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New MD Hired by Sesame Bankhall to Advance Digital Services

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Consultant network to promote the expansion of digital services, Sesame Bankhall Group has appointed Richard Howells as managing director of Sesame Network.

Mr. Howells has a long history in the financial and intermediary sectors, including Berkeley Independent Advisers and Zurich Financial Services.

He will answer to group managing director Martin Schultheiss in his new position. Beginning in April, he will begin serving in his new capacity and joining the executive group.

Mr. Howells has held a variety of executive positions during his 20 years in the company. He most recently served as Experian’s director of insurance, wealth, life, and pensions.

He worked as the director of UK intermediary sales at Zurich Financial Services for seven years prior to this. The chief executive of Berkeley Independent Advisers and managing director of strategy & development at Bankhall are two other top positions.

Richard’s expertise in the business is perfect for us, Mr. Schultheiss said, mixing his accomplishments in executive roles as a financial advisor with current work on innovative digital engagement tactics.

According to Mr. Howells, SBG is making significant investments in the future of professional guidance, and its members are in for some exciting times. I’m eager to get to work with the team to further solidify our member ties, create a fresh slate of enticing ideas, and make sure Sesame promotes the beneficial services offered to clients by its mortgage and protection providers.

About Sesame Bankhall Group

Sesame Bankhall Group (SBG), which employs over 10,000 advisers, is dedicated to offering market-leading support to the UK adviser community by bringing together intermediaries from many fields of financial advice.

We collaborate with wealth, mortgage, and insurance advisers through our network, regulatory support service, and mortgage club to ensure that their businesses are prepared for long-term success by putting consumers at the centre of all we do.

Old Mutual plans to grow Financial Adviser School

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Old Mutual Wealth intends to scale up its Financial Adviser School (FAS) to help close the advice gap.

Richard Freeman, chief distribution officer at Old Mutual Wealth, who presented eight graduates with their graduation certificates at a ceremony explained he would like to see hundreds of students coming through the school eventually.

He added the school, which was originally set up by Sesame Bankhall, should appeal to people from “right across the board” as it recruited more students, including those who had left the armed services and others from outside the financial services industry.

The Financial Adviser School received 319 enquiries and 90 applications by the end of the first quarter of 2017, and currently has 37 students, the average age of which is 27.

Mr Freeman said: “I think at the moment it is a tiny part [of closing the advice gap] but we can scale this up.”

Darren Smith, head of the Financial Adviser School, said attracting more women and introducing financial services to them as a career option was a key focus for him.

According to Old Mutual Wealth, 29 per cent of the Financial Adviser School students are women.

Eleanor Armson was among the eight who graduated earlier this week and one of two female graduates.

When asked why she chose to study at the school, she said she was not just looking for a job when she applied but a career in financial advice.

“We knew where we were going, and there was a clear path. That is kind of what appealed to me about it,” she added.

Ms Armson, who studied for a degree in English and Film before going on to work in recruitment for a while, also acknowledged the school’s focus on attracting more women into the industry.

“I think it’s a great industry for women and it’s a great opportunity to get into finance as well,” she suggested.

“I think it’s one of those industries that is really suited to women as well because it plays to their strengths.”

Having completed the course, Ms Armson said she is going to be working for Old Mutual Wealth Private Client Advisers, which is a sponsor of the school.

Mr Smith said: “The great thing about that is we have a friendly sponsor who we continue to get feedback from on how we adapt the programme.”

From May 2017, the course offered by the school will run in line with the government’s apprenticeship model, which will see the course extended from 47 to 58 weeks.

Mr Freeman believed the apprenticeship model was a “great initiative” from government.

He said the school could also expand by offering a chartered course and a paraplanner course.

“So people can come in at different levels, different costs, different courses,” he added. “We’re not just teaching financial advice. I think that’s probably next year.”

Old Mutual Wealth-backed network Intrinsic completed the acquisition of Sesame’s Financial Adviser School in February 2016.

Intrinsic reached a provisional agreement in late 2015 to acquire the school, which was founded by Sesame Bankhall Group in 2011, after the latter opted to wind down the training academy as part of a strategic review.

It was also announced this week Cara Gilbert had become the youngest person in the country to complete the diploma in financial planning from the Personal Finance Society.

Ms Gilbert, who is 19 years old, completed the qualification while working full-time at Standard Life’s Edinburgh office for the past two years.

She said: “I knew that I wanted to work in the financial sector when I was at school. I enjoyed maths, business management and accounting subjects.”

For more information about Old Mutual Wealth, please visit https://www.oldmutualwealth.co.uk/