Leaders List Interview: 60 seconds with David Rudge, ZEDRA
David Rudge tells Citywealth why family businesses so often fail, and how succession planning is vital to avoid family conflict.
17.05.2021
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27 May 2021
I lead the UK business of Kingswood Holdings Ltd, a vertically integrated wealth management business with over c.£6bn of Assets under Influence and 60 advisers across 14 UK offices.
Kingswood provides financial advice and investment management activities to mass affluent and high net worth individuals, as well as entrepreneurs and families.
Our clients typically benefit from having a dedicated financial planner who will provide holistic financial advice across all areas and where appropriate, an investment manager as well.
For our high net worth clients, we offer a more tailored and personalised range of investment solutions to meet their needs and requirements.
We have a wide range of clients but typically they have or are rapidly accumulating wealth and need a combination of financial advice and investment management expertise.
This often includes advising clients on inheritance tax planning, ensuring monies are passed on to their loved ones in the most appropriate way.
Having only taken up this role at the turn of the year, my priorities are to continue Kingswood’s growth story, through both the acquisition of financial planning and / or investment management firms and through organic activity.
I believe that the adviser or investment manager is critical to the client relationship, but I’d also like to set us on a course to increase the amount of digital access our clients can have to us and their investments. Giving our clients a great experience is the key as is providing transparency and value for money.
The main challenges that our clients face are protecting and growing their wealth and then passing it onto their loved ones. Having a financial plan is a key part of helping them overcome this and this is where our advisers have strong expertise.
The best part is spending time with both colleagues and clients. The worst part is the relentless internal committees and meetings (necessary as they are) that we are all faced with on a regular basis. We will all appreciate more face-to-face contact after the pandemic.
I have to say getting my role at Kingswood in the UK and leading an internationally focussed wealth manger was something I have always worked incredibly hard to achieve.
This may sound hard to believe, but I grew up in the country and have always wanted to be an arable farmer. I love the outdoors. Either that or simply enjoying cycling near my home in the Peak District.