22nd Jun 2016 06:59
LONDON (Alliance News) - Wealth manager European Wealth Group Ltd on Wednesday said it made a wider pretax loss in 2015 due to lower-than-anticipated trading volumes and acquisition costs, though assets under management grew.
European Wealth said its pretax loss for the year to December 31 was GBP1.0 million, compared to a GBP300,000 loss a year earlier. Income from trading activities grew to GBP7.7 million from GBP4.6 million, driven by a full year of trading and organic growth, plus an acquisition-driven boost.
Funds under management for the business grew 20% in the year to GBP1.20 billion from GBP1.00 billion, boosted by a series of acquisitions made by the company. This included the purchases of Greensnow Ltd, the financial planning clients of Bells Solicitors and XCAP Nominees Ltd.
The group had 82 staff on its books at the end of the year, up from 69 a year earlier, of which 49% are fee-earning.
In addition to the growth of its financial planning activities, European Wealth also saw good growth in its treasury and cash management operations.
European Wealth said the trading environment had become volatile in the second half of 2015, making predicting what conditions will be like in 2016 "particularly difficult". But, European Wealth said it anticipates an increased demand for the services the company offers will continue and it will be able to continue growing.
By Sam Unsted; [email protected]; @SamUAtAlliance
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