When asked whether would Zurich buy any more intermediaries, the group’s intermediary director Richard Howells said the provider is currently reviewing the market, but has no immediate plans to acquire advisory businesses.
Speaking to FTAdviser, he said: “We are always looking at what is happening and the benefit of being well connected to the market is it allows us to see what’s going on.”
“Zurich is a growth business so we will pursue a strategy that optimises growth in whichever way that happens.”
Mr Howells added that Zurich remained focused on its retail and corporate businesses while appreciating the need to keep an eye on the way the market is moving.
He said: “I think all market participants are looking across the value chain and saying how can we optimise our business. I think that is a conversation that is being had right across the industry.”
“Like everybody, our strategy can’t be fixed to the point it will never change but our focus is on driving forward where we are at the moment.”
When asked for his thoughts on continued speculation that Zurich wished to sell its stake in Openwork, he said: “We remain an intermediated business, we have a great relationship with Openwork and our focus at the minute is on growing our two core businesses which is our retail and corporate.”
Openwork Group is owned, in ordinary shares, 67.5 per cent by its advisers, 7.5 per cent by its employees and 25 per cent by Zurich.
In July Openwork reported it had seen its pre-tax profits for 2014 surge to £3.8m up from the £300,000 it posted for 2013.
The previous year (2012), Openwork posted its first ever profit of £600,000, following a £13m loss in 2011 which was mostly down to £7m of exceptional costs incurred through a restructuring.
In July, the network also announced another “radical” restructure of its distribution business in an attempt to further build profitability, with the division of three distinct business units – wealth, mortgage and protection.
The latest annual results confirmed three consecutive years of profitability, after making significant losses in the years following its inception in 2005.
