Sector Focus
Finance ‘Watchdog needs more experts’
A leading independent financial advisor has called for the industry’s watchdog to employ more people with hands-on experience of work in the sector. Mike Jordan, whose company Jordan
Financial Management has just celebrated 25 years in business in Sutton Coldfield, says the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) would better understand the challenges faced by independent financial advisors (IFAs) if its staff had direct experience of the market. He said: “I would like to see a significant
proportion of the staff at the FCA coming from a background of former IFAs and other people who have worked in the personal financial advice market. That way, they would have a clear understanding of what we actually do. “It would also help them better
understand what clients are looking for in relation to advice and then how the regulations need to work to protect consumers but also promote and encourage the taking of advice.” Last month the FCA published a long-
awaited 66-page review of the financial advice market, which claimed there was not enough effective competition in the sector. The watchdog also warned IFAs were not
Mike Jordan: watchdog doesn’t understand challenges of personal financial sector
being encouraged to offer more affordable services, particularly to less wealthy customers.
Addmaster sale complete
Bracebridge Corporate Finance has advised on the £33m sale of Addmaster to Swedish company Polygiene for £33m. Addmaster is a UK-based
supplier of antibacterial additives .It supplies performance- enhancing additives for the plastic, paper, textiles, paints and coatings industry. The acquisition brings
together Addmaster’s expertise in antimicrobial technologies on hard surfaces with Polygiene’s long-standing reputation in odour control and antiviral solutions for textiles. Addmaster’s Biomaster
technology, designed to prevent bacteria and viruses growing, has been in high demand and has been adopted in a diverse range of applications. The technology has also
completed extensive testing and has been found to be effective on both porous and non-porous substrates against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19. This means Biomaster can give
up to 99 per cent protection just four hours after it has been added to products, preventing any bacteria or virus growing on everyday items.
72 CHAMBERLINK February 2021 Addmaster founder Paul
Morris said: “This is a fantastic deal for our business and gives us the financial backing and global resources we need to maximise the potential of our products, including the world- leading antimicrobial protection offered by Biomaster.” Bracebridge managing
director Andy Moore said: “We have worked with Addmaster over the last three years and have seen the business go from strength to strength. The sale to Polygiene is the result of many years hard work from Paul and his team. We advised the shareholders on the sale, project managing and negotiating the deal with Polygiene.” Adam McGiveron and Emma
Bryant of Shakespeare Martineau provided legal advice to the sellers. Mr McGiveron said: “We are
delighted to have worked with Addmaster and its shareholders to achieve an outstanding result for the business. The deal is a superb example of a Midlands business being advised by Midlands advisors on an international transaction.”
However, Mr Jordan said the issue of
growing regulatory costs could be stopping the market from reaching more consumers. He said: “Every time the regulator adds
more requirements and processes you have to then spend more money on either employing more staff or outsourcing to get these requirements covered. “Then there are the spiralling regulatory
and FSCS (Financial Services Compensation Scheme) fees – so the starting point is charging enough to cover the costs of things you are required to do under regulations, then the costs of enabling your business to achieve the level of service you want to provide to your clients.” However, Mr Jordan said he welcomed
FCA plans to double-down on so-called ‘robo-advice’ – automated online investment services which typically ask 10-15 simple questions and then allocate a basket of investments. He said: “Taking independent financial
advice is the better route for me because, in most cases, the adviser picks up on so many things when they meet the client above and beyond what the client originally came to speak to you about. “I suspect all this is missed with robo-
advice and you’re then also limiting yourself to one investment provider.”
Investment competition is set to intensify, says EY
Competition for investment is set to intensify after the UK markets closed last year with a flourish of activity, which is predicted to continue in 2021, according to EY’s latest market tracker IPO Eye. After a subdued first half in
2020, Q3 saw the re-emergence of IPO (initial public offering) activity, followed by a significant upturn in Q4.
In the final quarter of the year,
the main market had 17 IPOs raising £3.4bn, compared with three in Q3 raising £3.3bn. Activity also accelerated on AIM
(Alternative Investment Market) with 10 IPOs in the quarter raising £192m, compared with three in Q3 raising £76m. In total, 40 IPOs listed in the UK
in 2020 – 25 on the main market and 15 on AIM – a total increase of 11 per cent when compared to 2019 (36 listings). This brings total funds raised through IPOs last year - on both markets and all routes - to £9.4bn, representing a year-on-year increase of 31 per cent from £7.2bn. At the end of 2020, the UK
maintained its third position behind the US and Chinese markets for funds raised, both in the final
quarter and in the full year to date. In addition, more than 40 per
cent of total capital raised by commercial companies in Europe in 2020 through IPOs was on the UK markets, demonstrating the continued preeminence of the market in Europe. Technology IPOs raised more
than 25 per cent of the total funds raised in 2020, no doubt fuelled by the impact of Covid-19. Follow-on activity was again
strong in Q4 2020 with existing issuers raising circa £15bn, bringing the annual total to over £40bn – the largest total since 2009 in the aftermath of the financial crisis. Despite the return of lockdown restrictions, the appetite for IPOs is predicted to increase through 2021, although this may have the effect of pushing some IPOs back to later in the year. Dan Salt, a director and head of
the M&A team at EY in Birmingham, comments: “Building on the momentum that we saw in Q3, the UK markets have successfully weathered the challenges brought by Covid-19 and have bounced back in the final quarter of 2020.”
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88
