Milford granted DIMS licence, effective 1 October

Milford granted DIMS licence, effective 1 October

Milford Asset Management is pleased to announce that its Private Wealth division has been granted a Discretionary Investment Management Services (DIMS) licence by the Financial Markets Authority. This is effective from the date nominated by Milford, 1 October 2015.

A DIMS licence is required where buying and selling decisions for a client’s portfolio may be made without the need for authorisation prior to each transaction.

DIMS licences are granted under the Financial Markets Conduct Act 2013.

DIMS licence holders must meet a range of conditions in their dealings with each investor, relating to disclosure of relevant information, establishment of a formal investment authority, custody of funds and any other property, record-keeping and reporting.

The Managing Director of Milford Asset Management, Anthony Quirk, has welcomed the granting of the licence. “The Private Wealth advice business is an increasingly important service provided by Milford. Obtaining a DIMS licence is a significant step in Milford’s strategy to deliver a superior service to its Private Wealth clients,” he said.

“We considered the options long and hard when the new licensing requirements first became clear, as obtaining and maintaining a DIMS licence is a significant undertaking. We felt that the DIMS service model provided the best solution for our clients. It fitted our existing model very well, and we welcome the additional disclosures and consistent standards for performance reporting involved in this service.

“Our Private Wealth business has grown by 80 percent over the past two years and we now have a team of five Authorised Financial Advisors looking after more than $750 million of funds in this area,” Mr Quirk said.

Milford Private Wealth is suitable for private clients, family trusts, charities and institutions that have more than $500,000 to invest and require ongoing personalised advice to manage their investments.

A client portfolio will typically hold a diversified mix of investments in predominantly Milford’s Unit Trust PIE Funds. These, in turn, have allocations to shares, listed property, fixed interest and cash, in both domestic and offshore markets. Each investment strategy is designed to maximise returns for a given level of risk, with a particular focus on protecting investors’ capital through active management.

The DIMS licence for Milford Private Wealth Limited is effective from 1 October 2015.

ENDS

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