London & Capital, the wealth and asset manager, has launched London & Capital Europe (LCE), as it expands its operations across the continent, including setting up its first Continental European office in Barcelona.
The office launch follows the strategic partnership with Lovell Minnick Partners announced in June.
LCE will be led by partner and chief investment officer, Pau Morilla Giner (pictured), who has been with London & Capital since 2008. He will be responsible for driving growth across Europe, with a focus on American and other international expats in Europe, high and ultra-high net worth domestic clients and institutional clients operating in the insurance sector. Pau will be supported on the ground in Barcelona by a local team including Diego Pajaro, a senior client adviser with over 18 years' experience.
London & Capital offers an integrated wealth management solution which includes financial planning and advice, tailored investment management and global, multi-currency reporting. Its directly invested portfolios are suited to multiple jurisdictions and already adhere to all necessary regulations throughout European, UK and US markets. LCE will provide clients based in Europe with an offering unlike traditional private banking, which historically has been the main option for HNW and UHNW clients in this region.
Guy McGlashan, chief executive officer, said: "London & Capital has seen impressive growth in the last few years, and we are delighted to be announcing our expansion. Europe has always been an important market for us and the strength of the business, combined with the market re-opening post-pandemic, has allowed us to take the next step."
"We are already recognised as a leading manager for international Americans in the UK; the launch of LCE will enable us to support these clients across Europe - as well as expanding our reach to other international expats in Europe and local Europeans."
Pau Morilla Giner, said: "We've already witnessed increased demand for our services in Europe and offering an on the ground, bespoke service has always been our goal."
"Wealth management across Europe is typically very different to our proposition and so we are looking forward to bringing a fresh, holistic and innovative approach and revolutionising European wealth management."
Commenting further on the latest announcement, Giner noted that the region as a market is larger then the UK wealth management space, with certain differences, such as, on average, more focus on capital preservation.
The current state of the European wealth management market "feels like London at the turn of the Century," with the space still dominated by private banking/wealth management arms of national banking champions that have over the years been able to keep the relationships. As they had the clients, they still run a lot of the assets. However, the actual proposition is sub-par, when compared to what is happening in London, Giner added. For example, fees may be higher and made higher again by additional fee layers relating to use of third party funds in certain ways.
Speaking further on the three types of client groups in focus for LCE, Giner said these reflect the areas of business success already experienced by the London entity.
Thus, the US connection - either Americans living in Europe, or individuals in Europe with a relationship with the US, such as a green card - is about individuals subject to US tax jurisdiction.
"Being American is wonderful, but from an investment structure perspective, it comes with dangers. That's something L&C has invested a lot in over the years, to help them navigate the potential pitfalls."
Looking forward the expectations are that US connected wealth will also be present in cities such as Paris, Frankfurt, Milan and so on.
Another segment is complicated and very large international families; it is those that have outgrown a single discretionary manager, but not large enough to have their own family office. London has historically presented opportunity to work with, say, Greek, Spanish and Italian families with connections to the UK, such as having children studying in London, and where the family flits between countries. For such families based in Europe, the approach will be similar.
Regarding institutional clients, particularly those in the insurance space, there is a recognised need to assist those with excess reserves requiring investment. Europe presents opportunities through places such as Dublin, Malta, Luxembourg, and even Gibraltar.
Regarding a fourth source of business that is more local and could constitute organic growth, this is not a near term focus. For example, while LCE understands the Mediterranean basin area quite well already, with existing clients serving up word-of-mouth referrals opportunities, this is not the same when considering Scandinavian wealth and Swiss-German wealth. That said, Giner has visited Switzerland as part of research, and does not discount "looking to lift out a team" as part of LCE's next steps.
In the meantime, the challenge for LCE is not about the proposition per se, but about getting the word out and making people aware of what can be offered. The idea is to accelerate the recognition of London & Capital not just being a London based entity
