Sunday 6 May 2012

Record year for Family Investments as it reports strong growth in profits and funds under management

• Membership of the Friendly Society now exceeds 1.75 million, almost double the number five years ago
• Acquisition of Governor Money has diversified offering to savers

Family Investments, leading supplier of financial solutions for the family, today reported a 35% increase in operating profit as it released its annual results for the twelve months ending 31st December 2011. Profits rose to over £14.5 million compared to £10.7 million the previous year.

The Brighton-based mutual also reported that funds under management now stand at £3.5 billion. Membership numbers also continued to grow and now exceed 1.75 million, almost double the number five years ago making Family Investments the largest friendly society by membership. Total payments to members reached a record high of £693 million.

These strong results have been driven by success in the children’s savings market and continued growth in adult ISA savings through the successful partnership with the Post Office. Family Investments was also one of the first providers to offer a Junior ISA when it launched on 1st November 2011. Since then over 10,000 accounts have been opened with particularly strong demand coming from existing Child Trust Fund (CTF) holders, highlighting parents’ desire to make equal provisions for siblings who may have missed out on the CTF.

During 2011, Family Investments also acquired Governor Money an online cash savings platform. Governor Money lets savers manage their money better by giving access to competitive savings rates from a range of banks and building societies with just one secure account. This acquisition helps diversify Family Investments’ offering to savers and is a key part of the business’ growth strategy.

John Reeve, Chief Executive of Family Investments said: “I’m delighted that we have been able to deliver another strong set of results in the face of a challenging operating environment.

“The launch of the Junior ISA was a key milestone for us in 2011. Without the introduction to saving afforded by the CTF voucher the market for the Junior ISA is likely to be smaller and more expensive to operate than its predecessor. However, we believe it is important for a children’s savings product to be affordable for all and to offer Junior ISA customers the same level of service we offer CTF customers. This is why we have set our minimum premium at £10 per month to ensure that the Junior ISA is available to as many families as possible.

“Technology is allowing financial service providers to offer innovative new products to their customers and our acquisition of Governor Money is an illustration of this trend. Governor Money is a brand new cash savings platform very much aligned to savers’ needs, taking the hard work out of saving by allowing customers to manage money with multiple deposit takers from one single account.”

You can access the full report and accounts at the following link: www.familyinvestments.co.uk/member-information/

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