US fund house Wellington Investment Management is expanding into the UK retail market by making its products available to advisers.
The company has assets under management of £830bn, but its products have, until now, only been available in the UK to institutional clients.
In a statement released this morning, Matt Knight, Wellington's head of UK distribution, said the company had reached an agreement with wealth management firm Raymond James.
It means Raymond James advisers will be able to buy Wellington's the investment products, which include equity funds, fixed income funds, alternative investments and multi-asset products.
Mr Knight said: “The UK wealth market is an important strategic focus for Wellington.”
He added that the agreement with Raymond James was part of Wellington's plan to grow in the UK wealth market.
Stuart Wright, Raymond James's UK head of operations and product development, said: "We are pleased to be one of the first platforms in the UK to partner with Wellington. We offer the wealth managers who work with us access to a diverse range of investment products, and we believe that Wellington’s history and approach really sets them apart.
"In particular, given the growing fintech investment landscape, the Wellington FinTech fund is a welcome pure-play fintech solution. Our parent company, Raymond James Financial, and its US subsidiaries already have a strong, long-standing relationship with Wellington, and we are delighted to expand that relationship into the UK.”
Raymond James has been expanding the number of advisers in the UK and, in particular, is targeting an increase in the number of female advisers.
david.thorpe@ft.com
