A Harrogate-based financial advice firm with clients across Yorkshire has joined one of the UK’s largest independent financial services groups.
Richard Evans has more than 35 years’ experience, having worked at senior level for 3 of the UK’s major insurance companies for 20 years, and has been a financial adviser since 2006.
Now he is joining forces with AFH Financial Group in a deal worth up to £4.5m. He will continue to serve his 470 clients, who mostly live in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire, with some in his home town of Bristol.
He will now join AFH’s adviser team, as will his colleague, Leeds-born Andrew Huby, who will join AFH’s growing cadre of employed IFAs.
Andrew has been an IFA for more than 25 years, having worked at Yorkshire Bank and Skipton Building Society. Andrew is also authorised to advise on complex pension arrangements like occupational pension schemes.
Their colleague Tom Frane, who started work at PWM in 2017 after graduating from the University of York, will also move over to IFA as a trainee IFA.
Richard’s daughter Lottie, who also joined PWM in 2017 after graduating from the University of York, will continue to manage the team’s offices just outside Harrogate.
Richard said:
For a while it’s been clear that to take the business to the next stage we needed to become part of a larger organisation.
Frankly with all the admin and red tape it’s becoming impossible to deliver the proposition we want for our clients at a cost that’s competitive. With AFH we’re going to be able to drive costs down for our clients while delivering a great investment proposition.
AFH chief executive Alan Hudson said:
It’s great to welcome Richard, Andrew, Tom and Lottie to the AFH family. The different tracks they’re taking in joining us highlight our commitment to the future of the industry. And I know their clients are going to appreciate seeing more of them and learning about the AFH proposition.
As well as providing wealth management, stockbroking, mortgage and insurance services, AFH manages a £110m property portfolio that includes industrial units in Normanton and Rotherham, an office block in York and a retail park in Darlington.
