The distribution arm of St James’s Place saw losses rise in 2014, largely due to its acquisition of advisory firm Henley Group last year.
The wealth manager’s annual results, published today (25 February), showed that the advice arm posted a loss of £10.9m for 2014, compared to 2013’s £6.1m. This includes a “negative contribution” of £1.7m from Henley Group, which was acquired by SJP in June last year.
Henley, which was recently rebranded as St James’s Place Asia, provides financial advice to expats based in Shanghai, Singapore and Hong Kong.
SJP also said the loss reflects higher expenses last year associated with the “strong increase in adviser recruitment in recent years”. The total number of qualified advisers were up 10.3 per cent last year to 2,835.
It also pointed to the continued impact of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme levy, which amounted to £5.9m last year, compared to £5.5m in the previous year.
However, SJP still reported that its funds under management hit £52bn last year, a 17 per cent increase on the previous year. Total new single investments were also up 18 per cent to £7.8bn, while net inflow of funds under management were up 20 per cent to £5.09bn.
The group is also set to introduce a new banking service in April, in association with Metro Bank, called the St. James’s Place Money Management Account.
It will offer eligible clients a fully functional banking service, including cheques, debit cards, mobile access and other on line services.
In addition, the account will have the “added benefit” of an integrated secured overdraft facility, providing immediate access to short term funds, secured against the value of their St. James’s Place investment portfolio.
David Bellamy, chief executive, said this year the group plans to strengthen its client relationships through the continual development of the approach to the management of their wealth and the addition of complementary services.
“We begin 2015 with confidence that we are well positioned for future growth, in line with our medium to long-term objectives.”
donia.o’loughlin@ft.com
