North East-based Chartered Financial Planning-focused wealth manager Fairstone has appointed Nick Stebbing as chief operating officer as part of plans to enhance its investment management business and broaden the range of services it offers clients and advisers.

Mr Stebbing has joined from Saltus where he was chief operating officer, although his appointment is subject to regulatory approval.

He has previously held a number of senior positions, including head of product at BNY Mellon and director of transaction services at Citi Group.

Fairstone’s managed investment portfolios save clients more than £6m a year and the firm hopes Mr Stebbing’s appointment will help further elevate its market presence.

Lee Hartley, chief executive at Fairstone, said: “Mr Stebbing’s ability to build strong relationships with business partners will be invaluable in developing our client proposition. I am confident he will ensure our proposition stands out in the marketplace and drives us into new areas.”

Mr Stebbing said: “Throughout my career, I’ve led large teams in delivering strategic objectives to drive business growth.”

His appointment coincides with Fairstone’s recent organisational redesign, which integrated its wealth advisory, professional development, training, recruitment and central paraplanning functions into a unified advisory structure

In April it appointed six new managing directors as it changed its organisational structure.

Fairstone’s M&A team recently celebrated a record 12 months of dealmaking, with 16 firms joining its DBO programme across the UK and Ireland and a further six full acquisitions.

It said its transaction pipeline looks strong into 2024, with a significant number of 'mature discussions' with firms in the UK and Ireland.

Fairstone has fee income of more than £135m and operates from more than 55 locations with a head office in Sunderland and a City office in London. It has financial management, private wealth, corporate solutions, mortgage solutions and estate planning channels.

The firm employs more than 1,200 operational staff and regulated advisers and oversees £15bn in funds under management for more than 55,000 wealth management clients.