Weatherbys expands wealth arm with brace of hires

Weatherbys Bank has recruited staff from Ansbacher, Coutts and C Hoare as part of a bid to expand its wealth management division by poaching disillusioned private banking clients.

The bank has hired Roddy Buchanan, former head of wealth management at Ansbacher, alongside Stephen Cannons from Coutts, to launch a dedicated investment management division. It has also recruited C Hoare & Co’s former head of financial planning Simon Tuck to expand its financial and wealth planning activities.

Buchanan, the new head of wealth management, said the bank had decided to expand its reach following demand from clients, a number of whom have been disillusioned with the service they have received from other private banks.

He said: ‘If one looks at the private banking scene and wealth management industry as a whole, we have concluded that a large number of our competitors are still pushing product and are entrenched in factory mode rather than delivering personal service. This is demand-led and we see it as a natural first step for clients who want all of their financial affairs looked after.’

The firm will initially launch a financial and wealth planning offering, which it aims to have on the market by October.

The investment management proposition will comprise an open-architecture funded approach, based on several different risk profiles that will target returns above cash.

Weatherbys dates back to the 1770s when solicitor James Weatherby was tasked with protecting entry fees and prize money for the racing industry. It has since come to dominate banking activities among the horse racing fraternity.

Pointing out that the bank is still family owned, Buchanan said: ‘One of the hallmarks of a family-owned business is that we are conservative. That is one reason why the bank has come out relatively unscathed over the past 18 months.