Ricky Chan, director at IFS Pensions and Wealth, thought any business would be impacted by media attention as it would cause clients to ask about costs, but said whether SJP responded to this was a “different issue”.
He added: “A lot of their clients buy into the premium brand that SJP has built so it’s hard to tell. I think probably in a down-turn we would see clients being more cost conscious.”
A spokesperson from St James’s Place said: “Independent research by Grant Thornton shows that St James’s Place has competitive fees compared to other fully advised wealth management services in the UK.
“Our focus is on providing quality face-to-face advice and, at an investment level, selecting the best managers from the global investment market to provide clients with well diversified portfolios to meet their investment risk.”
The spokesperson said SJP continually monitored its fund managers and were able to change at short notice without inconvenience or cost to clients.
imogen.tew@ft.com
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