Maseco will now deliver wealth planning and investment management to French people living in the UK, the first time the firm has branched out to regions outside of the UK and the US.
The wealth management company, which specialises in UK wealth planning for US families, said there is a “strong demand” from the French community in the UK for cross-border wealth planning.
With around c120,000 registered French citizens living in London, and more than twice that amount potentially unregistered, Maseco’s new initiative is designed to cater for the largest expat community in the UK.
The launch of the service comes with news that French expat, Karen Gabay, who has been living in the UK for 17 years, has recently been hired as an investment adviser.
Gabay is a former managing director at Societe Generale and has also had 15 years’ experience in investment banking and asset management.
‘Synergies’
She said there are “a lot of synergies” between American and French expats but that the new service allows greater scope for more offshore savings to create a facility not previously available to the UK-based French community, outside of those services available through large private banks.
“We are very careful when we branch out to a new region,” said Gabay.
“We don’t want to be an expat wealth manager, we want to make sure we serve the communities, and we serve them well.
“I think we wouldn’t launch another in a different European country until we know we have established it well within the French community.”
Managing partner of Maseco, James Sellon, said Karen’s 17 years “living and breathing” as a French expat – alongside Maseco’s infrastructure – will drive the company’s expansion and offer support for the integrated French/UK wealth planning advice to the French community.
He added: “We are taking what we have learnt over the last six years to help those French investors that haven’t got many places to go to.”
