Britain’s biggest wealth manager faces a humiliating exit from the FTSE 100 index of top companies.
Shares in St James’s Place (SJP) have fallen almost 60 per cent in the last year amid growing concerns about its complicated fee structure and a “cruises and twins” culture among its army of financial advisers.
At 477p, they are worth £2.6bn, putting SJP at the bottom of the FTSE 100 table and well below the likely threshold for inclusion in the blue-chip index when its membership is reviewed next month.
SJP recently set aside £426m to cover the likely cost of compensating tens of thousands of customers for annual reviews they never received, sending shares to record lows.
The firm recently bowed to pressure to offer better deals under consumer rights rules that force financial firms to focus on “fair value” and “good outcomes” for clients. Controversial early withdrawal fees for all new products will be eliminated in the second half of 2025.
Sinking feeling: St James’s Place shares have fallen almost 60 per cent in the last year
But Mail on Sunday analysis found new pension fund customers would soon pay more, and would continue to do so for up to 17 years. Former SJP board member and Baroness Morrissey said she had not met anyone who could explain the firm’s fee structure “in one sentence”.
Also under threat of relegation from the FTSE 100 are Ocado and Frasers Group. Likely replacements are builder Vistry, property firm LondonMetric and broker Hargreaves Lansdown.
