Ben Yearsley, formerly head of research at Charles Stanley Direct, and ex-Hargreaves Lansdown pensions expert Alex Davies have partnered to offer a new service helping high net worth individuals allocate their assets in a more tax-efficient way.
The new business, named Wealthclub, will offer investors products in four key areas: Venture Capital Trusts (VCTs), Enterprise Investment Schemes (EIS), Seed Enterprise Investment Schemes (SEIS) and IHT-focused investment products, as well as providing information to help investors choose the best options.
Wealthclub will operate on an execution-only basis, offering 53 products at launch from providers such as Downing and Foresight. The group said there will be "competitive initial savings" on many of the vehicles available.
Clients will be able to access information about the products through the firm's website www.wealthclub.co.uk, but all investments will have to be made by completing paperwork at this stage.
Yearsley (pictured, right) hopes to change this process over time, providing current values on products for each investor by linking with providers, and developing a platform at a later stage.
"This is a £20bn market, but it has not changed in 20 years. It is behind the times and ripe for innovation," Yearsley said. "We plan to have a function for clients to log in and see current values for all the products they bought through us, but this is still on the drawing board."
Although the firm will not offer investment advice at this point, the aim is to offer products "with good screening to help people decide for themselves", as well as provide impartial opinion on markets and funds. Yearsley also sees the potential to develop a ratings service in the future.
It is almost impossible to find any good information on EIS for example. It is a gap in the market and we want to help investors sort the wheat from the chaff.
"Further down the line, we want to have our own exclusive products," Yearsley said. "We are self-funded and we want to expand rapidly.
"We see an opportunity to do tie-ups with providers and can create innovative products, for example through VCT co-investment schemes."
"The idea for the launch came after Davies left Hargreaves Lansdown and found there was a lack of information on how to invest the money he had made from selling shares in the company in a tax-efficient way.
Davies (pictured, left) said: "It is almost impossible to find any good information on EIS for example; any available was by word of mouth. It is a gap in the market and we want to help investors sort the wheat from the chaff."
The new business is being launched at a time when changes to pensions - including the threat to higher-rate tax relief floated in recent weeks by the government - are increasing interest in vehicles like VCTs and EIS.
Yearsley left his role as head of research at Charles Stanley Direct in June 2015 after nearly three years. He previously worked for Hargreaves from 1997 until 2012. Since leaving Charles Stanley, he has taken on a non-executive role for a Plymouth-based IFA, Shore Financial Planning.
Meanwhile, Davies left his role at Hargreaves two years ago, and has not been involved in the financial services industry since then.
Yearsley and Davies will be joined by Sheridan Leech as head of client services; Dave Suckling as head of compliance and finance; and Marta Caricato as head of marketing.
All members of the new team have previously worked at Hargreaves Lansdown, and each has a share in the new business.
