Under 30 wealth boss: 'Five-year plan is to get to £1bn mark'

Currently, the business - which has a financial planning side and a discretionary fund management arm - manages £500mn.

The firm wants to double this figure, primarily through a series of bolt-on acquisitions.

BRI Wealth's boss, Dan Boardman-Weston, joined the wealth manager in 2011 after he had just finished his A-Levels.

“While the rest of my friends at university were drinking, I was stuck with spreadsheets,” he told FTAdviser.

Having joined as a teenager, Boardman-Weston spent the past 10 or more years learning the ins and outs of the business before his father, Simon, passed over the reins in March. 

“I’ve had to earn my stripes. If anything, my father is harder on me. It has been many years and hours on the investment side.”

Boardman-Weston also left for a year in 2017 to complete an MBA at Warwick University. He said this was “crucial” to gaining a broader brush of skills, such as operations, marketing, and leadership.

Now, some four months into the top role, he has his eye set on big growth targets for the business which he intends to fuel with bolt-on acquisitions.

We’re looking at bolt-ons. We will never compromise client service.Dan Boardman-Weston, BRI Wealth Management

“We’re going places. We’re gaining a lot of traction with clients,” said Boardman-Weston. “Our five-year plan is to get to the £1bn mark. We’ve got a strong balance sheet, so doing some small acquisitions seems sensible to boost growth.”

BRI Wealth was bought by its major shareholder - Dan’s father - back in 1992 when it managed £6mn of client assets.

When Dan joined, the Meriden-based company was managing £100mn. Today, this figure has grown to £500mn.

Traditionally, the company has grown organically through referrals - both from clients and IFA partners, or through expanding current services to existing clients.

The average age of new clients is definitely coming down.Dan Boardman-Weston, BRI Wealth Management

In order to double its assets, BRI Wealth intends to buy a steady stream of small, one-person IFAs looking to sell up, but not to a consolidator.

“A deal like this will completely change how their clients are looked after, so it’s important to  find the right buyer. That’s why we’re looking at bolt-ons. We will never compromise client service,” said Boardman-Weston.

“I find it interesting how many firms are being bought, and how much private equity money there is. I’m not sure if it always ends well, lots of large firms versus smaller firms. I’m not sure it’s a good thing for the consumer, having that much market share at the top.

“They will reach a scale, do the private equity dance and then play pass the parcel, either to a trade buyer, they’ll float on the market, or sell to foreign firm.”

BRI Wealth has already bought two IFAs and signed an introducer with a third. Boardman-Weston could not confirm how many more deals the wealth manager is eyeing up, but did say more will follow before the end of the firm’s financial year in March 2023.

Acquiring younger clients

Boardman-Weston said the markets have been “atrocious” this past year but despite this, he reckons his firm has had a good 12 months in terms of growth.

Traditionally, the majority of the company’s clients were decumulators, drawing down with a high average age.

Nowadays, the firm finds itself serving younger business owners in their 40s and 50s. 

“The average age of new clients is definitely coming down,” said Boardman-Weston.

“BRI has definitely gotten younger in the past 10 years. When I joined, I was the youngest person by about 10 or 15 years.”

Part of the reason for this has been the firm’s shifted focus on the financial planning route.

“It enables you to have earlier touch points. A lot more people who are just starting out at work need to get pensions sorted. 35-year-olds need basic pensions and Isa advice” said Boardman-Weston.

“The industry is getting better at coming up with solutions for younger generations. Going out and acquiring younger clients - you’ve got to be pragmatic about it. If we get it right, it can be a very successful relationship. If we sort their pension now and they stay with us for 40-50-years, that’s brilliant.”

The change in client base has reflected in the firm’s culture. “We’re not ageist,” said Boardman-Weston.

“It’s the right person for the job. I don’t care how old they are. But the culture of the firm has naturally changed, so we attract younger people giving us more of a buzz. It’s not been a conscious decision, it just happened.”

ruby.hinchliffe@ft.com