Cat Ommanney gives an insight into a week at MRM, giving all the gossip from her working week while highlighting what news has interested MRM over the past seven days

And so, another week draws to a close at MRM-towers and we breathe a collective sigh of relief that January, judged by some as the worst month of the year, is finally over. However, February has already been welcomed in with the news of Facebook’s stock market float.  This has already proved to be a controversial move for the social network site, but the general consensus is that it could be a lucrative one. Co-manager of the GLG Technology Equity fund, Philip Pearson, has confirmed that he will be looking to participate in the IPO and that they already effectively have a stake through their holding in Mail.ru. Pearson’s full comment can be seen here. It will be interesting to see how this flotation plays out in the coming months and whether other social networks decide to follow suit.

On Monday, the Communities and Local Government Committee met to discuss the financing of new housing supply. This is clearly an area that needs addressing before the disparity between the number of homes available and people needing accommodation escalates even further. Tessa Norman (@Tessa_Norman) wrote an interesting piece on this on Mortgage Strategy and between you and me more on this is expected from Castle Trust’s CEO, Sean Oldfield, so watch this space!

This afternoon, Nucleus(@nucleuswrap) announced that they have just signed up their 100^th member firm, Murphy Financial, and have also passed the £3.5bn AUA barrier. Great news all round and congratulations from all at MRM.

Charlotte Banks (@Charbanks1) is still training religiously for her Eastbourne half marathon, and as Tom mentioned last week is running for MRM’s charity RNIB – if you’d like to support her and the charity then just visit her JustGiving page. And for those of you who don’t think that 13 miles in the cold is enough, what about Cofunds’ Investment Proposition Manager, Edward Roberts who is running the Marathon des Sables in April? This 151 mile race across the Sahara Desert is dubbed as the ‘toughest footrace on earth’. Not for the faint-hearted. If you wish to donate to Edward’s chosen charity, Mencap, his JustGiving page is here.

Arguably the most important news this week is that I’m back safe and sound from safari in Tanzania (I’m sure you were waiting with bated breath). Having happily acclimatized to 32C every day, it was rather a shock to the system to return to this icy climate. Indeed, with forecasters issuing a severe weather warning as the Arctic conditions are set to continue, my advice is for everyone to wrap up warm and stay put – Happy Weekend!

Nucleus, the IFA-owned and controlled wrap, has today announced Murphy Financial as its 100^th member firm just as the platform passes the £3.5bn AUA barrier.

Established in 1977 and based in Glasgow and Ayr, Murphy Financial is a second generation family-run business led by founder Brian Murphy and Associate Partner and son Adrian Murphy.

As a member firm, Murphy Financial will form part of the Nucleus adviser community which collectively drives the platform and its development.

Commenting on the decision, Adrian Murphy said: “We have been fans of the Nucleus model and proposition for some time and are pleased to now be in a position to sign up as members.  What particularly impressed us is their ownership culture and approach, essentially allowing its users to influence the direction of the platform. We also felt the wrap’s transparency was in tune with our own approach to trust and that of our clients.”

David Ferguson, chief executive, Nucleus, says: “I couldn’t be more pleased to have arrived at this milestone. When we started the business our model and the seven founding firms were often derided or dismissed. The momentum we’re now enjoying suggests that perhaps we weren’t crazy after all and that those advisers seeking to control their client proposition and deliver great outcomes were indeed looking for greater control over the key platform component.”

The Cambridge Building Society has chosen Sesame Bankhall Valuation Services (SBVS) as their exclusive panel manager for valuations in a new partnership announced today.

SBVS will manage a panel of surveyors providing full coverage in The Cambridge’s lending heartland, alongside additional surveyors to provide coverage in its wider lending area. SBVS will provide The Cambridge with a service that is focused on the customer’s specific survey requirements, enabling them to choose the most appropriate type of valuation for their individual needs.

John Cupis, Managing Director of PMS and SBVS, said: “Sesame Bankhall Valuation Services has established itself as a market leading panel management business that delivers a high quality service to lenders and their customers. Our new partnership with The Cambridge demonstrates the strength and value of our offering. The appointment of SBVS is the first step in a long-term partnership with The Cambridge and we look forward to working closely together on a range of valuable new initiatives.”

Jon Foster, Head of Operations at The Cambridge Building Society, comments: “This partnership has been developed to enhance the overall experience for customers when doing business with The Cambridge. The valuation of a property is a big milestone in the house buying process and it is important that this runs as smoothly as possible.

“Sesame Bankhall Valuation Services offers the same level of professionalism and integrity that The Cambridge has when looking after its customers and will be able to offer a service that is efficient, giving our customers peace of mind.

“SBVS will be using SMS text messaging to keep our customers informed on the progress of the valuation, it will handle all specialist valuation needs and will endeavour to speed up the overall valuation process. SBVS will also be working with our local valuers to ensure that these relationships continue to work for the Society, the valuer and for the customer.”

Sesame Bankhall Group operates market leading brands PMS, the UK’s largest mortgage club for directly regulated intermediaries, and Sesame, the award-winning network for appointed representative IFAs and mortgage brokers.

Sesame Bankhall Valuation Services Limited (SBVS) was launched in March 2011.

Philip Pearson, co-manager of the GLG Technology Equity fund, says:

“We will be looking to participate in the IPO and already effectively have a stake through our holding in Mail.ru, a publicly listed Russian social network whose stake in Facebook is worth around 1/3rd of its market cap.

“The debate about the value of Facebook tends to focus on short term user trends, revenues and earnings but fails to spot the key attraction. That is the fact that, to an advertiser, the price you pay “per eyeball” on Facebook (or just as importantly on display ads where you are logged in to your Facebook account ) is roughly 1/10th the price you pay for that eyeball on TV ads. This appears to be way too low when you consider how much more you know about the Facebook user than you know about the demographic watching a TV show. As this price gap collapses, we should see dramatic growth in Facebook’s revenue and much of this will drop through to the bottom line. When you model that through, even at $100bn Facebook looks significantly under-valued.”

Legal & General’s Index Linked Gilt Index Trust has overtaken the Dimensional Global Short Bond Fund to become the largest fund holding on Nucleus, the IFA-owned and controlled wrap platform.

The £339m* L&G fund, which tracks the total return of UK Government Securities to provide an investment income, rose by more than 13% in the final quarter of 2011 taking the total held on the platform to just under £130m. The Dimensional Global Short Bond Fund, which moved down one place to second, saw assets grow by almost 8% over the period taking the total held on the platform to more than £120m.

The other funds that made up the top 10 largest holdings on the platform in Q4 include new entries AXA Framlington UK Select Opportunities and M&G Optimal Income Fund.

Commenting, Kenny McKenzie, chairman of the Nucleus investment committee and managing director, Intelligent Capital, said: “The latest fund flow figures show that in the current climate, bond funds continue to be the investment of choice among Nucleus member IFAs and their clients. While statistics show this trend is replicated across the industry, what is interesting to note from these figures is that with over 3,500 funds available on the platform the two consistently largest are both index funds.”

Ashcourt Rowan plc (AIM: ARP), the UK wealth management group, has announced that Ranil Perera will be stepping down from the board of directors of the Company effective 1 April 2012.  This coincides with the end of the company’s financial year and marks the second anniversary of his joining the Board.

This announcement comes on the back of a number of senior management changes at the Company following the appointment of Jonathan Polin as Group CEO in August 2011. These include the appointments of Alfio Tagliabue as Group CFO, Richard Sinclair MBE as Chief Operating Officer and Jim Roberts as Non-Executive Director.

Mr Perera commented:

“I am pleased to have been able to serve Ashcourt Rowan as a member of the Board during a period of considerable change. I believe it is the right time for me to step down at the end of the current financial year as the company settles into its new arrangements.  I wish the company every success in the future.”

Kenneth West, Chairman, commented:

“Ranil has been a highly valued member of the Board for a period of two years during which time the Company has seen much change. His wise counsel and support in the fields of compliance and risk management have been most helpful during this time and we all wish him every success in the future.”

MRM's Tom Desborough

Tom Desborough gives an insight into a week at MRM, giving all the gossip from his working week while highlighting what news has interested MRM over the past seven days.

Another week’s gone by at MRM and we’re coming to the end of the longest month of the year. It’s certainly felt like it after all the present buying I’m sure we all did.

In the news this week it’s been revealed by the Office for National Statistics that the UK’s net sovereign debt has piled up to £1 trillion, equating to around £64.2% of GDP, for the first time since records began.

There’s been big news here at MRM too this week, as we’ve announced that we’ve chosen the RNIB as our inaugural charity of the year. We’ll be working, in various ways, throughout the year to support the charity. Charlotte has already kicked off fund raising by pledging to run just over 13 miles in the Eastbourne half marathon. If you’d like to give both her and the RNIB your support, then click on through to Charlotte’s JustGiving page. And for a bit more information on why the RNIB is MRM’s chosen charity of the year and the great work they do, take a look at Jenny’s blog from earlier this week.

In other news for MRM, our very own head of social media, Michael Taggart, was interviewed by Gorkana last week. He gave his views on why both journalists and PRs deserve mutual respect, the changing attitude towards social media and spoke about his previous roles at the Daily Mail and at Brighton and Hove council.

There have also been some major developments for our clients this week with, Nucleus, the IFA-owned and controlled wrap platform led by CEO David Ferguson, launching a video that looks at the revolution of online wraps. This came hot on the heels of the Paradigm Group launching its new corporate wrap business, Amber Financial Investments (Amber).

• Group strengthens position with £1.9bn mortgage business increase to £26.1bn
• Investment in services helps advisers to increase productivity by 20 per cent in 2011

Sesame Bankhall Group has today announced its 2011 mortgage business and market share results for PMS and Sesame.

The combined group delivered over £26.1bn of mortgage applications to lenders in 2011, a £1.9bn increase on the previous year (2010: £24.2bn). The group’s market share also increased to 13.8 per cent of the overall UK mortgage market (2010: 13.3 per cent).

John Cupis, Managing Director, PMS said: “It was another challenging year but with the strong support of our adviser and lender partners, PMS and Sesame once again outperformed the market. Over the past year we have made significant investments in valuable new services to enable our members to broaden their offering to clients. This includes protection, mortgage valuations and legal services that are helping intermediaries to develop new income streams. We have also bolstered our team of business managers to deliver more face to face support.

“In the face of a tough mortgage market, adviser productivity increased by an average of 20 per cent last year, which demonstrates that our members are rising to the challenge and seizing new opportunities. As the Mortgage Market Review draws closer, our strong market position and regulatory expertise means we are ideally placed to help give intermediaries the services and expert guidance they will need to trade efficiently and responsibly in the future.”

George Higginson, CEO of Sesame Bankhall Group commented: “As part of our long-term commitment to the mortgage sector we are using our group’s scale, financial strength and expertise to open up new options for advisers. Our team is working hard to drive the best deals for our customers, and this is helping firms to offer their clients a greater overall service and increase business revenue. With further exciting developments planned for 2012 in areas such as protection, general insurance and adviser technology, we are determined to deliver even greater value to our customers and help their businesses to prosper for many years to come.”

PMS is the UK’s largest mortgage club for directly regulated intermediaries. Sesame is the leading network for appointed representative advisers.

- New investment offers potential return of 46.50%
- Capital only becomes at risk if the FTSE 100 is below 60% of starting level at maturity
- Preceding product recently matured with 38% return after four years
- Investment backed by Barclays Bank

London, 26 January 2012: Barclays Capital has today announced the launch of a new five-year investment offering a potential return of 46.50%, which can be accrued without requiring underlying equity growth.

Launching on 26 January 2012, the FTSE 100-linked Synthetic Zero will lock in a 9.30% return for every year the Index trades at or above 60% of its starting level, with the sum of returns paid at maturity.

Investors’ capital will be returned in full providing the Index at maturity has not fallen below 60% of its starting level. If this occurs, capital will decline one for one in line with the Index.

The launch follows the recent maturity of a previous version of the product, which delivered its maximum return of 38% plus capital after four years (equating to a gross redemption yield of 8.39%). Over the same period, the FTSE Total Return Index rose 11.76% while the FTSE Price Return Index lost 4%.

Commenting on the launch, Lisa Chaudhuri, UK Investor Solutions at Barclays Capital, said: “The mood among wealth managers remains generally cautious and many are adopting defensive positioning to help protect to a degree against market falls. This particular investment profile may also be attractive for managers who hold zero dividend preference shares as either a complement or replacement to part of their portfolio.”

Lisa Winnard, director of HR & development at financial services company Sesame Bankhall Group, has been awarded a coveted top industry accolade.

Lisa has been named HR Director of the Year at the prestigious HR Distinction Awards 2012, held at the ICC in Birmingham in front of 400 of her peer HR professionals from across the UK.

The HR Distinction Awards recognise the outstanding achievement of HR Directors from the UK’s leading companies and are assessed by a panel of judges selected from some of the UK’s biggest organisations, including Tesco, McDonald’s and Carphone Warehouse.

Lisa’s triumph recognises a series of innovations that have helped Sesame Bankhall Group to respond positively to significant industry change. This includes leading the development and launch of The Financial Adviser School, which is a new initiative that is helping to attract and train the next generation of professional financial advisers – some of whom have no previous industry experience.

Students benefit from a clear career path and an innovative new training programme, which gives them the technical knowledge and practical people skills necessary to become the industry professionals and business entrepreneurs of the future.

Sesame Bankhall Group CEO, George Higginson, said: “This award is recognised as the ultimate distinction in HR. Our profession is undergoing significant change as a result of economic and regulatory pressure, and the award acknowledges Lisa’s achievements in delivering an effective people strategy that has delivered clear results. Along with the development of exciting new opportunities for our staff, our strategy is also enabling Sesame Bankhall Group to play a leading role in nurturing the industry professionals of the future. The Financial Adviser School is an apprenticeship programme that is making a real difference to people’s lives and it is something we are very proud of.”

Lisa Winnard added: “I am privileged to be working with a strong leadership team and talented people who are continually looking to improve the services and support we offer our customers. There is also a clear commitment to invest in our people and our infrastructure, which is enabling Sesame Bankhall Group to maintain its market leading position.”

At the same awards Sesame Bankhall Group was also a finalist in two other categories: Distinction in Employee Engagement and Distinction in Talent Development.

Sesame Bankhall Group has long been recognised as the UK’s leading provider of support services to financial advisers. The company has led the ‘Top 100 Advisers’ list, run by FT Business publication Financial Adviser, for the last seven years.