The chief executive of Tavistock Investments has admitted he does not know how successful the company's newly launched direct-to-consumer app will be as he gave further details on the company's venture into this field.
Brian Raven was speaking after Tavistock announced plans for a D2C service through a smartphone app called "i-stock" which will launch in early 2019.
He said: "In the first instance this will be an app through which a consumer can open an Isa or a GIA to invest in the capital protection portfolio.
"If it is successful I would intend that we would have all Tavistock Wealth products and services available through the app."
However, when asked about the potential success of the app, he said: "The honest answer is I don't know because it is new territory for us. We have bided our time and we are very focused about what we want to do.
"The key advantages we have are we are selling a product that is not like anyone else is offering and we are not charging the client for opening an account and running it."
Mr Raven said there would be no minimum investment on the service either.
He predicted that interest in the service would be driven through consumers themselves but also through advisers, since Tavistock's capital protection portfolio is only available on five platforms.
Mr Raven said: "Whilst it is a non-advised distribution channel, it makes the product instantly available everywhere in the country. I think we may find certainly some of our own advisers and those outside the business will use i-stock as a means to invest clients in the capital protection products."
Earlier today Tavistock published its results for the six months to the end of September, which saw its losses fall by 61 per cent to £187,000.
Tavistock's funds under management grew for the 16th consecutive quarter, reaching £941m, a 26 per cent increase over the last year and a 190 per cent increase since September 2016.
During the six month period Tavistock launched of Tavistock Law, a specialist investment advice business endorsed as the preferred provider to the Law Society.
Mr Raven said these partnerships would be key for the company's future profitability.
He said: "If we are successful in [negotiating some key strategic partnerships] then we will see profitability rise quickly."
damian.fantato@ft.com
