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Rathbones
Rathbones is an SEC-registered investment adviser in Liverpool, registered since 2005. The firm manages $135.1 billion in assets, with $118.9 billion on a...
Rathbones
Rathbones is an SEC-registered investment adviser in Liverpool, registered since 2005. The firm manages $135.1 billion in assets, with $118.9 billion on a discretionary basis. It has 1715 employees and 725 investment advisers.
General information
Firm type
Bank / Wealth / Trust
Year founded
1742
AUM
£80B–£120B (per the firm, 2024)
Location
Region
Europe
Country
United Kingdom
City
Liverpool
Corporate office
London, United Kingdom
Additional offices
Bristol, United Kingdom · Edinburgh, United Kingdom · Jersey, Channel Islands
Principals
Paul Stockton
Group Chief Executive Officer
Iain Hooley
Group Chief Financial Officer
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decision-making at Rathbones?
Rathbones operates a decentralized model. Individual Portfolio Managers and investment directors make stock-selection and asset-allocation decisions on behalf of their private clients. Strategic asset allocation guidelines and the firm's internal research team — which covers UK equities, fixed income, and collectives — support those decisions, but the PM retains significant discretion.
How did the Investec Wealth & Investment merger reshape the firm?
The all-share merger, completed in September 2024, roughly doubled Rathbones' discretionary and advisory assets to £108 billion. Investec W&I's historical strength in financial planning and its broad regional office network in the UK complemented Rathbones' centralized London presence and ethical-investing franchise under the Rathbone Greenbank brand.
Is Rathbones still a family-led business?
No. Though William Rathbone II founded the original timber-trading enterprise in 1742, the firm today is a FTSE 250 company with a widely dispersed shareholder base. The Rathbone family name remains on the door, but governance and ownership are public-company structures.
What is Rathbone Greenbank and how does it differ from the main investment arm?
Rathbone Greenbank is the firm's dedicated ethical, sustainable, and impact investing division, launched in 1997. It manages bespoke portfolios for clients who demand screens (negative and positive) around environmental, social, and governance criteria — distinct from the main investment arm, which applies ESG integration as a risk lens rather than a mandated constraint.
Does Rathbones run in-house funds, or does it allocate to external managers?
The firm does both. The Rathbones Multi-Asset Portfolios range and the Rathbone Greenbank Global Sustainability Fund are managed in-house. The group also selects external third-party funds for its managed portfolio solutions, blending open-ended funds, investment trusts, and direct securities depending on the client mandate.
Where does Rathbones source the majority of its clients?
Roughly 70% of group revenue comes from direct, private-client mandates sourced through professional introducers — solicitors, accountants, and independent financial advisors — rather than via mass-market platforms. This intermediary channel creates a sticky, advice-led flow that contrasts with platform-heavy wealth managers.
What is Rathbones' approach to UK equities?
UK equities remain a core allocation across most discretionary portfolios, reflecting legacy home-market bias and the depth of the firm's in-house UK research team. Rathbones is a long-term, engagement-driven holder in many FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 names, often ranking among the top institutional shareholders in mid-cap UK companies where it has built multi-decade relationships.
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