The international arm of investment manager Brooks Macdonald suffered a 10.8% decline in funds under management (FuM) to £1.51bn ($1.97bn, €1.73bn) from £1.69bn in its half year trading update for the period to 31 December 2018.
Brooks Macdonald International’s (BMI) performance for the fourth quarter of 2018 was equally as poor, with a 9.8% fall in FuM to £1.51m from £1.67bn.
It also saw an 8.6% reduction in net new business for the half year, with a loss of £146m; as well as a 5.6% drop of net new business for the quarter, reporting a loss of £94m.
The firm stated that the international business was “affected by the previously disclosed loss of a client-facing team”.
Brooks Macdonald declined to comment further on the results of its international arm after International Adviser reached out to the firm.
But said in its half year trading report that “the pipeline for new business remains encouraging although inevitably sensitive to the current environment”.
“The group has taken action to streamline the business by driving efficiency and effectiveness, improving processes and building a scalable operating model,” it added. The firm believes that these changes will “position of the business to deliver an improved, more consistent client experience and will make it easier for advisers to do business with the firm”.
UK
The UK business did not perform well either, with a 3.5% decline in FuM for second half of 2018, coming in at £10.3bn from £11.1bn.
Overall, the firm suffered a 4.5% fall in total growth across both the UK and international division for the half year.
However, the group’s new net business rose by 1.9% (£241m) during the period, which was due to the success of the UK team bringing in net new business of £388m.
Brooks Macdonald said that its UK business “maintained a good rate of organic growth…in spite of a weak December driven by difficult market conditions”.
Caroline Connellan, chief executive of Brooks Macdonald, said: “We had a good first half notwithstanding December when both markets and client sentiment became weaker as a result of the macroeconomic and political uncertainty.”
She added: “The fundamental opportunity for our business remains strong. I am confident that the strength of our client and adviser relationships, coupled with the investment we are making in our offering, position us well to capture future growth.
“The efficiency measures that we recently announced combined with ongoing cost discipline will help deliver greater value from this opportunity.”
The firm also recently expanded its court of protection offering, and has launched a responsible investment service and is unveiling decumulation service in the coming weeks.
