Adviser caught in Nucleus dilemma

10 July 2008 0:55 am

But Nucleus says terms and conditions are clearly set out to advisers when they join the platform, stating they have to be a partner firm to use it.

Ed Fairey was a self-employed adviser at Helm Godfrey for three years until May when he left to set up his own firm, Fairey Associates.

He has five clients on Nucleus with a total of £300,000 of assets and wants to keep them there but unless he pays £15,000-£20,000 to get a shareholding in the wrap and become a participating member, he cannot have the agency to service the clients on the wrap or earn trail commission directly from Nucleus.

Fairey says if he leaves the clients on the wrap but does not get an agency agreement with Nucleus, he will continue to earn 80 per cent of the full trail commission from Helm Godfrey but will not have the right to instruct Nucleus on their behalf.

He claims that he was not made aware of this restriction while he was at Helm Godfrey.

Fairey says: "My clients are now put in an invidious position between wanting to employ me as their financial adviser and wanting me to be paid for it but to do that they will have to move their assets away from Nucleus."

Nucleus Financial Group chief executive David Ferguson says: "Fairey is entirely free to move the clients' assets away whenever he wishes. If you want to work with Nucleus, you have to sign up as a participating IFA and if you are not willing to do that, there are certain conditions that apply which have been consistent since the day we started."

Helm Godfrey managing director Bruce Wilson says advisers are made aware of these conditions.

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