When in 1979 Margaret Thatcher lifted exchange controls and enabled individuals and corporations to hold foreign currencies, it opened the door for foreign capital into Britain. The subsequent deregulation of the Stock Exchange in 1986 was a further invitation to the world’s largest firms to enter the trading floor.
One firm that capitalised on these changes was Bank Sarasin, a family run private bank based in Geneva, Switzerland, which seized the opportunity to set up shop in the UK. It was out of this that the bank’s fund management arm, Sarasin & Partners, emerged and really found its identity in the mid ’90s when a number of staff bought a share of the equity.
That equity position has remained largely unaltered since, with the partners currently owning 46% of the firm. Bank J Safra Sarasin is the firm’s major shareholder, owning 54%, which was set up after former owner Rabobank sold Bank Sarasin to the Safra Group in 2012.
Sarasin & Partners today manages £14.2bn on behalf of private clients, charities intermediaries and institutions in the UK and around the world.
According to Jamie Black, partner and head of private clients, the combination of a strong partnership with the parent and the “fully invested” equity ownership model sets the firm apart from its peers.
“Everybody who has a bit of that 46% of the equity has paid for it in full; it is not given to us,” he says. “That means everybody who owns it has made a major financial commitment to the firm.”
Continuity counts
This commitment, adds Black, shines through in the firm’s “extraordinary” staff continuity record, which is crucial to fostering solid relationships with clients.
“We feel very strongly about continuity,” he says. “I have been here for 21 years now and a number of my colleagues have been here for a similar length of time, which is not untypical at all.”
Indeed, chief investment officer and senior partner Guy Monson, who Black describes as the “architect of the firm’s investment process and a key part of the culture”, has been with the firm since the mid ’80s, while chief financial officer Tom Service and managing partner Guy Matthews have similarly been with the firm a long time.
“People who buy into the partnership culture tend to stay through thick and thin,” says Black. “That is important, not only for our staff but also our clients.”
Musing the subject of loyalty in the wider industry, Black believes it is fair to say that these days the “revolving door” of staff is “revolving faster and faster”. As a result, institutions don’t tend to show much loyalty to their employees and don’t get much in return.
“If you look at the CVs we get, many people have done two or three years here or there. Putting yourself in the shoes of clients it is very annoying if every time you ring up the person you speak to has moved on.
“One of the joys of looking after private wealth and charities is the chance to build long term relationships.”
Black describes the relationship with the parent company as “great” and despite operating as separate entities, he believes its balance sheet strength and high tier-1 capital ratio are reassuring factors for private and charity clients. The bank has representation on Sarasin & Partners’ board.
Close encounters
This close relationship is also evident in the way client portfolios are managed. Black emphasises every member of the Sarasin & Partners team, both asset management and client affairs, is expected to have an in depth understanding of each client portfolio and be able to explain exactly why a particular stock or strategy has been chosen.
