Adviser numbers at Sanlam Wealth Planning have fallen by about one in five since August 2012 (21 per cent), figures from Imas Corporate Finance have shown.
According to the M&A adviser, the number of total approved persons at Sanlam Wealth Planning have fallen from a peak of 101 in August 2012 to 79 last month.
But a source close to the company claimed it had seen a raft of departures, but Sanlam UK chief executive Jonathan Polin said its number of advisers was roughly the same as in 2013.
He acknowledged his company’s decision to reduce the number of employed advisers at Sanlam Wealth Planning, which was created from a merger of Sanlam Private Wealth (formerly Denbighshire-based Buckles), and financial advisory firm English Mutual, which Sanlam UK bought in 2014.
Mr Polin said: “A large number of the former Buckles clients did not meet our criteria, so we were able to reduce the number of our employed advisers at Sanlam Private Wealth and improve quality.”
He added that the remaining advisers were now servicing Sanlam UK-owned clients across the country, with wealth planners serving a maximum of 150 clients each.
Mr Polin, who took office on 1 January, said Sanlam Wealth Planning’s model included both employed and self-employed advisers.
Sanlam Wealth Planning also intends to broaden its regional footprint over this year by increasing its number of self-employed advisers. Areas for projected growth include Bristol and the South West, London and the South East, the Thames Valley, the West Midlands, North Wales and the North West.
Mr Polin added: “We have ambitious plans to increase our regional footprint and to open further offices in 2016, and an announcement on the relaunch of our Marlow, Buckinghamshire office will be made shortly.”
As part of a review of SWP’s operational support framework, the company will vacate its existing Rhyl premises – part of the Buckles legacy – this year.
Mr Polin said: “Those facilities no longer meet our requirements. However, we remain committed to a strong presence in North Wales, and a new office will open in that area later in the year.”
The company is still examining its options for its Cheltenham, Gloucestershire office, he added.
Background
■ Buckles was founded in 1997 by Nigel Spiers
■ Sanlam Group acquired a 60 per cent stake in Buckles in 2008
■ Mr Spiers was made head of distribution at Sanlam UK in April 2008
■ Sanlam UK rebranded Buckles as Sanlam Private Wealth in April 2011
■ In 2014 Sanlam UK merged Sanlam Private Wealth with English Mutual to form Sanlam Wealth Planning
