Institutions

Taking Unconstrained Investing to the Mass Affluent

Innovative asset manager, London & Capital, today announced that its recently launched Portfolio Management Service (‘PMS’) had joined forces with SimplyBiz, the UK’s fastest growing financial  services support company.  SimplyBiz serves more than 4,500 authorised advisers at more than 2,000 firms; its decision to include London & Capital’s Service within its Capital Reward Programme is testimony to the work the firm has put in over recent months to reach out to the UK’s mass affluent serving adviser community.

London & Capital has a history in absolute return investing* dating back over two decades.  The Company’s new Service sees a shift into the UK IFA space with some 75% of the business likely to emanate from Nationals and Networks.  Outsourcing investment management is a growing phenomenon amongst advisers responsible for managing the assets of mass affluent clients (those with £50,000 to £250,000) aspiring to a portfolio service rather than a simple product purchase.  Advisers will have the ability to maintain their client’s existing platform administration whilst taking advantage of a range of risk/return weighted model portfolios built and managed by London & Capital.

The Service has attracted considerable interest given its unconstrained investing style, whilst delivering both cost and time efficiencies for advisers.  Unlike Multi-Manager products, the portfolios are not controlled or confined by peer groups and their unconstrained fund selection allows London & Capital to blend portfolios designed to adhere to their risk/return budgets rather than peer group asset weightings.  The new Service invests in a shortlist of funds selected by the independent research consultancy Old Broad Street Research and within the context of a top-down asset allocation framework set by the London & Capital investment team, headed by Chief Investment Officer, Ashok Shah.  Selections are based on OBSR’s proven and robust research methodology applied across UK authorised Unit Trusts, OEICs and UK-friendly offshore funds.  With platform adoption growing apace, a key feature of the PMS is its’ ability to operate within a wide range of supermarkets and wraps.

Jamie Farquhar, Head of UK Retail, London & Capital commented:
“We are excited to have forged such strong links so early on into our foray into this space and are delighted that SimplyBiz has recognised the demand for unconstrained portfolios in the UK market place.  We believe we have created an innovative product that will best serve intermediaries and their clients without losing sight of the personal nature of the relationship that they share.  By bringing to the market a tailored portfolio service, sitting between multi-manager and discretionary portfolio management services, we are giving advisers a cost-effective solution that gives them and London & Capital a real edge in the market.”

Matt Timmins, Managing Director of Capital Reward, SimplyBiz, said:
“We are delighted to welcome London & Capital as the latest partner to the Capital Reward Programme.  We believe that their flexible product proposition and excellent service orientated approach to business mean that they will be a perfect partner to many investment orientated IFA firms.  We are looking forward to a long and prosperous relationship, which we believe will be a success for everyone involved.”

Those interested in London & Capital’s Portfolio Management Service should contact Jamie Farquhar on 0207 396 3200 or email jamie.farquhar@londonandcapital.com.