Financial Mail - Investors Monthly
Personalised, for more sophisticated clients
The team prides itself on the time it spends with clients, on the phone and face to face
Offering the best of traditional stockbroking combined with new-world instruments and technologies, GT Private Broking is the private label division of Purple Group’s hugely successful GT247.com online derivative trading platform.
Aimed at the more affluent investor who wants to grow his or her wealth, GT Private Broking provides a personalised, high-touch service focused on investors who prefer the old school model of stockbroking.
Its services are tailor-made to meet clients’ unique trading profiles and preferences, and include execution, co-developing investment strategies and hedging. The team prides itself on the time it spends with clients, on the phone and face to face.
GT Private Broking is the only business in the Purple Group that requires a minimum starting amount — R250 000.
Service fees are in line with the value of the service provided, though even these are personalised according to the client’s particular profile, needs and the levels of interaction required.
“This business targets sophisticated investors,” explains Bradley Leather, MD of GT Private Broking. “It’s about relationships, dedication and developing an understanding to be the co-pilots to our clients’ trading ambitions. It’s about recognising that our clients are professionals who do not have time to sit and monitor their own portfolios. In that sense, they’re old school in their approach, but they’re leveraging new-age technology.”
This business unit was launched in 2013 and contrasts with GT247.com in that its business model is based on sophisticated, high-value clients who require a personalised service. Trades are executed by GT Private Broking’s dedicated trading desk, which is staffed by experienced traders or via GT247’s direct market access platform. The personalised approach is also based on Purple Group’s methodology of trying to understand a client’s goals and risk appetite best.
Savage adds that while GT Private Broking caters for the higher end of the market, its other businesses act as a trawler to identify individuals who would in time qualify for and benefit from the high-touch stockbroking services. This would certainly be the case for Purple Group’s recently launched EasyEquities platform, which provides an easy entry point for first-time investors who could graduate to a more personalised service as their assets grow.
The business is continually expanding and improving on its service offering to increase its differentiation from other players in the market. Most recently, this has brought the introduction of additional research, education and managed portfolio services.
With the value of trades of nearly R18bn in the 2014 financial year, the business is still small compared with GT247 (nearly R245bn), but it is a unit that Purple Group expects to grow into the future.