Richard Bell

“Most of my new clients come from recommendations – I haven’t needed to advertise for years.”

Some advisers manage money; I look after people. Over more than three decades, I’ve become the person many of my clients turn to first when something important happens in their lives – not just financial decisions, but the bigger moments too. That kind of trust isn’t given; it’s built over years of showing up, listening and doing the right thing.

I’ve been a qualified adviser for over 33 years, spending the first 20 in the retail and corporate divisions of major banks, before spending a decade as a Director of a local independent financial adviser (IFA) firm. I’m now a wealth planner based in Southampton, and I’m totally client-facing. Many of my clients have followed me from firm to firm over the years – that’s probably the most honest measure of what I do.

My main areas of practice are pension planning, and personal estate and tax planning. I have significant experience in defined benefit pension considerations, Court of Protection cases, pension sharing orders, legacy planning and business profit extraction strategies. I hold the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) Advanced Pensions qualification as well as the Pension Transfer Specialist qualification, and I work closely with several accountants and solicitors across Hampshire and West Sussex.