LIVES
South West London and Somerset
FAMILY
Family Widowed in 2000. Twin boys (one in the Army and one at Lloyds Bank)
STARTED AT JM FINN
1 July 2020
FAVOURITE BOOK
Anything by William Boyd – particularly Any Human Heart
HERO
The Queen
PASSION
Passion Italy for its art, food, spectacular scenery, sun and snow
FAVOURITE MUSIC
Mozart, Puccini and The Rolling Stones
MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO
An efficient and effective roll-out of the COVID-19 vaccination programme worldwide
As a recent joiner to JM Finn, can you tell us what it was that made you want to come here?
I wanted to join a company which was smaller, more collegiate and less bureaucratic than my former employer. I had met some JM Finn people over the years and liked the sound of the culture here. Luckily so far, despite the almost unprecedented difficulties in joining a new organisation in the time of COVID-19, my new colleagues have been welcoming and supportive. I would like to give particular thanks to the IT department and to the Post Room!
What areas of the industry do you think need the most attention from practitioners and regulators alike?
I think practitioners have had no choice but to get to grips with the increasing demands of regulation and compliance. We all accept that, provided these demands meet the standards required in protecting our clients’ interests perhaps rather than our own. I would, however, like to see firmer action from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on the rogue operators such as London Capital & Finance. Every time there is a problem caused by a company which, arguably in many cases should not have been allowed to be in operation in the first place, the rest of the industry has to pick up the bill by funding the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). The associated charges are unfortunately often transferred ultimately to our client base, the very people the regulators are trying to protect.
What is it that you enjoy so much about wealth management?
First and foremost the contact with clients and building up relationships over the years, sometimes with three generations of the same family. It is a great privilege to be able to make a contribution to building up the long-term security of people who trust you.
As a major part of the job, we are required on a daily basis to get to grips with the ongoing political, economic and commercial events of the day. As we all know, a good example of the constantly changing world which of course impacts on the investment world too, are the technological advances made in recent years which have been truly stunning. As Ben Rogoff of Polar Capital has said, the mobile telephone with all its functionalities is perhaps one of the most important inventions since Caxton’s printing press. It is amazing to think that this development has occurred within the last 20 years!
In the investment world, we constantly have to try to understand and evaluate new challenges coming along, such as the current hydrogen revolution and electrical vehicles (and all the implications that stem from this). It is a fascinating world and we are lucky to have the opportunity to explore it in such depth, supported as we are by the analyst community and, indeed, our own research department, on behalf of our clients.
