Meet the man looking to grow Scots arm of firm owned by Liechtenstein's Princely Family

“Scotland has a vibrant economy.”

John Godfrey leads the Scotland operations of UK-based LGT Wealth Management, which has more than 650 staff across cities including Edinburgh. It in fact in May of this year announced a relocation in the Scottish capital to new headquarters at Capital Square, which can accommodate 100 staff, and have strong sustainability credentials, coming as it looks to reach net zero by 2030.

The business is part of LGT Group, an international private banking and asset-management specialist that has been fully controlled by the Liechtenstein Princely Family for more than 90 years, and at the close of 2023 managed assets amounting to the equivalent of £287 billion for private individuals and institutional clients.

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Godfrey previously served as regional centre head and senior investment director at Barclays Wealth and Investment Management, and has more than 25 years’ experience in wealth-management. He says there was an “element of serendipity” to his path into the industry, on graduating securing a temping job at Noble Securities (which later become Cornelian) in the summer of 1996. And he found that he “really enjoyed the excitement of dealing in markets that were going up and down on a daily basis, and learning how to advise and structure portfolios for clients”.

Godfrey says wealth-management appealed to him as he 'really enjoyed the excitement of dealing in markets that were going up and down on a daily basis, and learning how to advise and structure portfolios for clients'. Picture: Stewart Attwood.Godfrey says wealth-management appealed to him as he 'really enjoyed the excitement of dealing in markets that were going up and down on a daily basis, and learning how to advise and structure portfolios for clients'. Picture: Stewart Attwood.
Godfrey says wealth-management appealed to him as he 'really enjoyed the excitement of dealing in markets that were going up and down on a daily basis, and learning how to advise and structure portfolios for clients'. Picture: Stewart Attwood.

He believes the outlook for the wealth-management sector – which in the UK had total investment assets worth £1.4 trillion in 2023, according to The City of London Corporation – is extremely healthy, “given the increase in wealth-creation, interest in investing – especially amongst younger generations – and associated need for advice”.

LGT Wealth Management opened its first Scottish office, in Edinburgh, in 2022, at which time you said Scotland had been identified as an important area to further support the level of service and advice it provided to clients locally

While we already had a number of clients and were working closely with independent financial advisers (IFAs) in Scotland at that time, we wanted to have a more dedicated base and “boots on the ground”. We felt it was vital to establish a local presence in our market.

What led you to join LGT Wealth Management?

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Vaduz Castle in Liechtenstein, the residence of the country's Princely Family. Picture: Jan Hetfleisch/Getty Images.Vaduz Castle in Liechtenstein, the residence of the country's Princely Family. Picture: Jan Hetfleisch/Getty Images.
Vaduz Castle in Liechtenstein, the residence of the country's Princely Family. Picture: Jan Hetfleisch/Getty Images.

Its private family ownership, which provides financial strength and stability, a focus on putting clients first, and the firm’s commitment to a highly personalised approach were important factors. Our ownership structure means we can be forward-thinking, dynamic, and entrepreneurial in our approach, values that resonate with clients.

While consolidation continues to take place across the sector, the nature of our private ownership means we are steadfastly independent. Finally, the breadth of the investment options for clients and IFAs, the whole-of-market approach, the wealth-planning, and the family governance proposition were very important to me, genuine unique selling points in an arguably crowded sector.

With Scotland having a well established wealth-management sector, how does LGT Wealth Management differentiate itself from the competition, and what kind of growth opportunity do you envisage?

We are one of the few privately owned wealth-managers in Scotland, never mind the UK. Our clients are at the heart of everything we do and we are advice-led and focused . We understand wealth is a means to achieve broader goals for future generations, and to contribute to a healthy society; it is not simply a transaction.

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We have our own independent research capability, which allows us to make unbiased decisions based solely on what is right for clients. This provides access to opportunities from across the widest investment universe, and free from conflicts of interest.

LGT Wealth Management’s overall model is focused on steady and sustainable growth, rather than being driven by short-term targets. We can already see this approach starting to pay dividends for our clients, and the firm itself, and we have grown from a standing start in 2008 to a top-ten wealth manager in the UK with more than £30bn of assets under management (AUM).

Scotland has a vibrant economy with many successful entrepreneurs and family businesses, all growing their companies, and it is an important part of our overall UK offering and AUM. As a family-owned business ourselves, with an entrepreneurial ethos, there is great alignment already. There is also a large IFA and intermediary community in Scotland, many of whom we work closely with.

LGT acquired Abrdn’s discretionary fund-management business in the UK last year for £140 million – how has that acquisition panned out, and should we be expecting further deal activity?

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Whilst our plans are focused on organic growth, this acquisition expanded our footprint in the UK with the addition of Birmingham and Leeds, where we had been looking to establish offices, while complementing planned growth at existing locations in London, Edinburgh, Bristol, and Jersey.

In Edinburgh, it means we now have a team of 57. For the clients that joined LGT Wealth Management, we have been able to provide additional services such as private equity, lending and wealth-planning, as well as providing improved reporting.

What was the rationale behind your move to new Edinburgh headquarters earlier this year?

As our chief executive Ben Snee remarked at the time, it demonstrates our commitment to a long-term future of growth and strengthening client relationships north of the Border. Being in the same building as other leading professional services firms [other occupants include law firms Eversheds Sutherland, Brodies, and Pinsent Masons] was an important statement for us, in addition to requiring sizeable premises for our expanding team. It was important for clients to be able to see the permanency of our commitment, and be able to get a look and feel for LGT Wealth Management itself.

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You recently announced a senior hire from Barclays, should we be expecting further senior hires?

While we are in no rush to make additional hires, we will definitely add expertise and talent to the team as and when opportunities arise. With the amount of consolidation in the industry recently, there is no shortage of wealth-managers keen to speak to us.

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