Quilter executives cash in as wealth manager begins life alone

Quilter boss Paul Feeney said being part of Old Mutual meant the wealth manager was competing for

Staff at wealth management group Quilter have cashed in after the Anglo-South African business started life as an independent company.

Shares in Quilter, the firm that spun out from financial services giant Old Mutual amid a major break-up, soared on Monday following its stock market float that values the company at £2.8bn. 

Chief executive Paul Feeney said all staff were given £2,000 worth of Quilter shares and joked that he hoped they were not "watching their screens too much" today. 

"When you're part of a large group, particularly an international group, you're always competing for scarce resources," he told The Daily Telegraph. 

"We now have a team only focused on our strategy [and] shareholders directly invested because they wish to own us not a larger financial group. It [the listing] gives us oxygen, we are masters of our own destiny." 

The final offer price of 145p per share comes towards the top of the indicated range of 125p to 155p, with shares rising as much as 9pc on Monday morning to 159p. 

Mr Feeney said the UK's complicated pensions landscape has increased the demand for advice

Just 9.6pc of Quilter’s shares were floated on the stock market, raising £231m. Most of the rest were handed to Old Mutual’s shareholders while the remainder was held by management and staff. 

Mr Feeney said he expected the business to grow in line with the increasing demand for advice as pensioners navigate an increasingly complicated pensions market. The Government introduced pension freedoms in 2015, allowing those aged over 55 to make cash withdrawals from their pension pots whenever they like. 

"There is a huge need for trusted financial advice in this country," he said. "[The] pension freedoms that the Government announced a couple of years ago - [they] left the ring and took the ropes with them." 

Old Mutual has been splitting itself up in recent years to simplify its structure and boost value for investors. In December it signed a deal to sell its Global Investors unit in a £600m management buyout led by renowned fund manager Richard Buxton.  

Its remaining division, Old Mutual Limited, which owns South Africa’s Nedbank, will be listed in London and Johannesburg tomorrow. Quilter also listed in Johannesburg on Monday.  

"Breaking up is hard to do. But in our case, it was the right thing," Mr Feeney added.