Jeff Salway: IFA of the Year 2010 certain to be a close contest

IF THE last IFA of the Year competition is a decent guide, a tricky yet rewarding 12 months lies ahead for our latest competitors. But while the economic outlook for the coming year is uncertain at best, this group can almost certainly expect a smoother ride than those in the previous competition.

At the outset of that challenge in early 2008, the economic outlook was similarly uncertain. But events took a dramatic turn for the worse with a severity that few expect to see repeated this time around. By October of that year, most financial advisers were fielding calls from increasingly stressed clients worried not only about the value of their investments, but about the future of the banks holding their cash.

Every competitor was able to minimise the impact of the market volatility, and while they all recorded losses, they outperformed the market. In doing so, they proved that good IFAs come into their own when the going gets tough.

The 2008 competition was won by Keith Thomson, director of investment services at Dundee solicitors Blackadders. Thomson emerged victorious from a year in which advisers faced the toughest environment of their professional lives.

A high qualify field will ensure that this year's competition is similarly closely fought. There is also a new judge to impress in the form of high-profile City expert Justin Urquhart-Stewart, co-founder and director of Seven Investment Management. He shares his views on the challenge ahead elsewhere on these pages, while fellow judge Raymond Ellis explains how the competition will unfold.