The UK wealth management firm, based in the northwest of the country, gives more detail on its reason for adopting the managed service.

When James Brearley & Sons, the UK investment manager and stockbroker, chose to use the JHC Figaro (Figaro) solution to upgrade its systems, it did so in the hope that it will free up managers’ time to focus on where they can really add value, the firm’s joint chief executive told this publication.

Recently, the firm, based in the northwest of England (around £300 million ($375 million) of assets under management), said it had selected the Figaro managed service enabling the company to rebalance client portfolios and take the firm forward from the systems it had been using, operating on a single database, he said.

Hannis, who is responsible for business areas such as investment management, dealing and the firm’s online proposition, said James Brearley & Sons wanted to move on from its previous providers. The decision to start to look for a different provider happened about 18 months’ ago, he said.

A benefit of the new arrangement will be clients having the ability to view a live position of their portfolios online via Figaro Web, he said, adding that he is encouraged that JHC Figaro is also evolving a mobile app.

James Brearley & Sons is responsible for total assets under administration of £1.7 billion and caters to 1,100 managed portfolio clients. It has five offices and employs over 70 staff.