Preparing for 'bumpy beyond'? | IFA93/GBI22 | November 2020 by Clifton Media Lab

For todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s discerning financial and investment professional

e case for responsible investment

A special combined issue with

M AGAZINE

Preparing for 'bumpy beyond'? The case for responsible investment

The benefits of tax-efficient investments

November 2020

ANALYSIS

REVIEWS

Mercia in action with Dr. Paul Mattick

IFAM93/GBI22

COMMENT

INSIGHT

E v e rg r e e n Fun d N ow Open

Praetura EIS Growth Fund

Next soft close 31st March 2021, with anticipated full deployment by 30th September 2021. Capital at risk.

c o ntact jon.prescott@praetura.co.uk praeturaventures.com

CONTE NTS

CONTRIBUTORS

November 2020

Welcome

EISA Awards

Faith Liversedge

Details of the winners of the 2020 EISA awards

Transparency in the industry Jonathan Prescott, Praetura Ventures, argues that it is time EIS hit the mainstream

Paul Wilson Chairman, Clifton Media Lab paul.wilson@cliftonmedialab.com

The GBI Interview Peter Wilson talks to Mercia's Dr Paul Mattick about the business and exciting prospects in the EIS space

12 Peter Wilson Online Writer, IFA Magazine peter.wilson@ifamagazine.com

IFA acquisions and sales Consider acting before possible tax rises says Stephens Scown LLP

A Positive Impact M&G Investments highlight how their Positive Impact Fund goes about targeting impact

16 Andrew Sullivan Editor GBI andrew.sullivan@cliftonmedialab.com

Should you still be talking about products? Faith Liversedge has helpful advice for financial planning professionals on formulating your client proposition

CISI financial planning awards 2020

Sue Whitbread Editor sue.whitbread@ ifamagazine.com

Alex Sullivan Publishing Director alex.sullivan @ ifamagazine.com

Winners announced at virtual ceremony during annual conference

Managed Porfolio Services Digging down into the data. We bring you the latest look at the detail of Tony Catt’s MPS research report

EQ Investors Analysis, highlights and key themes from the group's 2020 Positive Impact Report

Combatting climate change

Kim Wonnacott Technical Sales and Marketing kim.wonnacott@ifamagazine.com

M&G's Ben Constable-Maxwell discusses why actively investing in the transition to a low carbon economy makes sense

Octopus Investments How knowledge of tax-efficient investments can help generate new business Practical tips from Octopus Investments

Internet healthcare Nikko AM's Kathy Ng looks at the reset of healthcare delivery in Asia

A financial history of Covid-19 in part two of his series, Paul Wilson looks at unforeseen and unintended consequences of the UK goverment's initiatives

Designed by: Becky Oliver IFA Magazine is published by IFA Magazine Publications Ltd, Tel: +44 (0) 1173 258328 3 Worcester Terrace, Clifton, Bristol BS8 3JW © 2020. All rights reserved ‘IFA Magazine’ is a trademark of IFA Magazine Publications Limited. No part of this publication may be reproduced or stored in any printed or electronic retrieval system without prior permission. All material has been carefully checked for accuracy, but no responsibility can be accepted for inaccuracies. Wherever appropriate, independent research and where necessary legal advice should be sought before acting on any information contained in this publication. The value of investments and the income from them can go down as well as up and you may not get back the amount originally invested. IFA Magazine is for professional advisers only. Full details and eligibility at: www.ifamagazine.com

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Why defence still makes sense Analysis from John Stopford, Portfolio Manager, Ninety One Diversified Income fund

The threat of team moves during uncertain times Practical help and guidance from employment law specialists, Wedlake Bell LLP

Open Offers Our listing of what’s currently available for subscription

Career Opportunities From Heat Recruitment

November 2020

WE LCOM E

SHOULD WE GET SET FOR ‘BUMPY BEYOND’?

e keep hearing from different Government Ministers that this winter we should be prepared for a bumpy ride. Even the Prime Minister has warned, when he spoke on the Andrew Marr Show in early October, that it is “going to continue to be bumpy through to Christmas, it may even be bumpy beyond”. Of course, how bumpy the ride turns out to be will depend on a number of factors. When it comes to the prospects for world markets, the ongoing problems of the Covid-19 pandemic continue to underpin market nerves. If we throw in the prospect of uncertainty from the outcome of the US Presidential Election and the ongoing debacle of the UK’s trade talks with the EU and those are just for starters, we look set for interesting times ahead to say the least. I’m sorry to report that the IFA Magazine crystal ball is looking rather cloudy at the moment, so we will have to disappoint those readers who are looking to us for some definitive answers in all this uncertainty. At least it’s not bumpy. And in other news… However, I’m pleased to report that despite all this things at IFA and GBI Magazines continue much as normal with no bumps in sight. Again this month, we’ve combined the two magazines into one so you get a broad range of content which we hope you will find of use. The world of alternative investments is proving highly resilient and attracting

considerable attention as a result of the type of investment which they can access. This month we’re grateful to Praetura Ventures, Octopus and Mercia for their views and insight and send our congratulations to all the winners at the recent EISA awards. We’re also delighted to be able to bring you our usual selection of the open offers for your consideration when looking for suitable alternative investments for your clients. Over at IFA Magazine, this edition brings you a range of articles on a range of topics relevant to advisers, planners and paraplanners. As always, our thanks go to all our contributors for taking the time to share with us their views, knowledge and experience in order to shine a light on different aspects of the business of financial planning. There’s a great mix of investment and asset management themes as well as business and personal development ideas to get you thinking. Before I sign off, I’d just like to congratulate all the winners at the CISI Financial Planning Awards, the names of whom were announced at the CISI online conference earlier in October. It was great to “see” so many familiar faces and to connect with new ones as a result of the event. Despite the restrictions of the virtual format, it is clear to see that the financial planning profession remains in robust health without any obvious signs of it being bumpy. Best wishes, Sue Whitbread Editor IFA Magazine

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E ISA

November 2020

ENTERPRISE INVESTMENT SCHEME ASSOCIATION SHOWCASES

AWARD WINNING INVESTMENT FIRMS

n October, the Enterprise Investment Scheme Association, (EISA) the membership organisation focused on investing in the UKâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s growth businesses, has announced the winners of its annual awards at a glittering, albeit online, event introduced by the chair of the EISA, Lord Flight, and hosted by Director General Mark Brownridge. Economic Secretary, John Glen, representing the Government, endorsed the importance of growth businesses to the UK economy, and emphasised the value of the Enterprise Investment Scheme in attracting the investment to make the growth possible. The Awards were presented to firms, advisers, companies, individuals and journalists that achieved outstanding performance in the context of the EIS & SEIS schemes during 2020. Speaking on behalf of the EISA, Mark Brownridge said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;It incredibly important to recognise the important work the industry undertakes, this year more than ever. The Awards denote excellence in a number of EIS and SEIS fields and

from an unprecedented list of entrants we have been pleased to showcase some outstanding winners. Winners in their categories were as follows: Best EIS Fund Manager: Symvan Capital Best EIS/SEIS Legal or Regulatory Advisor: Admepi Associates and SeedLegals Best EIS/Tax Advisor: Philip Hare & Associates Diversity Champion: Worth Capital Financial Planner: Stephen Jones Best Newcomer: Praetura Ventures Best Journalist: Rachel Millard Spirit of EIS: Deepbridge Capital Best EIS/SEIS Investment Exit: Mercia Best EIS Fund Manager: Parkwalk Advisors You can also watch a full recording of the event on the EISA website: https://eisa.org.uk/events/eisa-awards

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SUPPORTING PEOPLE AND BUSINESSES TO THRIVE WITH ETHICAL FOCUSED INVESTMENT SOLUTIONS. Blackfinch Group offers specialisms in asset management, tax-efficient investing, early stage investing, renewables investment and property financing. As an independent company, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re free to execute our best investment thinking to deliver for your firm and clients.

Capital At Risk. Blackfinch Investments Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority Registered address: 13501360 Montpellier Court, Gloucester Business Park, Gloucester, GL3 4AH. Registered in England and Wales Company Number 02705948.

November 2020

PRAETU RA VE NTU RES

TRANSPARENCY IN THE INDUSTRY:

IT IS TIME EIS

HIT THE MAINSTREAM Jonathan Prescott is Business Development Director at Praetura Ventures, and speaks to IFA and GBI Magazine about how open and honest communication can help to build trust and confidence in the EIS industry

t a time when businesses are focused on resilience and growth against a challenging background, more advisers are recognising the role venture capital and the Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) can play in portfolio construction and financial planning. The EIS industry has been around since 1995, and in the early days, EIS investors were typically individuals who made hay on a deal-by-deal basis. In more recent times, wealth managers have started to see the benefits of it as a tax planning vehicle, whilst also identifying its value as an alternative asset class. Institutional fund managers and wealth managers are allocating funds to venture capital as a way of building a diversified portfolio and providing access to an asset class which can have potentially rewarding results for investors.

Over the last six months it’s become increasingly evident that there is a need for investments to be aligned to the sectors which will fuel economic recovery post-Covid-19. EIS gives investors the ability to focus on supporting the sectors that will flourish in this new landscape, rather than continuing to invest in an existing portfolio which was constructed in a pre-Covid-19 world, where the future looked very different to what we’re now witnessing. One of EIS’ biggest draws is that it can give investors access to investments in fast-growth, start-up businesses. These firms are the engine room of the UK economy and will be crucial to Britain’s efforts to ‘build back better’ from the impact of Covid-19. Clearly, investments into early stage businesses come with additional risk, and this needs to be considered in light of each individual investor’s objectives and risk appetite. But while EIS is growing in popularity, it hasn’t yet reached its full potential, and for many isn’t yet viewed as a mainstream

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PRAETU RA VE NTU RES

planning tool. Open and honest communication is the key to building trust and confidence in the EIS industry. In a time of unparalleled challenges for businesses and the global economy, it has never been more important that the industry broadens its appeal and boosts its profile with a wider audience. It is vital that fund managers create trust through education and communication around key issues, including the diversification of businesses within an investment portfolio and fund deployment. Investors need to be handed the keys to take a real look under the bonnet at the performance of their investments. In our experience, investor communications are typically restricted to a brief valuation, which gives very little commentary on the business. There is no real assessment of how businesses are performing relative to the plan, which can lead to surprises. Advisers have historically been disappointed with the detail they receive from EIS managers and this can create an environment where they struggle to understand what progress or otherwise is happening within the portfolio. Fund managers must lead by example to deliver consistent, frequent and detailed analysis of portfolio investments to investors. Investors need to be informed about the progress of their investment with updates at key milestones. Crucially, it helps to show them how their investment can support a business through its growth strategy and deliver returns from the point of investment. What fund managers must also be live to is that fact that there is an investor in the background with a financial plan. As managers, they have been entrusted to deliver part of the plan to the best of their ability, and it’s important that they stick to, and communicate their progress, with these objectives front of mind. Innovative communication tools are another sure-fire way of boosting the image of EIS in the industry. We’ve

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November 2020

designed our bespoke investor platform to directly address these issues and instil confidence in our investors and advisers. It is a comprehensive digital platform for investors to access detailed information about their investment, including information around valuation, EIS certificates and documentation. We go above and beyond to update investors regularly on how the portfolio is progressing, with a flow of detailed and consistent information, including half-yearly portfolio updates and investor calls. We also provide ad-hoc updates in response to significant developments or events. This really came to the fore with our Covid-19 call to investors. Detail helps investors understand their investments better and creates trust with the fund manager. Perceived risk is having a significant impact on the uptake of EIS. It is only through widespread transparency – spreading the word widely among the industry on the importance of open and honest communication, and transparency around fees – that this will change.

About Jonathan Prescott, Business Development Director at Praetura Ventures Jonathan has almost 25 years’ experience within the financial services sector. Having spent over 15 years at AJ Bell as Business Development Manager forging links with advisers across the country. Jonathan subsequently spent over 4 years at Octopus Investments, as Area Sales Director for the North, Scotland and Northern Ireland where he was responsible for a team of Business Development Managers and for implementation of the group’s sales strategy across the region. Jonathan has a thorough understanding of VCT, EIS and BR.

M E RCIA

November 2020

WHAT’S NEXT FOR

MERCIA? Following their recent success at the EISA awards, IFA Magazine’s Peter Wilson talks to Mercia’s Dr Paul Mattick about the business and why he is excited about its future prospects in the EIS sector

n October 15th 2020 Mercia won the EISA EST Exit Award for their development of The Native Antigen Company. The Native Antigen Company has swiftly become one of the world’s leading suppliers of infectious disease reagents, widely adopted by vaccine manufacturers. The entirely digital sales process, completed in July, returned 8.6x cost to EIS investors, and returned 13x cost to the proof of concept fund.

Asked to respond to this success, Mattick said ‘It reflects our model where we use multiple issue funds to support companies over long periods, and enable them to grow and realise value where we can.’ Mattick was quick to highlight another successful exit just the day before. Clear Review was two and half years to exit and generated an 8x return on Mercia’s EIS managed fund investment cost and a 122% fund IRR. Mattick said this returned 80% of the cost of the fund, continuing, ‘this is what we can we do and what we’ve started to do more regularly.’

Mercia is an institutional scale, early stage technology investor, with almost £1billion under management that has an EIS fund as part of its overall investment strategy. With an emphasis on deep experience, and the capability to see an investment through from seed to follow on capital, Mercia is uniquely placed to maximise returns in the changing investment landscape following the Covid pandemic.

When asked about the EIS landscape following the coronavirus pandemic Mattick expressed confidence. ‘One of the benefits to EIS is that every time you make an investment, it’s into a new portfolio of companies.’ There may be follow on investment, but investors aren’t buying into a portfolio from a pre-pandemic world. Mattick put it simply, ’It’s going to look different. Digitisation and remote working is not temporary.’

IT’S GOOD TO TALK Following their success at the EISA Awards, IFA Magazine’s Peter Wilson was in conversation with Mercia’s Dr Paul Mattick to talk about the business and how it operates. Mattick heads the Sales and Investor Relations team for the Mercia EIS Funds and is clearly very proud of the team’s success in this and in many other aspects of the business.

ABILITY TO PIVOT AND ADAPT ‘The thing about EIS is that it can be bespoke to where we are currently, rather than where we were a couple of years ago.’ Following a volatile year, and a transformed economy, newer companies with the ability to pivot and adapt rapidly have become an appealing investment. Mattick continued, ‘These little companies are really nimble with

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M E RCIA

the ability to change their business models, which larger companies aren’t able to do.’ These are tricky times for most businesses so we proceeded to talk about the impact the pandemic has had on Mercia and its investments. In this respect Mattick said, ‘We kind of expected a lot of failures in our portfolio, but we've had hardly any - its exposed gaps in the market that these companies are eager to fill’. Mattick continued, ’In some ways I think small companies will have a distinct advantage in the next few years companies are realising they have to develop new ways of working and the quickest way to do that is through acquiring.’ Mattick related this back to Clear Review, a human resources tool providing organisations with data and systems to improve performance management. Clear Review is ideal for supporting the development of employees whilst they work remotely and was snapped up by the third largest British software and services company in the UK. THE PORTFOLIO APPROACH Mercia EIS fund is in a great spot for the acquisitions market, particularly with a large position in biotech; multiple coronavirus testing companies and spinal

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November 2020

implants that are complemented with deep institutional experience. Mattick highlighted this saying, ‘I think when discussing EIS the success stories are important, but within the context of an overall portfolio approach.’ Mattick wants EIS to be thought about similar to other investments, ‘you want diversity, you want to look at the track record of the fund and the fees, and look for value in the investment.’ He rounded off the conversation with an important point stating that ‘the messaging from the managers is still focused on minimal risk, rather than creating venture capital EIS’. About Dr Paul Mattick Dr Paul Mattick heads the Sales and Investor Relations team for the Mercia EIS Funds. He works directly with private clients and advisers to build the EIS fundraising capacity of Mercia. Paul oversees the administration and development of the EIS funds, and ensures that investors receive a high level of service, much of which is delivered through Mercia’s award-winning Investor Centre. Paul has a variety of experience in early-stage businesses (including being a founder), and formerly worked at another leading EIS fund manager, where he built close relationships with top tier clients, and significantly grew both fund and single company assets under management. Paul has a PhD and PostDoctorate from the University of Oxford and a 1st Class Bachelor of Science from the University of Leeds.

November 2020

I FA ACQU ISITIONS

IFA ACQUISIONS AND SALES IFAs and planners wanting to buy or sell should consider acting before possible tax rises suggests Stephens Scown LLP

FAs and planners looking to sell their businesses should at least consider whether to do this in the coming months rather than delay a deal until after the 2021 Budget, according to Giles Dunning, Partner at law firm, Stephens Scown LLP. Mr Dunning, who specialises in IFA merger & acquisition work, says next year may see tax rises. “Given the levels of government borrowing public finances need repair and tax rises in the next budget cannot be ruled out which could reduce the value of sale proceeds or make buying a firm more costly. Of course, we will not know until the next Budget but those likely to sell in the near future should at least consider possible tax changes with their advisers.” He explained there is currently a pent-up demand to buy quality IFA firms, particularly from consolidators with war chests, and a growing number of would-be sellers who would have sold in 2020 but for the pandemic. “In some cases, valuations are likely to have fallen and there is uncertainty but delaying a deal could compound the situation if tax rises do materialise in the next Budget. The fact that the 2020 Budget was cancelled in response to

the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic could be used as an opportunity to plan for a sale which takes time – several months in many cases following initial discussions between buyers and sellers.” Mr Dunning said: “Many commentators see Capital Gains Tax as a likely target, along with Corporation Tax.” It has been mooted that the Chancellor could align Capital Gains Tax with Income Tax and increase Corporation Tax from 19% to 24%. Such changes could reduce the net proceeds of sale on a disposal and put further cash flow pressure on companies trading through the pandemic. He continued: “Although we don’t know what is being planned, it does look increasingly likely that the overall business environment for M&A will be harsher due to a number of factors. Rising unemployment and more distressed business sectors may also have a negative impact on business confidence.” “This is a resilient sector – businesses that have shown they can adapt and continue to provide good service to their clients are undoubtedly in a far better position than many others and this is reflected in ongoing demand from buyers.”

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One platform to access, evaluate and invest in alternative assets Join a growing community of ﬁnancial advisers using CoInvestor to access a range of EIS, VCT and BR investment opportunities. From digital applications through to dynamic portfolio tracking, CoInvestor makes it easy to manage your clients’ alternative asset investments – all in one place.

Create your free account at coinvestor.co.uk

Capital at risk - Investments shown on CoInvestor put your capital at risk: investors may not get back the full amount invested. The investments listed are in unlisted companies which are likely to be harder to value and sell than quoted shares. CoInvestor Limited is registered in England under company number 07233697 and is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority under ﬁrm registration number 747676.

M&G I NVESTM E NTS

November 2020

A POSITIVE

IMPACT The M&G Positive Impact Fund will soon be celebrating its two year anniversary. Here we explain how we target impact.

nvesting for impact is truly exciting. For many of us, putting our investments to work in a way that delivers wider benefits alongside potential financial gains, is a compelling proposition.

Launched in November 2018, the M&G Positive Impact Fund has two aims – to generate greater total returns over five years than the MSCI ACWI Index of global shares, and to invest in companies that have a positive impact on society through addressing the world’s major social and environmental challenges. To successfully deliver on this dual proposition for investors, we believe it is essential to have a robust framework that can identify and measure the impact of investments.

involved in certain sectors – namely the production of tobacco, alcohol, adult entertainment, controversial weapons, oil sands, nuclear power or coal-fired power, the provision of gambling services, or animal testing for nonmedical purposes. Companies that pass these screens are then analysed under our “Triple I” framework, which looks to apply the tenets of impact investing to listed equities. OUR ‘TRIPLE I’ FRAMEWORK We devised our approach as a robust and consistent way to rate the impact and investment case of companies for the fund, scoring companies on each of the three ‘I’s.

PICKING IMPACTFUL COMPANIES To arrive at our concentrated portfolio of around 30 impactful companies from anywhere in the world, we take a highly selective approach to stock picking. After screening out companies too small for us to consider, our first step is to eliminate companies that are not capable of delivering demonstrable positive impacts to society. To do this, we screen out any companies that cause indefensible harm to people or the environment. This involves companies deemed to be in breach of the UN Global Compact Principles on human rights, labour, the environment and corruption. We then remove companies

Investment

Intention

Impact

Business model

Mission statement and purpose

Impact balance

Competitive position Capital allocation Business risk

Management and strategic alignment

ESG

Management transparency

Liquidity

Culture

Measurability Materiality/revenues to SDGs Additionality

The first ‘I’ is the investment case. After all, we aim to pick companies that will deliver superior financial returns over the next decade. For the second ‘I’, we gauge the extent to which companies explicitly and genuinely intend to address the most

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M&G I NVESTM E NTS

November 2020

important issues facing the world, as articulated by the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The third ‘I’ encompasses the actual impact that a company has through its products and services. Companies that are awarded above-average scores in each of the three ‘Is can then make it on to the fund’s watchlist of possible investments, provided all of the Impact team at M&G agree on its merits. Once on the watchlist, shares may be bought if the timing and price are right. We are looking for companies that can generate more impact, the more profitable they are. We invest in three types of company – pioneers (whose products or services have a transformational effect on society or the environment), enablers (which provide the tools for others to deliver positive impact) and leaders (which spearhead and normalise sustainability and impact in their industries). GAUGING IMPACT As impact investing gains momentum, there are legitimate concerns about ‘greenwashing’. To demonstrate how we aim to deliver genuine impact, we set a high bar for our investments. Using the SDGs as a framework for determining the environmental and societal challenges that matter most, we can gauge whether a company is delivering impact that is meaningful, or material. We assign all of our investments

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Using the SDGs as a framework for determining the environmental and societal challenges that matter most, we can gauge whether a company is delivering impact that is meaningful, or material

a primary SDG that we believe they are addressing and determine specific SDG-aligned key indicators of performance. We then measure the materiality of the impacts they are achieving against these indicators. We believe transparency is important, so we report to our investors on how we assess impact across the fund. We invite you to read about our holdings, and how they deliver impact, in the fund’s annual impact report. The views expressed here should not be taken as a recommendation, advice or forecast. The value and income from any fund's assets will go down as well as up. This will cause the value of your investment to fall as well as rise. There is no guarantee that any fund will achieve its objective and you may get back less than you originally invested.

November 2020

FAITH LIVE RSE DGE

SHOULD YOU STILL BE TALKING ABOUT

PRODUCTS? As a financial planning professional, you are well aware that the financial planning process involves a lot more than simple discussions about financial products. In this month’s article, Faith Liversedge looks at it from a client’s point of view and highlights some important steps for success when formulating your client proposition

WHAT IS YOUR TARGET AUDIENCE’S GENERAL STAGE OF AWARENESS OF YOUR BUSINESS/OFFERING?

are hiding behind every dark corner waiting to prise their hard-earned money away from them.

It’s an official sounding question, but an important one to ask and one I cover in every strategy meeting with a new client.

• ‘Still at work: adviser who lost us £400,000’

That’s because it’s very easy for us at the coal face of financial planning and all the good stuff that brings with it, to forget that the client is way behind this journey. Financial advice has moved on. No more products, no more cloak and dagger, confusing jargon, complex payment structures to hinder the process. Instead there’s a focus on long-term goals, planning for the future, emotions and wellbeing. We know this. We chat to each other about it in the press, at conferences. Wonderful. Marvellous. But your client isn’t at these conferences. They’re in fact a world away from this vision of financial advice. Your client is still at the stage of trying to navigate the Flash Harrys and Ne’re Do Wells, trying to avoid the incompetents and charlatans that they’re led to believe

Headlines like those below certainly don’t help: • ‘We lost £20,000 to crooked adviser’. • ‘Rio Ferdinand, Wayne Rooney and Andy Cole’s tax adviser Kevin McMenamin arrested’ It’s drama, scandal, worry. PUTTING CLIENTS’ NEEDS FIRST To talk about bringing wellbeing to your client by coaching them through their finances on the first page of your website in this context, without mentioning what they’re expecting, is going to, at best, throw them off completely; at worst, think they’ve clicked on a link to a mindfulness retreat by accident. Even if they’re not worried about this aspect, the theory still applies. Because even if they’re the least sceptical, most trusting and open-minded of prospects, talking to them about planning at the outset could be a mistake. Why? It’s because financial

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FAITH LIVE RSE DGE

planning is not a problem that keeps people awake at night. Even if they are aware of it as a term, they’re unlikely to be searching for it in Google.

November 2020

and feel happy and secure, that they’ll feel confident and in control of their finances –and their life – as a result.

Perhaps one day that might happen. But right now, put ‘financial planner’ or ‘financial planning’ into Google and the most common search terms you get are ‘Financial planner salary’, ‘financial planner job description, ‘how to become a financial planner’. You can see whose searching for this, and it isn’t clients. What is keeping your prospects awake at night is something completely different, and I’m afraid, much more product related: ‘Do I have enough in my pension to retire?’ ‘Can I retire early?’ How can I find out all the pensions schemes I've paid into?,’ ‘Where should I invest an inheritance?’

Financial planning is not a problem that keeps people awake at night. Even if they are aware of it as a term, they ’re unlikely to be searching for it in Google.

So if you want your business to be found online then you’re going to have to talk products, even if it’s just a little bit. But don’t worry; this could be advantageous in the end.

if you want your business to be found online then you’re going to have to talk products, even if it’s just a little bit

The natural next step is to talk about you and why you love this aspect of the job, perhaps mention what you did before, how it’s different, and the whole story starts to hang together. Especially if you top it all off with a case study from a client – one whose experienced a transactional advice service before and has describe the difference. This will help your prospect to feel satisfied they’ve come to the right website, that you’ll sort out their immediate problem and help them sleep at night, but that also they’ll have a plan for life, a strategy for their finances, and meaning behind their money. And of course it’s not just your website that should be structured in this way. The same applies to your other communications – your emails, blog posts and social media content. The added bonus? By carefully blending these messages and introducing the planning aspect gradually, you’ll be able to attract the right clients and filter out the ‘wrong’ ones and transform your business in the process. This is just the beginning...

THE FINANCIAL PLANNING BIT Because once you’ve described your services as including pension planning, inheritance tax planning, protection insurance and that you’re the person to help them with this, then you can show that it is, in fact, much much more than this. That it focuses on them as a person, rather than their money. That it helps answer the big questions in life such as what to do with it, when to retire, how to gift money to family. Then you can describe the benefits of this – that they’ll have enough in retirement, that they can connect their wealth to their lifestyle goals, that they can have the peace of mind and financial freedom to choose how to enjoy life

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About Faith Liversedge Faith Liversedge is an experienced communicator with a wealth of knowledge and understanding of the adviser profession. She was Marketing Manager at Nucleus for 5 years, creating innovative and award-winning campaigns. Before that she worked for Standard Life, Prudential and Royal London. In 2017 she set up her own consultancy to help forwardthinking financial advisers and planners to become more profitable through websites, communications and other laser-focused marketing techniques.

CISI AWARDS

November 2020

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE WINNERS OF THE

CISI FINANCIAL PLANNING AWARDS 2020

s part of their very first “virtual” annual financial planning conference held in October, the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (CISI) announced the winners of their annual financial planning awards, albeit virtually. Although the wow factor of the usual black-tie dinner and ceremony formalities were sadly not possible due to Covid-19, the virtual format allowed more opportunity for comments from the winners and worked well overall. Hosted by CISI’s Head of Financial Planning Jackie Lockie, the awards were watched live by up to 200 delegates many of whom were engaging actively on the “live chat” feed to congratulate the winners. The IFA Magazine team would like to add our congratulations to all the winners listed below and also to all the runners up who so narrowly missed out on overall award success this year. The winners are: •

Paraplanner of the Year Award 2020 – sponsored by Just WINNER: Pippa Oldfield, Mazars (pictured)

WINNER: Paul Welsh CFPTM APP Chartered MCSI, Financial Planning Corporation Ltd (pictured)

• The David Norton Building Excellence Award 2020 – sponsored by FPadvance WINNER: Woodruff Financial Planning • The Accredited Financial Planning Firm (AFPFTM) of the Year Award 2020 – sponsored by Glascow Financial Services Training WINNER: boosst • The Tony Sellon ‘Good Egg’ Award 2020 – sponsored by CISI WINNER: Michael Stafford CFPTM Chartered MCSI, Stafford Wealth Management Jacqueline Lockie CPFTM Chartered FCSI, CISI Head of Financial Planning said: “Congratulations to all our winners, whose achievements are to be celebrated especially in this year quite unlike any other. Their resilience and dedication to their profession is a fantastic testament to their skills and passion in bringing financial planning’s life-changing guidance to the consumer.”

• The Certified Financial Planner (CFPTM) Professional) of the Year Award 2020 – sponsored by The Association of Investment Companies.

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M AGAZINE

November 2020

MANAGED PORTFOLIO SERVICE

MPS -

DIGGING DOWN INTO THE DATA

As the latest part of IFA Magazineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s recent series of articles looking at the 2020 Managed Portfolio Services Research from Compliance Consultant TC Compliance Services, this month we start to drill down and look at how the research tackles the important subject of data

hen it comes to managed portfolio services (MPS), their use by advisers, planners and paraplanners has been growing significantly in recent years. It is ideally positioned for those clients who need and want their investments managed by professionals but who do not have the size of investment that would warrant the bespoke approach of a discretionary management service. This is a large segment of the UK population and one which is well served by a large number of providers of MPS. But therein lies the challenge for advisers and paraplanners. With so many different services available, how do you go about selecting which MPS is most appropriate for your particular clientâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s needs? How do you justify it terms of effective due diligence? The MPS Review is one way to access a huge amount of information in one place. It has

almost 160 pages of analysis and data within this extremely competitive market. Whilst it is still a snapshot of the overall market, it represents a thorough assessment of many of the leading providers of MPS in the UK today.

The MPS Review is one way to access a huge amount of information in one place. It has almost 160 pages of analysis and data within this extremely competitive market.

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MANAGED PORTFOLIO SERVICE

WHAT EXACTLY DOES THE REVIEW COVER? In previous articles, we’ve highlighted how the research covers areas as diverse as MiFID II and PROD rules, CIPs (Centralised Investment Propositions) and ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) aspects. We’ve also looked at why the MPS might be appropriate and for which clients.

November 2020

on funds labelled balanced or similar, as far as possible. It provides an interesting insight into how the different providers apply their charges and is an indication of the type of analysis which is available within the report. IFA Magazine readers can purchase a copy of the MPS report by visiting www.IFAMagazine.com Table 1

This month we’re looking at data. And there is plenty of it on the pages of the review as you would expect. The due diligence process necessarily requires adviser firms to conduct a thorough analysis of the detail and data is your way of doing it. To make life even more complicated, it is often the case that not only do you have to your research on the individual MPS offerings but also on platforms as often integration with this important aspect of business needs to be achieved. COST EFFICIENCY POf course, a key element of the data set that all adviser firms need to compare is the charges. The MPS review looks in detail at this area, with ongoing charges, transaction costs and total charges highlighted for a large number of providers. It is clear that with every additional layer of management and oversight which is involved with the management of a client’s portfolio, advisers must be careful to ensure that the total cost to the client is considered and at an appropriate level which will not unnecessarily deplete returns. In his research, Tony Catt has linked up with data providers to help achieve the summary picture. An example of this is shown in table 1 – which gives detail from Defaqto

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Source: Defaqto

September 2020 2020 November

EQ I NVESTORS

MAKING AN

IMPACT

EQ Investors (EQ), the B Corp wealth manager, has recently published its 2020 Positive Impact report, its annual report on its approach to creating impact through its investments and engagement. We take a look at the report and bring you its highlights and key themes.

his year’s report focuses on the opportunity to build back better in a post-pandemic world. IFA Magazine readers can access the full 2020 report via the link shown at the end of this article and below we bring you the main points of the report by way of a summary.

maximising financial returns and societal impact. In addition, the positive impact approach extends beyond the traditional investor, attracting a higher proportion of female investors (52%), than the UK average (44%). There’s also a clear appeal to younger investors shown by the breakdown of existing investors in the portfolios. WHAT’S NEW IN THIS YEAR’S REPORT?

A CLEAR VISION When it comes to the investment process used for the Positive Impact Portfolios, EQ’s vision is driven by their view about what the world would look like when everyone invests for positive impact. But what does that really look like? Throughout 2019, EQ enhanced its impact investing standards and continued to identify how its investments support the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals – the global framework for action to solve the most urgent and challenging needs of society and the environment. The team has also collaborated with a wide variety of stakeholders to enhance its engagement efforts. The 2020 report highlights how using a positive impact approach can drive value creation, in the sense of both

There are many aspects for advisers and paraplanners to review. Examples of what’s new are: • How companies in the Positive Impact Portfolios are helping to fight the coronavirus today and set the stage for a green economic recovery. • An in-depth focus on climate change, using scenario analysis to show how investments are aligned to the Paris Agreement. • Details on how EQ has enhanced its engagement efforts to maximise its impact. Key impact highlights saw an increase in the impact made per £1m invested, including: • 352 tonnes of CO2 avoided: equivalent to taking 77 cars off the road.

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• 25 tonnes of waste recycled: equivalent to 26 households’ waste.

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• 402 hours of school, higher and adult education delivered.

Investors can influence companies by engaging directly with management teams and by using voting rights to raise expectations and advocate for strategic positive change. The team at EQ believes that it is vital that they hold their underlying fund managers to account, so they in turn hold their investee companies to account – in a wider mission to improve sustainable impacts and long term returns over time.

GETTING DOWN TO DETAIL

THE BIGGER PICTURE

As you would expect, the report contains a portfolio x-ray section, giving detail on how the investment portfolio is aligned to the UN SDGs and how the fund selection and asset allocation processes are carried out with a longerterm outlook firmly front and centre. It is clear that the Coronavirus pandemic has given added impetus to the drive to “build back better” when it comes to portfolio management. The report looks at key areas of interest such as sustainable cities, water management, waste and recycling and green bonds.

More broadly, the report shows how EQ have been working on different ways to make a positive change and how these can and would impact the portfolios.

• 202MWH of renewable energy generated: equivalent to 61 homes’ usage. • 178m litres of clean water provided: equivalent to 1,404 households usage;

THE CARBON FOOTPRINT Limiting the worst effects of climate change requires the rapid decarbonisation of our economies. This year, EQ has partnered with Urgentem, a leading carbon analytics company, to see how the Positive Impact portfolios align with a low carbon future. Whilst the portfolios are already well aligned to a lower warming scenario, the managers intend to further reduce the emissions intensity of the portfolios over time, ensuring that they stay aligned to a low-carbon future. ENGAGING FOR CHANGE While the first part of the report largely highlights how EQ invests for positive impact, the second part looks at the other way they make a positive impact by engaging for change.

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One of these is climate action, where work has been undertaken to understand how fund managers are currently integrating climate risk into their investment and stewardship activities as well as their internal business operations. Another area is health and nutrition, where engagement with relevant fund managers was based on a thorough research report on UK food retailers by the organisation Access to Nutrition Initiative. Specific areas under the microscope here are childhood obesity and how the coronavirus pandemic is further underscoring the importance of a healthy society. Others relate to diversity and inclusion, whereby EQ have joined the UK Women in Finance Charter and also to sustainable supply chains and encouraging fund managers to push for best practice within their investee companies. Damien Lardoux, Head of Impact Investing at EQ comments: “The coronavirus pandemic has reset the global economy and public opinion has shifted. There is now much wider acceptance that we need to invest in solution providers now, in order to create a future world for the benefit of all.” To find out more, download EQ’s 2020 impact report: https://eqinvestors.co.uk/advisers/blog/positive-impactreport-2020

M&G I NVESTM E NTS

November 2020

COMBATTING

CLIMATE CHANGE Ben Constable-Maxwell, Head of Sustainable and Impact Investing at M&G Investments, discusses why actively investing in the transition to a low carbon economy makes sense

hether itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the rising number and intensity of hurricanes or floods, forest fires or droughts, it is increasingly untenable to ignore the causes and consequences of

cajole their management to make positive changes. Frank discussion about the risks that climate change poses to a company â&#x20AC;&#x201C; for instance, if rising sea levels might inundate its coastal assets â&#x20AC;&#x201C; can shape opinions and strategy.

Arguably there is no more critical challenge facing global society. The effects of global temperatures rising to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, as projected by the International Panel on Climate Change, are severe. At two degrees, the impact looks grave.

When it comes to lending sufficient weight to the management of climate risks, an important step is disclosure. The Taskforce for Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) has developed a framework for consistent climate-related financial risk disclosures, upgrading the importance of climate reporting by requiring its integration within financial accounts.

It is not only the health of our planet at risk from rising carbon emissions, but also our financial wellbeing. Despite the scale of the challenge, I am buoyed by the contribution that investors can make by channelling resources and exerting their influence.

We also want to see ambitious targets and metrics to ensure companies make tangible progress towards mitigating risks. Another vital step is linking executive remuneration to climate-related goals. Rewarding progress and aligning incentives makes them more likely to be achieved.

THE POWER OF PERSUASION

SHAPING A SUSTAINABLE TRANSITION

Active investors like M&G have long held company management to account on corporate strategy and governance. In the same way, we can hold feet to the fire on climate change.

I believe the transition to a lower carbon economy will be more effective if incumbent companies are coaxed into playing an active part.

climate change.

Companies need to properly understand the risks, and I believe it is the role of responsible investors to persuade and

Their scale means they are well-placed to deliver a positive impact. For instance, if a global car maker can halve carbon emitted from the 10 million vehicles it makes a

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year, its environmental benefits could far outweigh those of a manufacturer of 1,000 zero-emission cars a year. Leading companies which spearhead and mainstream sustainability in their sectors can deliver terrific impact. Take Ørsted, for example. The Danish energy company is at the forefront of society’s transformation towards renewables, having once been a fossil fuel-focused business. Today, Ørsted has built more offshore wind farms than any company worldwide and has committed to being coal-free by 2023, when it will have reduced its carbon emissions by 96% compared to a decade ago. Where leading companies can evolve and tap into trends like rising demand for green electricity, their shareholders can aspire to achieve sustainable financial returns and contribute to a demonstrably positive impact for the climate.

November 2020

incentive plans to meeting them . BP has committed to align its capital expenditure strategy with the Paris Agreement.

While the shift away from a carbon-intensive economy may appear incremental, I am confident that we are on the cusp of companies accelerating their progress, spurred by legislative, normative and economic pressure

KEEPING UP THE PRESSURE While the shift away from a carbon-intensive economy may appear incremental, I am confident that we are on the cusp of companies accelerating their progress, spurred by legislative, normative and economic pressure. Good intentions are reflected in the number of companies committed to a trajectory that limits the global temperature rise to less than two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels – a goal of the international Paris Agreement on climate change. Investors are right to support companies that take steps towards combatting climate change, but it is also right to expect material progress. If companies fail to act, investors have a responsibility to use all tools at their disposal. The threat of divestment can be an effective one. It has certainly moved the dial on corporate attitudes, but it is not a panacea. Using ownership and stewardship as instruments – exerting pressure alongside other shareholders on companies to decarbonise – can be more powerful. Investors with more than US $34 trillion in assets under management have signed up to the Climate Action 100+ initiative to ensure the world’s largest corporate greenhouse gas emitters take action on climate change. After engagement with Shell in 2018, the oil major not only committed to set carbon emissions targets, but linked executives’ long-term

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The environmental risks of climate inaction are evident. Where companies do not act, they will not only expose themselves – and their investors – to financial losses, but they will miss opportunities for success that lie in tackling this challenge.

About Ben Constable-Maxwell As Head of Sustainable and Impact Investing, Ben Constable Maxwell is leading M&G’s strategy on impact investing as well as covering sustainability issues such as climate change and circular economy. He has been central to the development of ESG integration within M&G’s investment processes and has supported the development of ESG solutions for clients across asset classes. Ben plays an active industry role as a member of various sustainable and impact investment initiatives, interacting with companies, policymakers, NGOs and other investors. He is a Trustee at Firefly International youth organisation, which provides educational and mental health support for young people in conflict-affected areas in the Balkans and Middle East. Previous to joining M&G in 2003, Ben spent four years with the Equities team at Invesco Perpetual. Ben has an honours degree in Classics from University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

November 2020

OCTOPUS I NVESTM E NTS

HOW KNOWLEDGE OF

TAX-EFFICIENT INVESTMENTS CAN HELP GENERATE NEW BUSINESS

recent report from Fidelity1 finds that more advisers are looking to take on new clients than before the coronavirus pandemic, with 77% now saying their firm is looking to add to its client bank.

But how easy is it to find quality clients in the current climate? And are there untapped opportunities that you could unlock through engaging your existing clients? This article looks at how a thorough knowledge of taxefficient investments can help advisers generate new business in their existing client bank, by spotting investment solutions that can address clients’ tax planning problems. And if this is something you would like to explore in more detail, Octopus is holding a special online event on Thursday 5 November that does exactly that.

MAKE ESTATE PLANNING PART OF YOUR GROWTH STRATEGY In particular, Business Property Relief (BPR), a longstanding relief from inheritance tax, has an important role to play in helping some clients who may be reluctant to start their inheritance tax planning to take the first steps. Towards the end of 2019, Octopus commissioned a survey of advisers in which nine out of ten respondents said their

clients are increasingly reluctant to give up access to capital as part of their estate planning2. Where estate planning conversations have stalled because of concerns over access and control, bringing up BPR can be a useful tool to move the discussion forward. Even if a client doesn’t ultimately choose to make a BPR-qualifying investment, hearing that estate planning doesn’t necessarily mean losing control of their wealth can help a client engage with the topic. While it won’t be the right solution for every client, a BPRqualifying investment can be a good option for a client with large sums they need to plan for, but who is reluctant to do anything irreversible, and who is happy to take more investment risk with their wealth in return for the benefits that tax relief can bring. Because the investment stays in the client’s name, if the investor’s situation changes and they need access to their funds, they can request to sell down some or all of the investment, subject to liquidity. YOU MIGHT GET REFERRALS FROM YOUR EXISTING CLIENTS While we’re on the subject of estate planning, you’re probably familiar with the idea of using a family tree as part of the fact find. This is where you and your client draw their family tree, so you get a full picture of who’s connected to them and how your client’s planning affects them. This helps make the planning ‘real’ for your client, bridging the gap between the cold, numbers-driven world of cashflow modelling and their emotion-driven life goals.

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November 2020

It can also be a good opportunity to start a conversation about estate planning, and potentially get referred to other family members. Here’s an example of how that might work when dealing with a high-earning client who is still of working age. It involves asking two indirect questions.

Venture Capital Trusts and investments that qualify for the Enterprise Investment Scheme are good ways to add value for high-earning clients by helping them reduce their tax bills, diversify their portfolios, and create a tax-free income stream or growth.

The first is: “Might you need to help your parents in any way?”

The Octopus tax planning special will look at potential opportunities in your client bank. For more information, and to reserve your place, go to octopusinvestments.com/ octopus-online-show-episode-5/

This reinforces the idea that planning is something with real world consequences. It also usually receives the response that no, the client’s parents have plenty of their own money. Which leads to the second question: “Might your parents want to help their grandchildren at all, for example with school fees or getting on the property ladder?” Often clients won’t be sure. They and their parents may not have had that conversation. But they’ll realise it’s a possibility. After all, grandparents are famously doting. So almost always they’ll say that yes, they may well want to help.

TAX-EFFICIENT INVESTMENTS ARE HIGH RISK It’s important to consider all the risks before recommending a tax-efficient investment.

This creates a natural reason to speak to the client’s parents.

These are high-risk investments that put capital at risk. The value of these investments, and any income from them, can fall as well as rise. Investors may not get back the full amount invested.

The same goes when discussing possible inheritance. Rather than ask clients if they themselves expect to receive an inheritance, which could make them feel greedy, consider a slight shift of focus:

In addition, the shares of smaller companies and VCTs can fall or rise in value more than shares listed on the main market of the London Stock Exchange. They may also be harder to sell.

“Might your parents want to leave something to their grandchildren?”

Investors also need to be aware that tax treatment will depend on their personal circumstances, and tax rules could change in future. Tax reliefs also depend on the companies invested in maintaining their qualifying status for the relevant relief.

“I imagine so.” “Then it’s really important I speak to them to make sure that happens as efficiently as possible.” Again, a natural opener. This indirect approach is just as effective when looking down the generations to engage with beneficiaries, who may themselves become clients when they inherit. To help you do this, Octopus has created a document called ‘What I Own and Where I Keep It’. You fill it in with a client, so that when they pass away their executors can easily locate their will, their assets and anything else they’ll need. Your Octopus Business Development Manager can provide you with a copy of this document.

Jessica Franks, Head of Tax VCTs, EIS and BPR-qualifying investments are not suitable for everyone. Any recommendation should be based on a holistic review of your client's financial situation, objectives and needs. We do not offer investment or tax advice. Issued by Octopus Investments Limited, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered office: 33 Holborn, London, EC1N 2HT. Registered in England and Wales No. 03942880. Issued: September 2020. CAM010201. 1 ‘How the advice sector is adapting to the coronavirus crisis’, Fidelity International, June 2020 2 Unlocking Estate Planning: How Business Property Relief is opening doors for advisers, published by Octopus Investments, February 2020

It’s a natural opener for suggesting you speak to beneficiaries, as they’ll often be the ones who’ll be using this document. VCT AND EIS KNOWLEDGE IS ALSO HIGHLY VALUABLE Estate planning is not the only area where a knowledge of tax-efficient investing can help you unlock opportunities.

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N I KKO AM

November 2020

INTERNET

HEALTHCARE A RESET OF HEALTHCARE DELIVERY IN ASIA

The Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated the adoption of internet-based healthcare services. Growing in importance, penetration and acceptance, telemedicine will revolutionise and augment Asia’s healthcare systems. By Kathy Ng, Senior Equity Analyst, Nikko Asset Management

CRISES PRESENT OPPORTUNITIES TO DRIVE CHANGE Global health crises and pandemics have caused considerable anguish, trepidation and devastation to humanity through the ages. But global outbreaks of infectious diseases—as history has shown—have also spurred widespread medical innovation, new vaccines and advances in healthcare services, as societies put in concerted efforts to combat the challenges. The Black Death, which plagued Europe in the 14th century, resulted in better living and working conditions for the poor, according to academics, as governments became cognisant of the importance of public sanitation in the control of infectious diseases. The 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic that killed an estimated 20 to 50 million people globally not only taught us that quarantine and social distancing were the most effective measures against the spread of infectious diseases; the “flu

that changed the world” also revolutionised public health through the development of centralised public health systems, greatly advancing research in Epidemiology, Microbiology and Diagnostics. Over time, this has brought about significant improvement in patient care and established the foundation of modern medicine as we know it today. In the future, we will likely debate the lessons learnt from the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. Over the past eight months, we have witnessed a plethora of healthcare-related innovation that facilitates greater social distancing in the electronic age. Some examples include patient-facing apps, wearable devices and wireless sensors for patients, rapid diagnostic kits, remote patient monitoring and many others. More importantly, the current pandemic has accelerated the adoption of internet-based healthcare services or telemedicine, which allow patients to have online consultations with physicians and medical experts via video conferencing, followed by the delivery of electronically prescribed medication direct to their homes.

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THE PUSH TO DIGITALISE HEALTHCARE DELIVERY To be sure, the global health crisis at hand has forced healthcare systems around the world to prioritise and mobilise resources to treat an outsized number of patients with the coronavirus, while minimising the threat of infections.

Growing in importance, penetration and acceptance, internet healthcare services is beginning to revolutionise and augment Asia’s healthcare systems

With traditional healthcare systems currently facing stress, many countries have turned to digital technology as a conduit to deliver contactless medical services to nonemergency patients. Indeed, telemedicine not only helps to minimise Covid-19 exposure between patients and doctors, as well as curb the spread of the disease, it also frees up valuable hospital resources and capacity to treat cases that require in-person interaction with the doctor. To incentivise people to use online medical consultations, governments of several countries, including some in Asia, have also allowed medical reimbursement under universal healthcare insurance schemes for users of telemedicine. In our view, seeing a doctor via tele or videoconferencing could become part of a “new normal” even in a postpandemic setting. Growing in importance, penetration and acceptance, internet healthcare services is beginning to revolutionise and augment Asia’s healthcare systems.

November 2020

life expectancy in Asia and the growing healthcare demands of large and aging populations in many regional countries are other factors that are increasingly putting stress on the healthcare systems in Asia. First and foremost, the region’s life expectancy, which has risen by almost 20 years over the past five decades from 55 years1 in 1970 to the average of 74 years1 in 2019, is likely to continue to increase going forward. . With declining fertility and increased longevity, the relative size of older age groups versus younger age groups looks set to increase significantly, putting considerable strain on the region’s healthcare systems. The current healthcare delivery model in Asia (see Chart 1) is generally characterised by: • Long lead time (or amount of time from the start of a process until its conclusion) due to the need to travel to access medical services; long waiting time at clinics and the emergency rooms; considerable lag time for diagnostic tests; and lengthy scheduling time for specialist consultations. • High costs of consultations, prescriptions, diagnostic tests and hospitalisation. • Poor access of the masses to pertinent medical services, which are constrained by availability of physicians and specialists. Due to these drawbacks, which are exacerbated by the region’s aging demographics, the “old normal” of healthcare delivery in Asia is unlikely to be sustainable over the long term in our view. We think that Covid-19 offers the opportunity to rethink, reset and revamp the existing healthcare delivery model in Asia in order to offer greater Chart 1 - Asia’s current unsustainable healthcare delivery model

ASIA’S CURRENT HEALTHCARE DELIVERY MODEL ISN’T SUSTAINABLE Supporting Asia’s future healthcare needs will be a strain given today’s centralised healthcare model, which is laden with long lead time, high costs and poor access. The rising

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Source: Nikko Asset Management

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convenience, better accessibility, lower costs and higher standard of care to patients in Asia as well as to cater to the unmet healthcare demand in certain countries. TECHNOLOGY AS AN ENABLER Digital technology, utilising artificial intelligence (AI) and data analytics, could provide the solution to upgrade and augment the current medical care delivery systems in Asia. For instance, hospitals can use AI to determine the order of treatment for patients via triage, which is the process to ascertain the priority of patients' treatments by the severity of their conditions or the likelihood of recovery with and without treatment. With technological innovation in healthcare, such as telemedicine, patients’ home could effectively be turned into virtual hospital wards, where doctors can be available on demand via video links; wireless sensors are used to monitor chronic medical conditions; and prescriptions are conveniently delivered at the doorsteps of patients. Telemedicine isn’t new but had seen a slow take-up rate in many countries before the Covid-19 outbreak. However, the pandemic has changed users’ behaviour towards telemedicine, and many are now embracing digital healthcare services. ASIA AT THE FOREFRONT OF E-HEALTHCARE It is encouraging to see that Asia is currently far ahead on the telemedicine adoption curve versus other regions. In populous Asian countries, such as China and Indonesia, online medical services have seen an explosion in internet traffic volume and new user numbers of late, as demand for contactless healthcare services surged during Covid-19. In Indonesia, for instance, telemedicine provider Alodoktor received more than 60 million web visits2 and had more than 33 million active users2 in March 2020. Its application has been downloaded more than 5.5 million times2 and the number of patient-doctor interactions has increased to more than 750,0002 during that period. The number of Alodoktor’s monthly active users also surged three-fold to about 18 million2 in April 2020. Another Indonesian telemedicine provider Halodoc

To boost affordability, Asia’s e-healthcare platforms are also working and building relationship with government agencies overseeing the regulatory aspects of online healthcare services in order to have drug rebates and fee reimbursement, which can be passed on to consumers

also reported a similar sharp increase in web volume, as patients flock to its online medical services amid the Covid-19 pandemic. The growth of telemedicine in Asia is led by the private sector, most notably in China, where high-profile corporations (including Ping An Insurance, Tencent and Alibaba) have developed and spun off e-healthcare platforms. Even before the Covid-19 pandemic, several Asian governments have demonstrated strong support for telemedicine services by establishing regulatory policies and rules around reimbursement in this new area of healthcare delivery. Since the outbreak, we have seen governments further strengthen national support for internet healthcare by expanding reimbursement. Meanwhile, many technology-embracing medical institutions in the region have upgraded their hospital information systems, digitised medical records and developed their digital technology infrastructure, all of which are required for telemedicine platforms to take off in a sustainable way. To boost affordability, Asia’s e-healthcare platforms are also working and building relationship with government agencies overseeing the regulatory aspects of online healthcare services in order to have drug rebates and fee reimbursement, which can be passed on to consumers. Internet healthcare platforms will need to achieve economies of scale, critical mass in terms of user numbers and technological capability in order to establish a

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sustainable business model in online consultations, consumer healthcare e-commerce and online prescription sales. In our opinion, emerging and developing parts of Asia, given their large smart-enabled, internet-savvy population with high unmet healthcare needs, are the ideal markets for telemedicine players. In China, for instance, online pharmacy sales are expected to nearly double to 40% of total sales by 2022 (see Chart 2). Chart 2 - Rising online pharmacy sales in China

Source: Menet

mobile platform, Ping An Good Doctor (PAGD), for online consultations, hospital referrals and appointments, health management and wellness interaction services. It has become one of the leaders in China's online medical services sector. As of December 2019, registered PAGD users totalled around 300 million, while its monthly active users exceeded 66 million. PAGD has a full-time, in-house doctor team and uses AI auxiliary diagnostics system based on accumulated consultation data, which greatly improves the productivity of doctors. WeDoctor Compared to PAGD, which mainly provides online healthcare services through in-house doctors rather than cooperation with hospitals, WeDoctor is more focused on working with hospitals and reimbursement. WeDoctor has helped Chinese hospitals to establish online healthcare platforms by building standardised electronic health records for patients. It cooperates with hospitals to conduct chronic disease management; connects families to general practitioners in primary medical institutions; and collaborates with local governments in China to build medical alliances.

ASIAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S TELEMEDICINE PLAYERS

KEY TAKEOUT We believe that the strong growth in the adoption of e-healthcare services and telemedicine in Asia will continue as a result of Covid-19 and could even accelerate in a post-pandemic world due to overwhelming demand for medical services in the region. Internet healthcare companies in Asia that are able to take advantage of this long-term structural shift in healthcare will thrive in a post Covid-19 era.

In China, the leading companies in the internet healthcare service space include Alibaba Health3, Ping An Healthcare and Technology3 and soon-to-list WeDoctor. In Indonesia, the key telemedicine players Halodoc and Alodoktor remain unlisted. Alibaba Health Information Technology (0241.HK) Alibaba Health Information Technology (Alihealth) is the healthcare subsidiary of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group and the largest healthcare e-commerce platform in China. Over the years, Alihealth has built a comprehensive health platform, integrating medical resources to provide better technical support for the Chinese pharmaceutical and healthcare industry, and leveraging on Alibaba Groupâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s strengths and experience in Internet and AI. The company is a key beneficiary of the relaxation of regulatory controls over online drug prescription and reimbursement in China.

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Source: United Nations (UN), Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2019)

3 Source: CLSA; Deloitte, 21st Century Health Care Challenges: A Connected Health Approach; and The Jakarta Post 3 Any references to particular securities are for illustrative purposes only and are as at the date of publication of this publication. This is not a recommendation in relation to any named securities and no warranty or guarantee is provided.

Ping An Healthcare and Technology (1833.HK) Ping An Healthcare and Technology is an online healthcare software company in China that offers a

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November 2020

PAU L WI LSON

FINANCIAL HISTORY OF

COVID-19: UNFORESEEN AND UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES

In the second of his three-part series on this important topic, Paul Wilson takes a long hard look at how and when decisions have been made as the UK Government attempts to deal with the effects of the global pandemic and also how effective these measures have been. This month he looks at unforeseen and unintended consequences.

s it too early to write a financial history of Covid-19? `The ‘second wave’ is hitting and many argue we are not yet halfway through.

Think of the first wave as the first cycle of the pandemic, we know that if there is a successful vaccine deployment we may be limited to just two waves of destruction making this a story of two halves. However, it is possible if not probable that no effective vaccine will emerge and there will be many waves to endure. Each wave is an economic event in its own right, altering the course of the economy, draining resources and upsetting the dynamic balance of the economy both in the direct effects of the virus on economic activity, but also the consequences of government actions. Some of these are unintended.

As trusted advisers to your clients, the pandemic presents quite a challenge, akin to parsing ‘the weather’ from 'climate change’. In the short window since the end of lockdown there has been a lot of change, not all predictable. The tide is running in the direction of anything that supports home-centric working and living. WORKING AND SHOPPING FROM HOME The effects of this seismic shift are unfolding, not least in London where the Mayor, Sadiq Khan, is facing the insolvency of Transport for London (TFL), the Capital’s transport company that has already required a bailout of £1.6bn and urgently requires a further £4.5B to survive. Unsurprisingly, public transport traffic has dropped

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by 90% since the start of the pandemic and still hasn’t recovered meaningfully, with tourists and office workers staying away from London. The City of London is a sea of solitude, causing the authorities to consider reusing the square mile as a live work hub for start-ups and smaller enterprises as the need for large corporate HQs looks to be severely diminished. An unintended consequence of the Covid message, stay safe and work from home where possible has not just landed with the general public, but appears to have caused a permanent behavioural shift. Daytime catering to office workers has seen lasting change. Pret a Manger has laid off significant numbers of staff during the first wave, but in the absence of a mass return to the corporate hubs in the city, further rounds of cuts have followed. This must surely have longer term consequences for the value of equities linked to commercial properties as demand falls away and business whose models rely on the footfall of workers. TFL is merely the tip of the iceberg when it comes to long term systemic downward pressure in central London. The upside has been seen in the growth of web-based retail, where the advantages of lack of business rates and questionable corporate tax management have been augmented by the convenience of home delivery, especially when you are at home to greet the couriers dropping everything to your door. Just like the bike messengers of much earlier times dropping your order around from the grocers and hardware stores. Retail has become more commoditised with search and availability tending towards perfect competition, with the reduced margins that predicts. However the online market isn’t perfect, it has been monopolised by the data and search platforms, most prominently Google

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November 2020

and Amazon. This duopoly controls the rankings of competing retailers and is incredibly adept at harvesting its share of the revenues generated by the user- base. It’s a user-base more easily defined now by who is left who doesn’t use them. The greatest commercial imbalance facing the UK and the wider world now is between the monopoly position of the internet gateways to commerce, and the cut throat, cost cutting demanded of their suppliers in order to maintain their market share. High streets around the country have been under pressure for some time. Everything seems tilted against them; local councils are keen to discourage car use, rates are high, rent reviews are upwards only, minimum wage pressure has been strongly upwards and sales are falling as people trend towards the web. The pandemic has exacerbated this, taking out the retail and hospitality chains carrying high levels of debt first, with tenants declining to renew leases as they end. This is without the inevitable insolvencies that the collapse in trading has caused for smaller independent traders, forced to serve clients from their front doors as they can’t socially distance inside. Estate Agents have had an unexpected fillip from the pent up demand held back during the spring, the decisions made to decamp from city apartments, and the stamp duty holiday. In what may prove to be an unfortunate accident of timing, many of the chains which have been put together by agents over the summer months and are reaching the point of exchange are starting to fall apart. Reports are appearing of widespread downwards valuations by surveyors, combined with lenders tightening criteria and redundancies invalidating mortgage offers. In normal times it would require a little patience from everyone in the chain whilst the sale was rebuilt, however the delays in processing searches, valuations and mortgage offers has moved the average processing time out from three months to nearer five. This

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PAU L WI LSON

means that the window for repairing a property chain and getting everything exchanged before the end of the stamp duty holiday is tight to say the least. And that ignores the second wave lockdowns in three of the four nations of the UK and the rolling tier three restrictions in England. Falls in property prices that were predicted and utterly confounded in the euphoria of the re-opened property market have reappeared. Countrywide Estate Agents, who have had a difficult time in the past couple of years, have recently recapitalised their business again, but as a condition are planning significant cost and restructuring to meet what they are anticipating as new market conditions. Just before the pandemic struck, their share price had recovered to 393p per share but is currently trading below 160p. Meanwhile shares in Foxtons have dropped from a February peak of 95p down to 35p at the time of writing in mid-October. Investors are clearly gloomy about property in the longer term. BANKS AND BANKING The Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) has been a damp squib for borrowers as banks appetite for risk, even if limited to just 20% of lending, has shown a marked lack of enthusiasm for getting funds out the door. The Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS), the small company lending scheme, has proved enormously popular. However, there are mounting concerns about the level of fraudulent loans obtained and unnecessary borrowing as firms took the opportunity to recapitalise with free money for a year, with the option of retaining the cash for a further five years at an unusually cheap fixed rate. An unforeseen problem with the legislation has been the effect of the rule that a

company cannot access CBILS whilst they have a BBLS loan. For companies that require more than the maximum allowed under the BBLS scheme, the marginal hike in interest costs converting to a slightly larger CBILS facility is very high, and banks are incentivised to exploit this. Thus far the Chancellor has declined to address this. A significant problem has emerged where it is proving difficult if not impossible to open a new business bank account with a new business lender. Reports suggest that this has locked over 700,000 small businesses out of accessing BBLS loans. The challenger banks which are willing to offer accounts to new business customers have proved to be unable to support their new customers with BBLS facilities. Similarly the banks have been keen to close dormant accounts and many small charities find themselves with cheques issued when their bank has closed their accounts which they are unable to cash as they cannot open a new account elsewhere. Markets are predicting tough times ahead for the banks, with many of their share prices having seen hefty falls since summer peaks. The great unknowable at the moment is how much stress the banks are actually under. HELICOPER MONEY Grants, or helicopter money as some economists regard it, have been a significant component in the financial assistance armoury during the first wave. Grants can be market distorting as a blunt instrument. Furlough, self-employed grants, rates relief and cash payments to rate-exempt tenants have directed large amounts of money, seemingly reasonably well-directed, to where it has been needed. However, a very large number of people, freelancers in the main, and also the more recently selfemployed, have found themselves entirely ignored and the

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PAU L WI LSON

pain of the fallout in the economic landscape has affected this group, almost randomly, severely. The difficulties in allocating grants has become apparent with organisations such as the Arts Council awarding grants that at first sight seem irrationally generous to some recipients, and inexplicably unsuccessful to other applicants. The eligibility for grants and support, particularly for the self-employed, has rewarded those who have fully disclosed prior earnings to HMRC. In a positive yet unforeseen way, this appears to be driving people to see accountants to properly declare their circumstances.

November 2020

per job should work out at £6,500. Of course there are the instances of furlough fraud running at an estimated £3.6bn, or 7% and a surprising 80,422 businesses deciding that the £215,756,121 they legitimately claimed from the scheme should be donated back to the Treasury. In terms of unintended consequences, it may turn out that fewer people than usual will have changed employer during the year. Thus far, the scheme has excelled in preserving jobs, with the predictions of unemployment reaching 9% to date proving to be unfounded. WHAT NOW?

WHAT HAS WORKED AS INTENDED? The government’s headline initiative has been the furlough scheme, running for eight months from March to October. At its peak economic impact, 9.3 million people’s jobs were dormant and their salaries paid by the State. For those who have been able to return to work following furlough, the initiative provided an unexpected sabbatical, albeit one with reduced spending opportunities. Overall, these individuals’ financial experience has been largely positive, contributing to the £7.4bn paydown of personal debt during lockdown. For another group of those furloughed however the lockdown will prove to have been gardening leave pending unemployment. With unemployment standing at 4.5% at the end of the scheme, it looks as if the policy has worked as planned for employees. When then scheme was extended early in the first wave, there were some predictions that it would cost £100bn, but as of the 20th of September the cumulative cost was £39.3bn. This suggests that the final bill will sit at around £50bn, a cost of just under £5,500 per job on average. Add to that the job retention bonus of £1,000 payable in January for all workers still in post, the average cost

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As the second wave of Covid-19 hits, it is apparent that there is less money available in the armoury than in March this year. The goal has shifted from saving lives to saving lives and the economy. The political consensus is split and the ‘whatever it takes” mantra has moved from referring to an open cheque book, to the need for tough political decisions. With the EU post-Brexit trade deal position as yet unknown and the deadline for implementation looming as the end of the year approaches, we are living in very uncertain times. So, in attempting to plan for the future with your clients, it is clear that picking asset classes, trading areas and minimising downside exposure are going to be major points of focus for advisers and their clients, but so too should opportunity. The tide is running in the direction of anything that supports home-centric working and living. Therein lies opportunity. Also, the drive towards sustainable investment and to “build back better” continues to be encouraging but reminds us that the next big challenge facing the planet that of tackling climate change – looms larger than ever.

N I N ETY ON E

November 2020

WHY DEFENCE STILL

MAKES SENSE John Stopford, co-Portfolio Manager, Ninety One Diversified Income Fund

efore the pandemic the backdrop for markets and economies was already unstable. Now, seven months on since we saw an estimated one third of the world’s population go into lockdown, it is considerably less predictable. While the dramatic collapse in asset prices in March 2020 was unique, we think investors should expect more frequent and larger drawdowns than those which took place prior to 2008.

people are saving too much. Deficient demand makes it difficult for an economy to grow at capacity, and excessive savings mean that it requires very low real interest rates to stimulate demand. Together, these effects make it hard to achieve adequate growth, full employment and financial stability simultaneously. The forces potentially contributing to a lack of demand and excess savings are well established. They include aging populations, excessive debt, rising income inequality and technological change. PARADOX OF THRIFT

‘SECULAR STAGNATION’ ‘Secular stagnation’ was first coined by the economist Alvin Hansen in 1938. Back then, the US economy was struggling to escape from the Great Depression. Hansen suggested that slowdowns in population growth and technological advancement were suppressing both investment and consumer spending. This, he believed, would stop the US economy achieving full employment indefinitely. Hansen’s pessimistic thesis turned out to be wrong, but only perhaps because of the outbreak of the Second World War. Larry Summers, another prominent US economist, resurrected Hansen’s theory in 2013. He believes that again we live in a world of insufficient demand, where

According to Summers, “Secular stagnation occurs when neutral real interest rates that balance saving and investment at full employment are sufficiently low that they cannot be achieved through conventional central bank policies. At that point, desired levels of saving exceed desired levels of investment, leading to shortfalls in demand and stunted growth”. Since the global financial crisis (GFC), it has become increasingly hard to argue against this thesis. Ever-looser policy has failed to deliver consistently stronger growth or higher inflation. The inevitable side effect, Summers says, is that “sustained low rates tend to promote excess leverage, risk taking

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N I N ETY ON E

and asset bubbles.” In other words, the world of secular stagnation is inherently unstable, with the forces which are undermining growth requiring ever-looser policy to offset them, resulting in economic and financial market stress and sharp episodes of volatility. WORSENING LIQUIDITY Since the GFC, other factors have tended to reinforce market instability. In August 2019, Bloomberg reported that, since 2007, average daily turnover in US Treasury bonds had fallen by over 60%, with a similar drop in trading in the corporate bond market. Large declines were also observed in the equity and futures markets. According to Bloomberg, other indicators of worsening liquidity included 'significant intra-day moves, frequent price spikes, higher volatility of bid-offer spreads and the proliferation of flash crashes such as the sharp increase in the Cboe Volatility Index, or ‘VIX’, at the end of 2018 and the Japanese yen flash in January 2019'. These trends likely reflect changes in market structure over time, such as the diminished capacity of banks to use capital to support market-making, as well as the growing influence of algorithmic trading and the rise of passive investing. Whatever the causes, the implication is that scarce liquidity can be expected to exaggerate market moves in the future, particularly to the downside. EVIDENCE OF INSTABILITY As well as the increased preponderance of sharp market swings highlighted above, there are other signs of increased asset-price instability. For example, the equity bull market following the GFC has been far messier, especially in terms

November 2020

of drawdowns, than the one that proceeded it, with many more large falls in price over the past decade than before the crisis. With poor market liquidity and an even more extreme imbalance between the range of negative impacts on growth and the extraordinary policy adopted by central banks to support economies in the aftermath of the COVID outbreak, investors will likely need to be even more focused on finding ways to live with skittish and vulnerable asset prices. We believe that this supports the case, even in those periods when risks appear to have diminished, for allocating a portion of portfolio exposure to defensive strategies designed to navigate less stable market conditions – whether you are optimistic or not, in a world that appears inherently unstable, defence still makes sense. Call us pessimists, or ‘cautionists’, but we think we have been living in this increasingly unstable world since 2008. Since inception of the Diversified Income Fund in September 2012 we have – like our peers – had to navigate some very different, and often challenging, market environments. Concentrating on minimising the downside correlation to markets, has stood us in good stead and enabled us to produce significantly more upside capture relative to downside. In our view, a defensive total return is best achieved not by never going down, but by participating to a greater degree when markets are rising than when markets are falling. FINAL THOUGHTS Looking forward, we believe that to survive this hyper uncertain environment - where there will likely be big moves in both directions - investors will require flexibility to navigate increased instability and the ability to appropriately strike a balance between generating a consistent total return but in a risk-managed way. Now is not the time to be complacent, but to strive to understand our unstable world – the imbalances, risks and opportunities – to provide investors with a defensive strategy that makes sense, even if the world doesn’t.

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November 2020

TH E LEGAL LE NS

THE THREAT OF TEAM MOVES DURING

UNCERTAIN TIMES We run the legal lens over the age old problems which often arise as a result of team moves. Employment law specialist Wedlake Bell LLP gives practical tips on how you can protect your business from such moves and steps you can take should you have to experience it

rganisations are facing so many challenges at present, it is easy to get distracted from what is always an underlying threat – employees taking your business to a competitor. With revenue already at risk, the loss of key divisions and revenue streams could be catastrophic. When staff are concerned about the future viability of their jobs, or perhaps because they have been thinking about a change whilst on furlough or after salary cuts, they may be looking for a more stable alternative – a safe port to which to take their clients, contacts and colleagues. The flip side is that with a lot of movement in the market this is an ideal opportunity to inherit a team. Team moves occur when two or more employees decide to resign and either set up in competition with their current employer or join one of their employer's competitors. The loss of a team can inflict significant harm upon a business due to a loss of expertise or business lines and the subsequent competitive threat that can arise. The inheritance of a team can be of great benefit to a business that will then have a "springboard"

from which to build its business. If the team act in breach of their contractual obligations with their existing employer then the team and the new employer could face legal action. It has been reported that, earlier this year, the investment bank Stifel Nicolaus sued the financial services firm Jefferies International and six of its ex-employees for £5.7 million on the grounds that Jefferies had improperly poached the employees in a ploy to undercut Stifel and drain their customer base and expertise (https://www. law360.com/articles/1315148/jefferies-says-better-payled-rival-s-employees-to-leave). Last month, in a filing with the High Court, Jefferies International strongly denied Stifel's allegations, arguing that the employees were recruited lawfully through a networking agency, with each employee being recruited individually. In the light of these allegations we explore the grounds employers have to take legal action against former employees and competitors orchestrating team moves, and the precautionary measures employers can take to prevent their employees from being poached.

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TH E LEGAL LE NS

November 2020

GROUNDS FOR MAKING A LEGAL CLAIM

employee. These legal duties will vary to some degree depending on the seniority of the employee's role.

Employers should consider their legal options if they suspect or can show that their former employees and the new employer have acted unlawfully. In these situations employers often focus on the post termination restrictions (otherwise referred to as restrictive covenants) within the employment contract to see if these have been breached, but often the unlawful acts have started before the employees have left the company.

The implied terms most likely to be breached by an employee involved in a team move are the:

In the context of a team move, an employee may be in breach of both express and implied legal obligations in their employment contract. EXPRESS TERMS If included in an employee's contract, the express terms which are most likely to be breached by staff involved in a team move are: •

Non-compete provisions – these often prohibit employees from having an interest in a competitor's business during their employment and providing services to a competitor for a specified period following the termination of their employment.

•

Non-poaching provisions – these usually prohibit former employees from soliciting, recruiting or assisting with the solicitation or recruitment of co-workers. Sometimes non-poaching clauses may be drafted in order to extend to prohibiting team moves (so that employees cannot go to work with each other for a competitor), in addition to poaching individual employees.

•

Non-solicitation and non-dealing provisions – these can prohibit ex-employees from both soliciting their former employer's clients as well as having any dealings with them.

•

Confidentiality clauses – these prevent the disclosure or misuse of the employer's confidential information (in this context confidentiality clauses will be of particular relevance to customer information).

IMPLIED TERMS There are also a number of obligations which are implied into employment contracts between employer and

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• • • • •

Duty of good faith and fidelity - this duty encompasses the following employee obligations: not to compete with the employer during employment or assist a competitor (some steps can be taken to prepare to compete but these are limited); not to entice fellow employees to leave employment to join a competitor; not to disclose or misuse confidential information belonging to an employer during employment; and possibly, to report a competitive threat, and to disclose one's own misconduct and fellow employees' misconduct.

•

Duty of trust and confidence – the implied duty of mutual trust and confidence between employee and employer may add weight to an employer's claim that an employee is in breach of contract following a team move.

•

Fiduciary duties - these will only apply to employees in fiduciary positions, such as company directors, and are more onerous than the other implied employee obligations.

INDUCING A BREACH OF CONTRACT •

Usually, this is where the new employer (although it could be a recruitment consultant, for example) is aware that the employees they are poaching are subject to certain contractual obligations and/or post termination restrictions, and the new employer induces them to breach those obligations and/or restrictions. The new employer can then be on the hook for the breach, and more often than not the ex-employer will prefer to pursue the new employer rather than the ex employee(s) alone. It may be difficult to prove, however, that the new employer had actual knowledge of the contractual restrictions and intended for there to be a breach.

TAKING ACTION After the existing employer has identified grounds for pursuing a legal claim against its former employees or the

November 2020

TH E LEGAL LE NS

new employer, it should consider what action to take in order to prevent or lessen any damage caused by the team move.

• Providing new career development opportunities to staff; and

LEGAL OPTIONS INCLUDE:

• Having the following provisions in staff's employment contracts:

- Sending letters before action to departing employees or those who may be suspected of joining the team move; and/or

- clauses that require the employee to show a prospective employer the restrictive covenants that the employee is bound by, and to let you know when a job offer is made and by whom;

- Applying for an interim injunction to enforce express or implied terms in the employees' contracts, such as a prohibition from working for competitors or with team members; and/ or

- contractual obligations that mirror fiduciary duties (eg. an obligation for an employee to report their own misconduct as well as that of another employee); and

- Applying for springboard injunctive relief to stop the ex-employees or the new employer from gaining an advantage because of their unlawful behaviour; and/ or - Pursuing legal proceedings in order to obtain financial remedies such as compensation, an account of profits or damages; and/ or - Negotiating a settlement with the former employees. When deciding how aggressive to be in trying to prevent the team move the business will need to consider the impact on any prospective customers and its reputation in the market place. STEPS TO PROTECT YOUR STAFF FROM POACHERS Precautionary measures employers can take to prevent a competitor from poaching staff include: •

Providing incentives to highly valued employees to remain with your business (but making the incentives payable over time and providing that they will be forfeited if the employee chooses to resign - often in the form of "good leaver"/"bad leaver" provisions);

- provisions that specifically hamper team moves. Employers should consider which restrictive covenants are appropriate to include in their employees' contracts, such as non-compete, non-solicitation and non-dealing provisions. The restrictive covenants must be reasonable and no wider than is necessary, otherwise an ex-employee may be able to complain that the covenant is in restraint of trade and not enforceable. The use of garden leave and the potential claw back of bonuses can also be great tools in reducing damage to the business. The law relating to team moves is highly complex, particularly in financial services, and legal advice should be taken if you are looking to recruit a team or suspect that your business may be under a competitive threat.

Laura Conway, Senior Associate and employment law specialist, Wedlake Bell LLP Olivia Ufland, Trainee, Wedlake Bell LLP

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M AGAZINE

GBI OPEN OFFERS A selection of tax efficient opportunities currently open for investment

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EIS

SEIS

Open

Evergreen

Amount to be Raised: £5m Minimum Investment: £15,000

Oxford Technology Combined SEIS and EIS Fund - “The Start-up Fund” Oxford Technology invests in high risk, high reward technology start-ups, in genertasl within an hour’s drive of Oxford, and has been doing this since 1983. The latest fund, OT(S)EIS made its first investment in 2012. By 30 Sept 2020 OT(S)EIS had completed 143 investments in 42 companies. Things continue to go well and in the most recent quarter, the tax free gain on the portfolio increased from £9.67m to £10.59m. The figures for the fund as a whole since its inception are as follows:

T. 01865 784466 E. info@oxfordtechnology.com www.oxfordtechnology.com

Gross amount invested by OT(S)EIS:

£7.19m

Cash back to investors via tax reliefs:

£2.77m

Net cost of these investments after tax reliefs:

£4.42m

Cash back from exits:

£0.24m

Fair value of remaining portfolio:

£15.01m

Total value: £18.02m Tax free gain (on paper only so far):

£10.59m

After tax losses on the three failures:

£0.046m

*OT(S)EIS investors who made an SEIS investment in Animal Dynamics, an Oxford University spin-out at 14p per share (7p after SEIS tax relief) in Jun 2015, had the opportunity to exit in March 2019 at 97p per share (so 14x the after tax share price). About 50% of the shareholders opted to sell with 50% opting to remain – the company is doing very well. OT(S)EIS remains open for investment at any time. We average about one or two new investments per quarter, and investors in the fund receive their pro-rata share of these. The latest quarterly report, with a page of information on each investment is downloadable from from www.oxfordtechnology.com.

EIS

SEIS

Open

Now

Multiple

Amount to be Raised: Evergreen

Minimum Investment: £10,000

Start-Up Series Fund The Start-Up Series Fund is an evergreen EIS & SEIS service. Managed as an Alternative Investment Fund by Amersham Investment Management Limited, authorised and regulated by the FCA. The service is designed for eligible subscribers to be invested in selected winners of the Start-Up Series, a monthly competition organised by Worth Capital Limited and promoted by smallbusiness.co.uk. The Fund invests in qualifying B2C or B2B companies with innovative products or services that can create new consumer behaviours in growth markets, with teams that demonstrate compelling marketing & communication skills and with a clear credible route to exit. • EIS & SEIS investments – choose EIS, SEIS or both • Businesses selected by real world, commercial entrepreneurs with deep brand, marketing, retail & innovation expertise – worth capital

T. 07768571271 E. pauls@worthcapital.uk worthcapital.uk

• A unique approach to UK EIS & SEIS fund investing – a monthly competition which has attracted almost 3,000 applications to date • Ongoing oversight from experienced investor directors – skilled in helping accelerate growth & reducing risk • Investments in ‘mini-portfolios’ of typically 3 or 4 businesses • Investments qualifying for attractive EIS & SEIS tax reliefs Any investment in the Start-Up Series Fund places capital at risk of total loss and will not be readily realisable. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and is subject to change. We recommend retail investors take professional advice before investing.

EIS Open

1st March 2020

Evergreen

Amount to be Raised:

Seeking to raise up to £30 million per annum

Minimum Investment: £25k

T. 0161 641 9475 E. ventures@praetura.co.uk www.praeturaventures.com

Praetura EIS Growth Fund The Praetura EIS Growth Fund will provide access to a unique selection of innovative growth companies that have an established proof-of-concept and commercial viability. It is intended for investors who want to achieve capital growth by investing in early-stage, unquoted companies which have the potential to increase in value significantly. Praetura are an active fund manager and work with driven management teams at the foundational stages of their business. Each of their portfolio businesses provide access to recurring, high margin revenue streams and have the opportunity for operational leverage once scaled. Areas of focus include; Creative, Digital & Tech, Financial, Professional & Business Services, Energy & Environment, Advanced Manufacturing and Health & Life Sciences. As an ‘Evergreen’ fund, the Praetura EIS Growth Fund will have two ‘soft closes’ per annum. The next soft close is 31st March 2021. The Fund will invest into c. 8-10 promising young businesses and expect to fully deploy the capital within 6 months of each relevant close date. The fund is targeting a minimum return profile of 2x return on capital. This, combined with the tax reliefs available and Praetura's track record, offers investors an attractive investment opportunity.

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Open Offers

EIS Open

March 2012

Evergreen

Amount to be Raised: £10m - £25m per annum

Minimum Investment: £20,000

T. 0131 556 0044 E. pauline.cassie@parequity.com www.parequity.com

Par EIS Fund Recognised as "highly commended" in the 2020 EIS Association Awards for Best EIS Fund Manager. Across 19 realisations made to date, Par is demonstrating strong and consistent returns to investors. Par Equity is a leading EIS fund manager, investing in innovative, high growth technology businesses across the north of the UK. We harness the expertise and contacts of our Par Investor Network and wider contacts to create a distinctive, operationally focused investment model that benefits both investors and entrepreneurs. The Fund is focused on innovative companies. These are companies which are developing new technologies for sale or using advances in technology to disrupt existing markets. Par Equity has invested in companies operating in areas such as software, public health, e-commerce, social media, consumer electronics, photonics, technical textiles and medical devices. The unifying characteristic of Par Equity’s portfolio is therefore the importance of innovative technologies to the investment case underpinning each commitment of capital. In building the investment case, Par Equity draws on the experience, expertise and contacts of the Investment Team, but also the resources of individuals within the Par Investor Network. In this way, Par Equity can make informed decisions across a range of sectors, providing the potential for Investors, over a series of Subscriptions, to gain exposure to a diverse range of growth-oriented investments. Strategy for the Fund: • Focused on early stage technology companies with high quality management teams addressing global markets • Co-investing with experienced angel investors who add value to portfolio companies at each stage through to exit • Target portfolio of 7 - 8 investments • Target deployment within 12 months • Expected holding period of 5 - 7 years with a benchmark IRR of 15% Experience and track record of the Fund Manager: • 80+ years of EIS investment experience in the team • 239 EIS qualifying investments to date • 60 companies backed • £79m invested through Par Equity, leveraging a further £127m from third party investors • 9.8 months average time-frame to full deployment in 8 companies • 96 days average to receipt of EIS3 certificates. • 19 realisations achieved to date • 3.1x multiple (before tax relief) • 26% blended IRR • 4.1-year average holding period

BR Open

June 2005

n/a

Amount to be Raised: n/a

Minimum Investment: £25,000

T. 0800 316 2067 E. support@octopusinvestments.com

octopusinvestments.com

Octopus AIM Inheritance Tax Service Octopus AIM Inheritance Tax Service aims to help investors leave more wealth to their loved ones free from inheritance tax. The Octopus AIM Inheritance Tax Service invests in a diversified portfolio of smaller companies listed on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) and targets growth. As we only select companies which meet the government-approved requirements for Business Property Relief (BPR), the shares should become exempt from inheritance tax after just two years, provided they are still held when the investor passes away. Our highly-experienced Quoted Smaller Companies team have been managing our Octopus AIM Inheritance Tax Service and ISA for the past 14 years. They will create a portfolio of AIM-listed shares for the investor, selecting companies that offer growth potential and that should qualify for BPR. Holdings are monitored on a day-to-day basis, with the team making investment decisions. As it’s an investment, investors can make top-ups to or withdrawals from their portfolio by selling shares whenever they want to. We can usually sell shares within a week; however, in some instances it could take significantly longer. The Octopus AIM Inheritance Tax Service is also available in an ISA wrapper.

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BR Open

2007

n/a

Amount to be Raised: n/a

Minimum Investment: £25,000

Octopus Inheritance Tax Service Since 2007, the Octopus Inheritance Tax Service has given investors the opportunity to invest in the shares of companies making a positive contribution to the UK’s economic growth. The companies are unquoted, which means their shares do not trade on any stock exchange. We select companies that we expect to qualify for Business Property Relief (BPR). This is a government approved relief from inheritance tax. Provided the investment has been held for at least two years at the time of death, it can be left to their beneficiaries free of inheritance tax. Octopus Inheritance Tax Service is a Discretionary Fund Management Service. The service aims to deliver steady investment growth of 3% per year on average over the lifetime of an investment. The service is flexible enough to adapt to the investors needs, should their circumstances change in later life, subject to liquidity.

T. 0800 316 2067 E. support@octopusinvestments.com

octopusinvestments.com

VCT

Octopus AIM VCTs

Open

20 August 2020 Close

Each VCT independently has the right to close at the Board’s discretion, alternatively when the fundraise is full, or 1 year from fundraise open date. Amount to be Raised: £20 million, with a £10 million overallotment facility

Octopus manages two AIM VCTs. Each offers a tax-efficient way to invest in diverse portfolios of emerging and established companies judged to have strong growth potential. Octopus AIM VCT was launched in 1997 and Octopus AIM VCT 2 in 2005. Both VCTs have been making investments alongside each other, in proportion to the size of each VCT, since 2010. Each benefits from holding a broad spectrum of VCT-qualifying UK smaller companies. Although new investments remain small enough to qualify for VCT funding, the established nature of the Octopus AIM VCTs means that they feature a large number of maturing AIM-listed businesses. This means investors can instantly benefit from owning established portfolios of around 80 AIMlisted companies, which we believe will continue to deliver sales growth and generate profits.

Minimum Investment: £5,000

T. 0800 316 2067 E. support@octopusinvestments.com

octopusinvestments.com

EIS Open

April 2017

SEIS Close

Evergreen

GrowthInvest Portfolio Service

Amount to be Raised:

Up to £25,000,000

GrowthInvest simplifies research, investment and reporting on alternative and tax-efficient assets. Through our smart technology platform, we serve wealth managers, financial advisers, and their clients. Our core service offers:

Minimum Investment: £10,000

• A market-leading range of investment offers including EIS, SEIS, VCT, IHT and other alternative investments. • Reporting on all alternative assets in one online secure portal (including the onboarding of historical assets) • An extensive library of educational materials alongside research from independent partners, • Digital administration solutions and innovative products, driven by client demand, such as our diversified VCT service.

T. 020 7071 3945 E. enquiries@growthinvest.com www.growthinvest.com

• Personalised client service with an experienced team from institutional backgrounds: because technology is not always enough We have placed the adviser and their clients at the heart of everything we do. Contact us to discuss your specific requirements and for a demonstration of the future of alternative and tax efficient investing.

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Open Offers

VCT Open

September 2020

August 2021

Amount to be Raised: £10 million Minimum Investment: £5,000

Calculus VCT Pioneers of tax efficient investing, Calculus Capital have a strong track record for investing in growth focused, entrepreneurial companies. Our experienced investment team and thorough investment process have produced impressive dividend performance and exit returns for investors. By coinvesting in selected established companies through both Calculus VCT and Calculus EIS, Calculus are able to choose larger companies and bigger deals - reducing the risk profile of the investment. The Calculus VCT has the following characteristics: - Targets an annual dividend of 4.5% of NAV - Income tax relief of 30%, tax-free capital gains and dividends - Diversified portfolio, targeting 40 qualifying companies - Share certificates issued 10 days after allotment - Allotments available in both 2020/21 and 2021/22 tax years - Monthly Standing Order and Dividend Reinvestment Scheme options available

T. 020 7493 4940 E. info@calculuscapital.com www.calculuscapital.com

EIS Open

August 2020

July 2021

Amount to be Raised: £10 million Minimum Investment: £30,000

The top up offer will be used to both invest in new companies with growth potential and provide further funding to a number of portfolio companies. Calculus value their reputation for client service as much as their investment record, and are focused on building long standing relationships with both clients and advisers. Please get in touch to find out more on 020 7493 4940 or info@calculuscapital.com.

Calculus EIS Fund Pioneers of tax efficient investing, Calculus Capital created the UK's first approved EIS Fund in 1999. Our 20+ year track record of investing in growing UK companies assures investors of our ability to make sensible investments capable of delivering excellent returns at every stage of the economic cycle. Calculus has won multiple awards, including EISA's 'Fund Manager of the Year' five times, and 'Best EIS Investment Manager' at the Growth Investor Awards and most recently EISA’s ‘Outstanding Contribution to EIS’ in 2019. Calculus are recognised as having an incredibly robust investment process and an active portfolio management style - which has led to an impressive track record of successful exits. The Calculus EIS Fund invests in entrepreneurial businesses with growth potential, across the fastest growing sectors in the UK. An investor can expect a portfolio of a minimum of 5 companies with the following characteristics: - Strong management teams - Proven and competitive products or services

T. 020 7493 4940 E. info@calculuscapital.com www.calculuscapital.com

- A clear market need - Their primary constraint to growth is access to finance - A clear route to exit Calculus' investment strategy is exit led, with a key focus on delivering strong returns to investors. The 15-18 month investment programme commences after the relevant tranche closing date. Calculus value their reputation for client service as much as their investment record, and are focused on building long standing relationships with both clients and advisers. Please get in touch to find out more on 020 7493 4940 or info@calculuscapital.com.

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EIS Open

August 2020

July 2021

Amount to be Raised: £10 million Minimum Investment: £10,000

Calculus Creative Content EIS Fund The Calculus Creative Content EIS Fund, in association with BFI, invests in the best and brightest UK companies developing and producing premium commercial content across film, television, virtual reality and digital media. Global demand for content is growing, largely driven by the rise of subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) services such as Amazon Prime and Netflix, who are reported to be spending almost $15bn on content. The UK has a proven track record for creating premium, globally acclaimed content, making it a very attractive investment opportunity. The growth in demand has, in turn, led to increased M&A activity for content companies, creating attractive exit possibilities for investors. The Fund is well placed to capitalise on this unprecedented growth in demand. An investor can expect a portfolio of at least 5 companies with the following characteristics: - A track record of developing and producing commercially appealing projects - Reputable and entrepreneurial management teams - Commitment to diversified multi-platform strategy

T. 020 7493 4940 E. info@calculuscapital.com www.calculuscapital.com

EIS

SEIS

Open

Evergreen

Amount to be Raised: N/A Minimum Investment: £5,000

- Creating market-driven commercial film, TV and game content at prudent budget levels The Fund is targeting deployment over 12-15 months with a target return of 2x on monies invested. Calculus value their reputation for client service as much as their investment record, and are focused on building long standing relationships with both clients and advisers. Please get in touch to find out more on 020 7493 4940 or info@calculuscapital.com.

GrowthInvest - The Tax Efficient Platform for Advisers GrowthInvest is a unique, independent platform which provides access to tax efficient investments to a growing network of UK financial advisers, wealth managers and investors. Originally founded by financial advisers in 2012 as the Seed EIS Platform, we rebranded as GrowthInvest in October 2016 to better reflect the wider range of products and services available: We permit investment into a range of single company offers, as well as Managed EIS Portfolio Services and funds, giving clients a number of different investment options. • We offer a simplified asset transfer process which allows advisers to place all of their clients’ tax efficient investments onto the platform. • We provide intuitive online reporting tools, allowing advisers to monitor, analyse, and provide consolidated performance updates and quarterly reports to their clients.

T. 020 7071 3945 E. enquiries@growthinvest.com www.growthinvest.com

• All investable companies go through one of 3 defined due diligence tiers, giving added peaceof-mind to the adviser. • A single, secure online environment for all clients to review and build their tax efficient investment portfolios. We’ve placed the adviser at the heart of everything we do, making it straightforward for advisers to improve the service they offer to their clients in the tax efficient investment arena. Please visit us at growthinvest.com for more details about our current open investment opportunities.

VCT Open

02/10/2020

30/09/2021

Amount to be Raised:

£20m Ordinary shares + £10m overallotment facility Minimum Investment: £3,000

Blackfinch Spring VCT Growth-Stage Investing The Blackfinch Spring VCT invests in technology-enabled firms at growth stage, bringing a higher chance of success. We invest in firms that have already raised funding, gained traction and aim to accelerate the scale-up process.

Tech-Enabled Firms We’re focused on companies using the Internet, mobile devices and social media to offer better products and services. Exposure to different firms and sectors helps create portfolio diversification.

Return Targets We target firms offering the potential for higher returns at exit. They need to show they have revenue and customers, and are capable of disrupting large, growing markets.

Tax Benefits • Up to 30% Income Tax relief (minimum holding period five years) • Gains exempt from Capital Gains Tax (CGT) when investors sell shares T. 01452 717070 E. enquiries@blackfinch.com www.blackfinch.com

• No Income Tax on dividends

Discounts • 1.5% per share for new applications received by 3pm, 31 January 2021 • 1% per share for new applications received after then and before 3pm, 5 April 2021 • 1% per share for existing investors up until 3pm, 5 April 2021 Capital at risk.

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Open Offers

IHT Open

Evergreen

N/A

Amount to be Raised:

N/A

Minimum Investment:

£25,000

Adapt IHT Portfolios Meeting the Inheritance Tax Challenge Inheritance Tax (IHT) legislation, set against property values, means this tax remains a challenge for many. Our IHT solution uses Business Relief for a swifter route to IHT exemption after just two years (and if held at death).

Diverse Opportunities Three investee firms provide access to a wide range of opportunities: • Lyell Trading: property development finance • Sedgwick Trading: renewables investment • Henslow Trading: asset-backed finance

Choice Each client can choose from four model portfolios. This means each can find what’s right for them in terms of sustainable investing, their objectives and risk profile. T. 01452 717070 E. enquiries@blackfinch.com www.blackfinch.com

• Ethical: focus mainly on renewables and low carbon projects, target return of 3%* p.a. • Balanced: focus on capital preservation, target return of 4%* p.a. • Balanced Growth: focus on capital preservation with growth, target return 4.5%* p.a. • Growth: focus on growth, target return of 5%+* p.a. *All target returns net of costs and charges

Value We only take an annual management fee of 0.5% +VAT after we have achieved the minimum target return on the model portfolio a client selects.

Control Clients retain access to and control of capital, enabling withdrawals if their situation changes. They can also take regular payments or leave capital invested. Capital at risk.

EIS Open

Evergreen

N/A

Amount to be Raised:

N/A

Minimum Investment:

£10,000 advised £50,000 non-advised

Blackfinch Ventures EIS Portfolios EIS Provider The Blackfinch Ventures EIS Portfolios are our open offering as a provider of Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) services. We have a strong track record in EIS, having previously raised funding across sectors. We’re passionate about supporting new firms as they grow.

Tech Focus We invest in forward-thinking new technology companies. Firms operate across sectors, with offerings based on ground-breaking new concepts, using highly specialised technology. With the potential to change the way we live and work, they’re set to make an impact in global markets.

Return Targets We target higher returns of 3-5x on investment, focused on successful outcomes for clients and companies. We identify firms early in their life and invest before they take off. Risk management is key to our strategy.

Tax Benefits • Up to 30% Income Tax relief T. 01452 717070 E. enquiries@blackfinch.com www.blackfinch.com

• 100% Inheritance Tax (IHT) exemption on qualifying investments after two years (and if held at death) • Capital Gains Tax (CGT) deferral relief (up to three years prior to investment and up to one year in advance) • Growth free of CGT (if Income Tax Relief has been claimed) • Offsetting of capital losses up to 45% • Carry back to previous tax year (for Income Tax relief) Capital at risk.

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EIS Open

Evergreen

Amount to be Raised:

N/A

Minimum Investment:

£100,000

Mercia BIR fund This is a BIR investment into the Mercia EIS fund. Mercia’s EIS Funds have an investment-led venture capital strategy, investing nationally with a focus on the underserved regions; specialising in the identification, creation, funding and scaling of innovative technology businesses with high growth potential, creating a strong investment proposition. Mercia has an Investment Team of industry specialists with venture capital expertise, working extensively with portfolio companies to scale each business with the aim of ultimately delivering shareholder returns. Mercia can fund companies with different pools of capital, initially via its own EIS Funds or other thirdparty funds, and then selectively using Mercia’s proprietary capital. Mercia is therefore able to provide a ‘Complete Capital Solution’ for entrepreneurs and small companies, starting from seed rounds of £100,000, larger rounds of up to £2.0million, and building to funding rounds of £10.0million. Highlights Sustained Deal Flow - the consistency in both value and volume of Mercia's deal flow is hugely supported by deep relationships and networks in each region. Diversified Portfolio - consisting of approximately 15 EIS qualifying technology companies.

T. 0330 223 1430 E. enquiries@merciatech.co.uk www.merciatech.co.uk

Advance Assurance - will be sought from the HMRC for each investment. Proactive, specialist asset manager providing capital to regional SMEs (96% invested outside of London). Eight offices across the UK with 90 investment staff and 19 university partnerships. The Mercia Group has a substantial track record of delivering realisations from early-stage technology companies. This EIS fund is managed by a team that has seeded unicorns, and delivered some very high multiple returns to investors (26x Allinea, ~100x BluePrism)

EIS Open

Evergreen

Amount to be Raised:

N/A

Minimum Investment:

£25,000

Mercia EIS fund Mercia’s EIS Funds have an investment-led venture capital strategy, investing nationally with a focus on the underserved regions; specialising in the identification, creation, funding and scaling of innovative technology businesses with high growth potential, creating a strong investment proposition. Mercia has an Investment Team of industry specialists with venture capital expertise, working extensively with portfolio companies to scale each business with the aim of ultimately delivering shareholder returns. Mercia can fund companies with different pools of capital, initially via its own EIS Funds or other thirdparty funds, and then selectively using Mercia’s proprietary capital. Mercia is therefore able to provide a ‘Complete Capital Solution’ for entrepreneurs and small companies, starting from seed rounds of £100,000, larger rounds of up to £2.0million, and building to funding rounds of £10.0million. Highlights Sustained Deal Flow - the consistency in both value and volume of Mercia's deal flow is hugely supported by deep relationships and networks in each region. Diversified Portfolio - consisting of approximately 15 EIS qualifying technology companies. Advance Assurance - will be sought from the HMRC for each investment.

T. 0330 223 1430 E. enquiries@merciatech.co.uk www.merciatech.co.uk

Proactive, specialist asset manager providing capital to regional SMEs (96% invested outside of London). Eight offices across the UK with 90 investment staff and 19 university partnerships. The Mercia Group has a substantial track record of delivering realisations from early-stage technology companies. This EIS fund is managed by a team that has seeded unicorns, and delivered some very high multiple returns to investors (26x Allinea, ~100x BluePrism)

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CANDIDATES Financial Planner - AW340988 Salary Indicator: £45,000 Location: BRISTOL •

Excellent DipPFS Qualified Financial Planner

•

Looking to take AF3 next and keen to reach Chartered status

•

Good technical knowledge particularly around Pensions and Investments

•

Currently manging 120 clients, £2.5million FUM, 25% of which is self-generated

Chartered Financial Planner – JB426206 Salary Indicator: £60,000 Location: NEWCASTLE •

This candidate is an impressive and experienced Wealth Management professional, with a proven track record within Independent Financial Advice.

•

They have achieved Chartered Status through the CII and have built up an impressive knowledge of the industry.

•

This candidate has experience servicing existing HNW clients and self-generating new business, with previous figures of in excess of £200k of new business written in a year.

Chartered Financial Planner - LS422748 Salary Indicator: £55,000 Location: CLAPTON, NORTH LONDON •

A Chartered Financial Planner who is also a Fellow of the Personal Finance Society and is looking for a new employed adviser position.

•

Currently self-employed, and has a small client following she's able to bring across, but also has access to a large network of leads and clients.

•

Has been self-employed for two years, and a combination of setting up and the impact of coronavirus this year has seriously dented their earnings, so is considering a return to an employed position and bring the assets with them or a move to self-employed position that can provide them with greater access to market.

•

Has written an average of £75k of new business in the last two years.

CAREER OPPORTUNITIES Managing Director

Job Ref: AR60804

Salary: £60,000 - £100,000 DOE

Location: DORSET

The Opportunity We are looking for an experienced IFA that has Managing Director experience and qualities. Ideally, you will be Chartered or close to it, you will be joining a reputable firm of Financial Advisors who have serious and realistic growth plans. Package is flexible and can be tailored the successful person which may include a share plan. This is an employed role where you will look after a small bank of existing clients as well as run the IFA firm in line with profits and growth. You will need minimum Level 4 Diploma. We are seeking people who have a proven track record to maintain client banks but also to generate new fee income too. If you are interested in this position then please apply now and get in contact to find out more.

Position: Employed Financial Adviser Location: CENTRAL LONDON

Job Ref: LS61105

Salary: £45,000 - £65,000 DOE

The Opportunity I am working with a Chartered Financial Planning firm with offices located across the South East of England. They currently have an employed vacancy based out of their London City office, although the current expectation is that you will work from home for the foreseeable. They have successfully onboarded a couple of advisers remotely during lockdown. Their average adviser will write somewhere between £200k and £250k per annum, though there are advisers there writing in excess of £450k. You’ll avail of full admin and paraplanning support, with every paraplanner in the team being Level 4 qualified and designated administrator support. For help with business development, you’ll be given access to a legacy client bank, immediately giving you access to clients to convert to new business. There is also a marketing team developed only to building your profile and generating you web leads. They also have professional connections with national accounting firms and solicitors, providing you plenty of warm leads to speak to immediately, with a particular focus on London.

Position: Paraplanner

Job Ref: KB61032

Location: CHELTENHAM

Salary: £30,000 - £40,000

Our client is looking for a Paraplanner to support the successful Financial Planners of the business. You will be involved in the following: -

Working within a team of experienced technical Paraplanners providing a range of support and technical assistance.

Carrying out compliant and detailed research and technical analysis to support advice given by the Financial Planners -Preparing complex suitability letters, replacement cases, fund switches and withdrawals -Directly liaising with clients as you process their cases and keep them updated on progress

What’s needed to be considered? Level 4 Diploma qualified or working towards this. Previous experience within a fast-paced IFA Practice, high level of analytical capability and good communication skills are essential to succeed in this role.

October 2020 What a month October has been. I assure everyone that is reading this, that anyone who says “there aren’t any jobs”, is just misinformed. This month we have been inundated with jobs to fill, we have managed to secure roles for 26 people so far which is virtually helping one person, every single day! Jobs are so important; jobs give people the money that help create the life that they wish to have. So, whether it’s helping someone find their next promotion, job security or even that ‘foot in the door position’, we are all to pleased to speak to someone and advise what their options are. We have seen a lot of the bigger IFA firms coming back to the recruitment table and are on recruitment drives now. Some IFAs are besieged with work and need more hands to cope, others are using what’s left of recruitment budgets so they are not behind in 2021. If you are Financial Services person looking for change, there has never been a better time to explore what is out there. Interviews continue to be held over phone calls, Zoom meetings, Skype and Teams calls. Companies seem to have settled into the new ‘normal’ and continue to hit the growth plans they originally set out. We are still looking forward to the end of year and plan to help as many individuals and businesses as we can. If you are looking to hire or are considering a change yourself then please get in touch.

Alex Russon Managing Consultant – Financial Planning Division, Heat Recruitment Alex.russon@heatrecruitment.co.uk 0117 284 1248 What’s next? If you are interested in any of the above opportunities, please contact us directly. If suitable, one of our specialist consultants will be in contact with you to discuss the opportunity in detail prior to submitting your Curriculum Vitae to the client. During this discussion, we will aim to identify your specific skills and motivations and, where appropriate, can also recommend other relevant opportunities to you that match your requirements.

And finally… If these specific vacancies are not exactly what you are looking for, please contact us to discuss other opportunities we may be recruiting for that aren’t necessarily advertised.

TELEPHONE

0330 335 8347 Visit the Heat Recruitment website for more details of these and hundreds of other jobs too www.heatrecruitment.co.uk

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Preparing for 'bumpy beyond'? | IFA93/GBI22 | November 2020

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COMBATTING CLIMATE CHANGE

TRANSPARENCY IN THE INDUSTRY: IT IS TIME EIS HIT THE MAINSTREAM

WHAT’S NEXT FOR MERCIA?