Killingbeck reveals triple-pronged growth strategy for WH Ireland

WH Ireland chief Richard Killingbeck is implementing a triple-pronged growth strategy to build the assets managed out of each of the company’s eight core offices above £250 million.

Killingbeck, who took over from Paul Compton in January, has already overseen the acquisition of Seymour Pierce’s private client division. While further opportunistic purchases present one avenue of growth, he is keen to focus on building up the local offices’ assets organically through referrals.

He also aims to improve the firm’s professional connections by hiring a head of business development.

‘We have eight core offices with the infrastructure we need to build the assets managed out of those local locations,’ he said. ‘Manchester and London aside, we want each regional office to have at least £250-£300 million,’ he told Wealth Manager.

Earlier this month WH Ireland paid £25,000 for the Seymour Pierce division, which was in administration. It had £270 million in assets under management (AUM) and generated £200,000 in the year ended 30 September, according to the firm.

Killingbeck (pictured) is now contacting clients ahead of novating them over, a process he expects to take between three and six months. As part of the deal, eight Seymour Pierce wealth managers and brokers and four support staff will move across to WH Ireland’s London office.

The deal is the firm’s second such transaction in less than 12 months. Last February, it paid £500,000 for Pritchard Stockbrokers’ 8,000-strong client book, valued at £400 million in AUM.

One year on, Killingbeck said only about 2,000 of those clients were active with total assets of £250 million, but he says the ‘vast majority’ of that money has now come over.

‘The Seymour Pierce transaction from a client perspective is smaller but the underlying clients have greater assets. With the Pritchards deal we ended up with a lot of offices and this one has none.’

In December and January, WH Ireland closed the Swansea, Windsor, Woking and Saffron Walden offices it acquired as part of the deal, and clients were migrated to the appropriate local office.