The boss of stockbrokers Hargreaves Lansdown has apologised after thousands of the FTSE 100 company’s clients found their money trapped in ill-fated funds run by the renowned fund manager Neil Woodford.
Chris Hill, its chief executive, said he shared clients’ disappointment and frustration after the closure of the Woodford equity income fund which prevented investors from cashing out of the ailing investment vehicle.
Hill said he backed research through Hargreaves Lansdown’s Wealth 50 list of top buys that recommended investors pick Woodford over better-performing fund managers. Woodford, one of the UK’s best-known stockpickers, suspended all trading in the fund “until further notice” after being overwhelmed by customer withdrawals following a series of bad market bets.
Hill said: “I would like to apologise personally to all clients who have been impacted by the recent problems with the Woodford equity income fund. We all share their disappointment and frustration. Our priority right now is to support our clients and keep them informed.”
Woodford said last week the fund would reopen as soon as was “practicable after these exceptional circumstances have ceased”, and that the suspension would be reviewed “at least every 28 days”.
Hill said: “The shortcomings of one fund should not detract from the benefits of favourite fund lists like the Wealth 50.”
His firm has come under fire from investors who will not be able to access their investments until the suspension is lifted. Investors have also criticised the City regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, for failing to see the risks taken by Woodford.
The former City minister Lord Myners said the FCA “should have been awake” to problems at the fund, telling the BBC that the regulator had missed “clear warning signs” that things were going badly.
On Thursday, Nicky Morgan, who chairs the Treasury committee, said investors should not be charged management fees while trading in the fund was suspended.
Concerns were raised last year after a series of poor performances by companies part-owned by Woodford funds, many of them not listed on the stock market, making them difficult to sell.
Andrew Bailey, chief executive of the FCA, defended the regulator and Woodford’s decision to suspend the fund. “The alternative would have been much more disorderly,” Bailey told Bloomberg TV in his first comments since the gates were closed on investors on Wednesday.
He offered assurances that the FCA would be watching Woodford closely as the fund manager started to sell off his stakes in privately held companies, which are more difficult to turn into cash. Bailey said it was important for funds like Woodford’s to invest in unlisted firms.
