The UK Wealth Advisory business of Stonehage Fleming, working with aspiring and wealthy clients to develop and implement strategies to protect and manage their wealth.
What differentiates us is our strategic approach. We devote time and energy to really understanding your objectives as experience has shown how important this is.
A wealth strategy sets out your objectives – what you are really trying to achieve for yourself, for your family and for others. This provides the strong foundation for all the advice we give.
Our clients include those who consider their affairs to be straightforward as well as those with the most complex needs. The breadth and depth of our technical expertise allows us to advise UK residents, domiciled and non-domiciled, as well as arrivers and levers in support of UK-based assets.
We are authorised in the UK to provide regulated advice across investments, pensions and insurance.
In wealth planning we are strategists and technicians in one. You can only help someone think about their retirement planning, investments or tax structuring options if you understand the big picture and the purpose of their wealth. I believe that those firms who focus solely for example on investable assets or retirement planning miss so many opportunities to add value for clients. We are unusual in adopting this broader, holistic perspective.
The most important tool we use is our ears. Very often the first thing we say to a potential client is, “tell me about yourself”. We want to know what our clients think and feel about key issues rather than just understand their financial inflows and outflows. We want to know what drives them and what keeps them awake at night. We listen to what they say and use their responses to help build a strategy for their wealth. These conversations can be very interesting and often have very little to do with money.
We generally start with a financial ‘health check’. We do this for clients, no matter what their level of wealth. This enables us to plot someone’s financial position today against their objectives and highlight areas they should consider. We look at ‘what if’ scenarios and demonstrate the relative impact different life events may have, such as a marriage, the arrival of children, retirement or philanthropy. This is a good start for any strategic conversation. Our clients find our approach refreshing and it helps to set us apart from our peers.
We work with a huge range of clients. At one end of the spectrum, we look after ‘accumulators’ who are in the first stages of building their wealth. They could be the next generation who will inherit and require education, or entrepreneurs starting out with limited disposable income. At the other, we look after ultra-high net worth individuals, including private equity professionals or owner managers exiting businesses for multiple millions.
Being part of a wider international family office has many advantages for our clients. Our broad in-house expertise allows us to advise complex clients in a streamlined and efficient way. Our clients have access to numerous specialists, who they can engage with without building relationships from scratch. They have confidence in us to refer them to the best person for the job, whether inside or outside of the firm.
We are a people business. Technology is revolutionising client expectations around delivery but part of what differentiates us in the marketplace is that we build incredible relationships. We truly understand our clients and have the ability to share knowledge built from years of addressing similar issues faced by other families. We would be hard pushed to replace that with technology.
Stonehage Fleming Wealth Planning provide integrated planning and investment advice focused on the needs of UK resident and domiciled, deemed-domiciled clients. Stonehage Fleming denotes that a company is a member of the Stonehage Fleming Family and Partners Group. The information in this article does not constitute an offer or a solicitation and is provided for information purposes only to describe the services offered by Stonehage Fleming and not as the basis for any contract for the purchase or sale of any investment product or service. Investments can fall as well as rise and investments and products mentioned in this presentation may not be suitable for everyone. This article does not take into account the individual circumstances, needs or objectives of the recipient. We do not intend for this information to constitute advice and it should not be relied on as such to enter into a transaction or for any investment decision. Stonehage Fleming Wealth Planning accepts no liability for any action you may take or omit to take as a result of this article. It is not the intention to make our services available in any territories where to do so would be unlawful. Stonehage Fleming Wealth Planning Ltd is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority in the UK. © Copyright Stonehage Fleming 2019. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, on any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission.
Stonehage Fleming Wealth Planning provide integrated planning and investment advice focused on the needs of UK resident and domiciled, deemed-domiciled clients.
What is wealth planning?
Kate Boswell and Matthew Brown on helping individuals and families articulate a strategy for their wealth
KB: In its simplest sense, Wealth Planning is about helping individuals and families to articulate a vision for their wealth and then implement the component parts of it. To be a good wealth planner you need to be a strategist – starting by understanding the big picture before drilling down into the individual technical aspects of a client’s affairs.
MB: Wealth planning is about understanding where our clients are currently, where they want to be and then understanding if their affairs are arranged in the most appropriate way to get them efficiently from A to B.
At what point do people tend to come to you for advice?
MB: Rarely, someone will come to us who simply has a sense that their wealth is at a level where they need professional advice. Usually, however, there is a trigger - be it a pension, investment or tax question. However, to deal effectively with the specific issue, we have to look at the broader picture to understand the context of the question asked. Having ascertained a client’s wider financial position, we can often add much more value in many areas of their wealth planning.
How to you get to grips with individual client requirements?
KB: I often ask new clients what sort of help they feel they need, because I think it is important to make sure that the role we play for our clients adds genuine value to their situation. Making the initial process as consultative as possible ensures that.
We’re also very good at being nosy! Really understanding a client means more than knowing their financial ins and outs – it means understanding what motivates them and what genuinely matters to them. Only once you know this can you say that you act as their trusted adviser.
MB: First we want to know about the nuts and bolts - assets and liabilities, income and expenditure. Wealth is only important relative to what you spend. But we also have to know a client’s objectives. Understanding what someone wants to achieve is fundamental to wealth planning. We also ask a client what keeps them awake at night. Those three things - understanding where someone is, financially, what they want to achieve and what concerns they have - form the basis of a strategic plan.
Stonehage Fleming denotes that a company is a member of the Stonehage Fleming Family and Partners Group. The information in this article does not constitute an offer or a solicitation and is provided for information purposes only to describe the services offered by Stonehage Fleming and not as the basis for any contract for the purchase or sale of any investment product or service. Investments can fall as well as rise and investments and products mentioned in this presentation may not be suitable for everyone. This article does not take into account the individual circumstances, needs or objectives of the recipient. We do not intend for this information to constitute advice and it should not be relied on as such to enter into a transaction or for any investment decision. Stonehage Fleming Wealth Planning accepts no liability for any action you may take or omit to take as a result of this article. It is not the intention to make our services available in any territories where to do so would be unlawful. Stonehage Fleming Wealth Planning Ltd is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority in the UK. © Copyright Stonehage Fleming 2019. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, on any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission.
In November 2018, Stonehage Fleming, entered into a strategic alliance with Glenmede. The partnership brought together the second and third largest independent multi-family offices in the world (Source: Campden FB, April 2018 & Stonehage Fleming August 2018) allowing both businesses to expand their respective client offerings and geographical capabilities around the globe.
We caught up with Peter Rosenberg, Head of our Family Office Division, US and Darrell King, Director of Business Development, US, to hear how things are going.
What cultural synergies made Glenmede and Stonehage Fleming a good fit for each other? PR: Both Stonehage Fleming and Glenmede are driven by the long-term needs of our clients. At the heart of that is remembering that clients are members of families and family is important. Our people understand that. It is written into our culture. We are proud of our low staff turnover and we only work with people who can foster long-term relationships with the clients.
How does that culture benefit our clients?
PR: The independent ownership of both Glenmede and Stonehage Fleming not only has an impact on governance and corporate philosophy, but it also enables us to be more creative and nimble than many competitors. It also means we aren’t hostage to quarterly revenue targets. It frees us to take a longer view of our clients’ objectives - many of which are long-term in nature - and figure out how to best fulfill those objectives.
What is the main challenge for clients moving to the US?
DK: Professional advisers in the US tell us they struggle to identify providers who are comfortable taking on a trust established by a foreign person and who understand the context well. We have been doing it for decades. One of the main challenges for foreign persons investing in or immigrating to the US is finding providers who have experience of working with foreign clients and who understand the relevant cross border planning, implementation and reporting issues.
If a client is moving to the US, they may need a structure that supports pre-immigration. Our partnership with Glenmede ensures we are able to fulfil that need seamlessly. We are able to help people moving either into or out of the US.
What does Stonehage Fleming have that others do not?
PR: Advisers tell us they value an organisation that can now offer a global fiduciary perspective, with tax planning, technical and legal expertise all in-house.
DK:Working in partnership with Glenmede, Stonehage Fleming is a global whole service provider delivering fiduciary and related services inside and outside the US, or both. That is unique. It is not a story others can tell.
The opinions or views expressed are for information purposes only and are subject to change without notice. This information is not intended as promotional material, an offer to sell or a solicitation to buy investments or services. We do not intend for this information to constitute advice, or a personal recommendation, and it should not be relied on as such to enter into a transaction or for any investment decision. This information does not constitute investment advice or an offer or a solicitation to US Persons (as defined by Regulations S of the US Securities Act 1933) to engage in any investment activity. Whilst every effort is made to ensure that the information provided is accurate and up to date, some of the information may be rendered inaccurate in the future due to any changes. © Copyright Stonehage Fleming 2019. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, on any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission.