregulated subsidiary that provides due diligence on its panel of discretionary fund manager. 

Clients of Vision are charged an extra due diligence fee for the service, and in return, DFMs discount their fees, so the client doesn't actually pay more - but Rathbones pockets the difference. Last year it made a profit margin of 86% from Castle and £4m dividends were paid up to Rathbones.

More in depth explanation here - https://citywire.com/new-model-adviser/news/revealed-dfm-panels-confused-clients-and-rathbones-18m-profit/a2408339

This piece is just looking at the latest profits/margins etc and reflecting with advisers' thoughts.

Strong views welcomed - what do you think of this arrangement? Should the other firms involved be doing due diligence anyway? Should Rathbones pass on extra discounts to clients? Is it fair game? Thank you.