Barnett Waddingham (BW) has appointed Nick Cooper as its new head of propositions for SIPP.

Mr Cooper joins from XPS where he was head of master trust propositions.

He has worked in the SIPP market for over 20 years and has developed propositions and managed third party relationships for Aviva, Zurich and Clerical Medical.

He also led the development of the Embark Group “at retirement” SIPP proposition in response to Investment Pathways for distribution through several digital wealth platforms.

As well as taking responsibility for innovation, Mr Cooper will be the consumer understanding outcome lead, ensuring the firm continues with its proactive approach to Consumer Duty

He said: “It’s exciting to be joining BW at such a pivotal moment in the development of its SIPP offering.  Working alongside Simon and his team, I’m looking forward to honing the proposition, overseeing roll out across BW’s client base, and pursuing growth opportunities in the broader market.”

Mr Cooper is the latest in a number of senior hires for BW’s SIPPs team.

Other new hires include Neil Howitt as head of SIPP finance last September, and Adam Burwell joined the team as implementation manager earlier this year.

Simon Foster, CEO of SIPP at Barnett Waddingham, said the new hires demonstrate how the consultancy sees SIPP as a key strategic growth area.

He said: “Technological advances, societal developments, and regulatory changes, such as the introduction of Consumer Duty regulation, are transforming the SIPP market and creating a range of exciting opportunities for growth.  At BW, SIPP has been on a journey over the last two years, working closely with key clients and taking our service delivery from strength to strength, as well as building up our team.”

Barnett Waddingham is a consultancy firm covering risk, pensions investment and insurance. The firm employs over 1,750 people, 99 of whom are partners. The consultancy has nine offices across the UK in Amersham, Birmingham, Bristol, Cheltenham, Glasgow, Guildford, Leeds, Liverpool and London.