St James's Place reveals £363.2m profit

24 February 2010 8:53 am | By Tracey Scott

Pre-tax profits were up considerably on 2008, where the firm reported a £115.9m loss on an EEV basis.

Operating profit for 2009 was £228.9m, up from £204.3m the previous year, again on an EEV basis.

However, under the International Financial Reporting Standards, profit before shareholder tax dropped to £49.9m last year from £80.7m in 2008. Under IFRS, profit after tax was £39.8m, compared to £67.1m the previous year.

Funds under management reached £21.4bn, up 31 per cent on 2008. Partnership numbers also increased 9 per cent to 1,464 and the statement reports that SJP paid out £190m in partner remuneration last year, up from £176.9m in 2008.

The SJP RDR academy initiative saw 20 advisers graduate last year, and it is now expecting a further intake during 2010.

Life business pre-tax profit  dropped to £53.6m last year from £83.2m the previous year, and other business contributed a loss of £20.5m.

SJP says economic conditions affected the IFRS results.

Chief Executive David Bellamy says: “Given the market conditions, I believe 2009 will come to be viewed as one of our most robust performances.  Our results in 2009 show that our business proved its resilience and is in really good shape to capitalise on better times whenever they arrive.

“In the meantime, the significant increase in the partner numbers over the last four years provides a solid foundation for the further growth of our business.”

Going forward, Bellamy says SJP will be launching some new funds in April, including an emerging market fund and a global bond fund.  Further new investment funds are being developed to be added to the range later in the year.

Reports over the weekend suggest that St James’s Place is placing pressure on Lloyds to sell its 60 per cent stake in the business.

If you enjoyed this article, sign up here to receive daily email updates from Money Marketing and Follow @_moneymarketing