An evening at the IFC Awards 2024
On 24 January, Citywealth celebrated 13 years of its IFC Awards with a fabulous dinner ceremony attended by the crème de la crème of wealth managers and advisors from the world’s leading financial centres. Read on for all the details on a fabulous night of awards, charity auctions and an ode to Robbie Burns.
To view the list of winners, click here.
To view the gallery, click here.
Opening with a champagne reception, guests were then lead into the ballroom for dinner whilst Karen Jones and Tim Willcox were piped into the room by Willie Cochrane. After ‘paying the piper’, a Robbie Burns night tradition, guests sat down for a three-course dinner.
The evening’s host was Tim Willcox, who entertained everyone with stories of his career before announcing the award winners. A born storyteller, communicator, and international TV anchor, Tim has brought sensitivity and global attention to people’s darkest, and happiest, moments. Beginning his career on London’s Fleet Street in the 1980’s writing for titles including the Times, Telegraph, FT and Spectator, Tim’s TV career began at ITN as a correspondent and presenter. He then went to the BBC where he anchored BBC flagship programmes from London and around the world. In that time Tim covered some of the most tumultuous events in modern history.
Spotlight on Maggie’s
For this year’s event, Citywealth selected Maggie’s as our charity partner and is thrilled to announce that, though a raffle and silent auction, we raised just over £5,500. Thank you to all of the evening’s attendees for donating so generously.
With 28 years of experience providing free support and information centres across the UL, Maggie’s provides invaluable support to those fighting all forms of cancer. Built in the grounds of NHS cancer hospitals, Maggie’s centres are warm and welcoming places run by expert staff who help people live well with cancer. First opened in Edinburgh in 1996, Maggie’s now has 24 centres across the UK and a growing international network. In 2023, Maggie’s saw over 310,000 visits to its centres, 45,000 of those being visits from new people with cancer and 35,000 visits from people newly caring for someone with cancer.
From their website: “All our support is free, and no appointment or referral is needed. Our expert team of cancer support specialists, psychologists and benefits advisors are available for anyone with cancer and those close to them. Our workshops, courses, 1:1 and group support help people change the way they live with cancer. We focus on the things that really make a difference, like money worries, help with stress and depression, managing side effects and relationship and family support. We work with some of the best architects in the world to design our centres because we know that light, colour, and a connection to nature can help people to feel better. Every Maggie’s is thoughtfully designed to be calming and welcoming; a place to escape from the clinical environment of the hospital. Our centres have large open spaces from group activities and a kitchen table at their heart to encourage people to chat and connect with others who understand. We also make sure there are plenty of peaceful corners for quiet moments, or simply to have a cup of tea.”
A spokesperson from Maggie’s said: “We are so grateful to have been selected to be the beneficiary for Citywealths IFC Awards. We raised £5,500 which will help provide free expert care and support to people with cancer and those they love. We would like to thank Citywealth and Suzanne Kingston for this incredible opportunity and a special thanks goes out to author and editor Rosamund Dean who shared her own story and spoke about why she supports Maggie’s.”
For more information on Maggie’s, visit maggies.org
A few words with our winners
Following the event, Citywealth spoke to some of the evening’s winners to uncover upcoming trends in their respective IFCs, the qualities that have served them well so far, and their best bits of retrospective career advice.
Introducing the interviewees:
- Paul Douglas, Accuro – Trustee of the Year – Channel Islands & Isle of Man
- Andy Smith, Investec Bank – Private Banker of the Year – Channel Islands & Isle of Man
- Shelley White, Walkers – Lawyer of the Year – Litigation
What is an issue or trend you have recently noticed in the IFC you practice in that you anticipate becoming a big topic in the future?
Paul Douglas: The application of private wealth to doing good and the consequential drive towards more sustainable investments.
Andy Smith: For me, Fintech and in particular AI will change many aspects of what we do as an International Finance centre. Once firms truly understand and embrace the time saving and efficiencies AI can create it will lead to more productivity, increased capacity for value add engagement and to reduce the cost of compliance.
Shelley White: There is a definite increase in crypto-related matters and I think a large part of our work in the future, from regulatory work to asset recovery litigation, is going to be learning to apply the law and procedure in this new context.
Which personal quality that you possess would you say has served you best in your career so far?
Paul Douglas: Recognising that one is never a finished product and must always strive to learn and grow.
Andy Smith: The offshore finance industry is a relatively small community and one of the best pieces of advice I received was that whatever you do or say to the client, remember that you will possibly see them in the Supermarket that weekend. Therefore I’ve always tried to be understanding and empathetic, find solutions and do the best I can for the client. If I can’t do something or it’s not the right solution, be honest and upfront as soon as you can. That way, when you do see them in the high street, you can hold your head up and know you did the best for the client. Separately, it also helps to have a personality and show them who you are, very simply, people buy people.
Shelley White: I think that diplomacy might be the quality that has served me best in my career so far. Being an effective litigator requires running all sorts of arguments in different contexts, and sometimes the way things are put is just as important than the point being made. It definitely helps to be alive to this when simultaneously communicating with clients, opponents and judges.
What is something you wish you’d known when starting out in your industry that you would pass on to those aiming for the same success in their careers?
Paul Douglas: Not to underestimate the importance of just being yourself, not being afraid to fail so long as you try and learn from the experience and, there are no short cuts – put the work in.
Andy Smith: Understand and build your personal brand, what do you want colleagues and clients to see and say about you. It has to be authentic and a true version of you (if it’s false people will see through it). Once you have a clear idea of who you want to be in work and how you want to be perceived, live that brand every day! Embrace feedback and keep improving and challenging that brand, make it better.
Shelley White: Invest your time in your team – the time you spend helping your team learn and providing training will be repaid many times over as your career progresses.
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