Wealth managers have had a tough time of late. The screw has been turned on fees, tightened by the rise of tracker funds. Last week, US giant Vanguard, a prolific provider of low-cost funds, received the green light for providing financial advice in the UK, in a further blow to British asset managers.
But it is not all gloom. Although investors kept some of their powder dry last year, because of political uncertainty, Brewin Dolphin still saw net inflows of £1.4bn into its discretionary funds run by managers. Analysts at Liberum said the inflows were “well ahead of peers”.
The FTSE 250 upmarket wealth manager, with a market value of £1.1bn, is on the front foot when the industry is consolidating to boost scale and