Thurleigh Investment Managers has partnered with Novia Financial to bring its investment expertise to Independent Financial Advisers. IFAs using Novia’s wealth management platform will be able to choose from four global, multi-asset strategies managed by Thurleigh’s award-winning investment team: Very Low Risk, Low Risk, Medium Risk and High Risk.
This is the first time IFAs will have access to Thurleigh’s investment engine; Thurleigh currently manages £300 million in bespoke portfolios for private clients and charities. While Thurleigh does not offer any packaged funds, its clients’ mandates are structured around four model portfolios according to risk appetite. These models, which have audited track records of three to eight years, will be available for IFAs via Novia’s platform. Thurleigh’s Investment Committee focuses on top down asset allocation and implements its views as efficiently as possible using a combination of ETFs and third-party managed funds.
Charles MacKinnon, CIO of Thurleigh Investment Managers, commented:
“This is a natural fit for us as from the outset we have managed our portfolios on a model basis. Unlike other Discretionary Fund Managers on Novia, we manage our own money in exactly the same way as on the platform. These models have our full attention; we do not have in-house funds; we do not have a financial advisory division; this is the entirety of what we do.
“We are unconstrained global asset allocators, and this investment style fits well within the platform. Equally, our expertise both in index funds and the institutional fund management world means that we can keep the Total Expense Ratio low.
“We believe that, partly due to the changes that will be forced on the industry in 2013 by the Retail Distribution Review, there will be a growing demand for our services from the IFA community. At a time when the appropriateness of risk is under scrutiny, the clarity and transparency of our strategies should help IFAs to explain to their clients what return to expect form each risk profile.
Dave Field, Head of Institutional Businessat Novia Financial, said:
“Thurleigh has a proven track record and a wealth of experience in the wealth management industry. Their focus on processes and asset allocation in making investment choices for their client, have made their investment style popular amongst advisers. The transparent and clean charging structure of a platform such as Novia, with all rebates credited in full to the client, is a perfect fit with use of a DFM solution for many advisers.
“We have seen a huge shift in the market towards discretionary managers and model portfolios with substantial inflows via these investment vehicles onto the Novia platform. For an adviser, using a DFM or model portfolio can not only help to manage risk in their business, but increases efficiency, allowing the adviser more time to spend advising and managing their clients."