W.h. Ireland Share Discussion Threads

[t123ham] 11/6/2024 07:46

Head of Wealth Management disappeared from website

[davydoo] 03/6/2024 12:50

Oh geez, just realised the guy who set up and sold Harpsden to WHI is also in this new business. No wonder they are losing AUM hxxps://brightstockfp.com/about-us/

[davydoo] 03/6/2024 12:47

AUM has gone down from £1.6bn to £1.4bn to £1.2bn over the last 3 Marchs (2 years) when the market has risen.

Looking at their website, they appear to only have 5 financial planners for the whole country. Although they do also have investment managers.

They even have a planner featured on their website who has since setup her own business.

Not looking good

[davydoo] 03/6/2024 08:53

The Wealth Management numbers are worrying too. AUM between Sep 23 and Mar 24 remained at £1.2bn, but given growth in markets over that time, they must have lost c.10% of AUM, perhaps from clients leaving?

That's c £1m of revenue, and at these levels of fixed costs, potentially 100% of profit

[nicholasblake] 03/6/2024 08:14

The working assumption would be that WHI retains all the debtors and regulatory capital. Does the RNS contradict that?

[panther21] 03/6/2024 07:19

This announcement takes the biscuit for being economical with the truth. Firstly it says it is a trading update but there is none. Secondly it implies a sale for £5m but unbelievably it has been sold for £1 yes only one pound!! Any further payment will not be for a year and then based on performance figures not disclosed the 5 m figure is presumably a cap! There is no disclosure of the criteria. So Zeus have run rings round WHI as I foresaw. What a disgrace of an announcement with a total lack of transparency to the shareholders who own the company. This is not a public company this is a geriatric old people's home. Shame on you all.

[chrisdgb] 03/6/2024 06:37

So the wealth management division is now in for free....? Should be worth between 5-10p per share...?

[davydoo] 20/5/2024 11:20

Interesting that there is no share price reaction.

If they do sell it it would leave a very top heavy wealth management company.

[chrisdgb] 20/5/2024 11:04

Interesting..........

[gargoyle2] 20/5/2024 10:48

The Company notes the recent press speculation and confirms that it is in discussions with Zeus Capital Limited with regards to the possible sale of its Capital Markets division. These discussions are at an advanced stage but there can be no certainty that any transaction will occur.

[panther21] 04/5/2024 17:25

Still waiting for the non exec chairman's appointment to be approved by the FCA . His experience and that of the only other non executive G. Strang , non exec Chair and CEO respectively of PCF which collapsed last year should be useful in trying to save WHI from repeating that disaster . Maybe this time their forward looking statements will be equally confident . It would be good if their history had been disclosed to WHI shareholders but presumably the major shareholder new about it when they were appointed out of the blue. What is the FCA taking its time over? Is this a rescue or a quiet winding up. A great example of transparency and corporate governance at work?Lets hope there is a bid at any price.

[chrisdgb] 02/5/2024 13:08

Obviously very quiet here but you would hope with markets behaving themselves it should at least act as a mild supporting wind, particularly for AUM..........?

[panther21] 01/5/2024 11:43

It would help if a month after the year end we got a trading statement from the new Chairman ?Keeping the market informed is a legal obligation under the FSMA.Confidence is built by transparency not silence.

[harry_david] 14/4/2024 08:45

Panther, there are obviously parts of the business underperforming but the part we use is very good. There are too many of the former going by group results but the outlook for the area we use is improving. Maybe that will be enough to get things on track.

[markgordon1] 14/4/2024 06:03

I don't know

[harry_david] 13/4/2024 21:20

oceans4, you clearly know the business better than I do, we think highly of the people we deal with, but AUM and the other areas you mention are outside my knowledge.

[oceans4] 13/4/2024 20:24

I gather you're referring to the capital markets arm. The business has quite an unconventional mix of services, blending corporate broking, traditional stockbroking, wealth management and an IFA. The structure might work if it was a large business with decent management in place and a war chest at the ready, but i guess it would be a decent business if this was the case. Oversight by individuals with limited understanding of their respective areas is the bit that's finishing off the business at this stage in my view. Philip Wale understands or has contacts in corporate broking, but I'm not sure he understands the other areas. And the other guy brought in to oversee the other half of the business is an ex banker. He won't have a clue. It takes a years to understand how a stockbroker, wealth manger and ifa operates. He might have a grasp of wealth management, but its going to be coming from a banking perspective. It really needs to be someone who understands from an IFA perspective.

[harry_david] 13/4/2024 19:45

One more thing I would mention. They are strong in the mining sector. This has been very difficult recently but is showing good signs of revival lead by gold, silver and copper. The first two have had a phenomenal rise in price over the last two months, if maintained they will be in lotto-land.

[oceans4] 13/4/2024 16:46

Possibly. The IFA side, Harpsden Wealth Management, could be worth a bit. I wonder why this side of the business isn't raising assets for the business as a whole as I seem to recall they were bought with a good chuck of AUM. An IFA business would certainly be in the best position to raise AUM. The whole business model doesn't make any sense to me.

[harry_david] 12/4/2024 21:25

I am just a client, number two for us. They are definitely good at their business,be sorry if they go.

[markgordon1] 12/4/2024 21:02

All agreed. But a book of clients is worth something. As I wrote earlier the shares are not for me.

[oceans4] 12/4/2024 19:54

WH Ireland, is a dying stockbroking business, lagging behind modern standards by about 10 to 15 years. The current state of affairs likely resembles a chaotic mess, with incomplete records, outdated systems, and dusty draws full of detriment. Given the size of their Wealth Management team, it seems improbable that they can adequately serve a client base with diverse needs while staying compliant with regulator. Acquiring such a business would seem ill-advised for any amount.