After an improved performance by its wealth management arm, WH Ireland has its sights set on external growth through acquisition.
The wealth business reported losses of £6m in the 2018-2019 financial year, but these losses have decreased significantly to £166k in the six months to the end of September 2021. Meanwhile, the overall group posted a profit of £1.1bn
Steve Ford was hired as executive director for WH Ireland in 2018 to help turn its finances around. He attributed the performance boost to a “mixture” of revenue sources, such as the acquisition of Harpsden Wealth Management last year.
Mr Ford commented: “We are focused on the sub-£1bn area of the market, and probably on the £250m to £700m area, as we think pricing in that area is much more reasonable than in other areas.
“We were able to integrate Harpsden successfully during the lockdown, I mean, we didn’t meet those people for eight months. But one of the reasons for the better financial performance is that we retained the vast majority of the Harpsden clients even as we were moving them to another platform.”
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