Mattioli Woods and Openwork see profits jump

Mattioli Woods plans further acquisitions while Openwork passed the 3,500 adviser mark

Mattioli Woods

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Aim-listed wealth manager Mattioli Woods has reported a 16.2% jump in its full year revenue, from £50.5m in 2017 to £58.6m this year.

The specialist wealth management and employee benefits firm reported its pre-tax profit rose 27.3% to £9.8m, from £7.7m in 2017.

The strong figures followed a period of expansion for the firm, having acquired Broughtons Financial Planning for £4m in August, alongside others.

More acquisitions afoot

Chief executive Ian Mattioli (pictured) said the firm has plans to continue on the acquisition trail.

He  said: “I am pleased to report another year of strong and sustainable growth. Recent acquisitions and investments continue to perform well.

“With increasing complexity and continuing consolidation across the key markets in which we operate, we expect there will be further opportunities to accelerate our growth by acquisition.”

Mattioli Woods has also been expanding its geographic footprint, having moved to a new Manchester office in May, with plans to open an Edinburgh office this month and move to a new Leicester office in October.

In its full year report, Mattioli Woods said it manages £8.73bn assets under management (AUM), up 10% on last year.

Mattioli added: “Organic growth was supplemented by full-year revenues of £1.7m (2017: £1.2m) from the MC Trustees pension administration business acquired in September 2016 and our share of profits from Amati increased to £0.2m (2017: £0.1m).

“Amati has enjoyed strong growth in gross assets under management, which increased from £175.7m at the start of the year to £325.1m at the year end.”

Openwork

Meanwhile, Openwork reported record profits and a sixth consecutive year of growth with pre-tax profits for the year ending 31 December 2017 at £19.1m.

In its update on Tuesday, Openwork said adviser numbers grew by 400 in 2017 to finish the year at 3,603. The number of staff supporting these advisers also increased from 438 to 481.

Elsewhere, in-house fund assets at Openwork’s investment arm Omnis, grew by £1.6bn, exceeding £5.6bn.

The firm also saw significant growth to its platform with assets increasing 35% to reach £6.2bn.

Chief executive officer of Openwork, Mark Duckworth, thanked “dedicated advisers, staff and management” who helped make it a record year.

He said: “This vertically integrated model gives Openwork a strong base from which to drive sustainable consistent growth over the coming years. We will continue to enhance our client proposition and business structure to meet evolving financial needs.

“It remains the case that, in overall terms, the UK population is under served for financial advice. The UK has an ageing population who are increasingly being asked to make provision for their own financial security and requirements.

“This shift to personal responsibility, coupled with a complex set of choices and rules for individuals and families, inevitably leads to an increased demand for more financial advice.”

Openwork also reported a 22% growth in mortgage lending to £13.5bn.

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