Two UK financial advice trade associations have agreed to form a larger body, effective 1 June 2017.

Two UK financial advice trade associations have agreed to merge to form a larger representative body for organisations that support wealthy individuals and families.

Wealth Management Association and the Association of Professional Financial Advisers will become Personal Investment Management & Financial Advice Association (PIMFA), effective 1 June 2017, the firm said yesterday in a statement.

PIMFA members will provide a range of financial solutions for individuals and families, charities and pension funds; including investment advice and portfolio management, as well as investment and execution services, financial planning and advice.

The new firm said it will continue to “lead the debate on policy and regulatory recommendations to ensure that the UK remains a global centre of excellence in the wealth management, investment advice and financial planning arena”.

Liz Field, chief executive of the former WMA, will lead an expanded executive team of policy experts, covering all aspects of the sector.

“The coming together of APFA and the WMA creates a relevant, joined-up trade association which can both support its members across the wider client value proposition and speak with coherence and authority to both government and the regulators for this significant part of the financial services industry, which has both high added value and high social impact,” said PIMFA’s chairman, Lord Deben.

The WMA was known as the Association of Private Client Investment Managers and Stockbrokers as recently as 2013; in that year it voted to re-brand as the Wealth Management Association.