WH Ireland shareholders have voted to back a £5m fund-raising move which will help stabilise finances at the troubled wealth manager and Financial Planner.

Despite some opposition, all votes were carried at a general meeting held by the company yesterday.

WH Ireland warned that it was in danger of being wound up if the deal did not go ahead.

The fund raising will help stabilise the loss-making firm’s finances and give it the chance to benefit from any upturn in business, the company said.

CEO Phillip Wale said: "I am grateful to both our existing and new shareholders in the support shown for our £5m capital raise. I believe that we are in a robust position from which to take advantage of improved market conditions when they occur.

"The proceeds of the placing bolster our regulatory capital and together with the cost reductions identified, provide a stable platform from which we can navigate through the challenging market backdrop. The full benefit of the savings is anticipated to be realised during the course of calendar year Q4 2023."

The company raised gross proceeds of £5 million via a placing of new shares and a share sub-division.

As part of the deal, Mr Wale is taking a 30% pay cut in return for share options. Other senior executives, including head of wealth management Michael Bishop, are also taking pay cuts.

Job losses and other staff pay cuts are likely as the deal goes through.

The firm has held discussions with the FCA about its financial position which could have resulted in the company being wound up if the share placing was unsuccessful.

TFG Asset Management UK, the company's largest shareholder, participated in the share placing and now owns 38% of the business. It agreed to participate in the new share placing up to a maximum of £2.5m.

WH Ireland has struggled in recent times to cope with a downturn in its capital markets business and declining AUM in its wealth management business.

In the three-month period ended 30 June, the company made a pre-tax loss of £1.1m on revenues of about £5.6m (unaudited).

The company said the loss was mainly due to a reported multi-year, low level of transactional activity in capital markets that has hit the group's capital markets division. The company has also seen a fall in assets under management (AUM) in its wealth management division, “in part due to weaker market conditions impacting client portfolio size.”

WH Ireland’s share price has fallen from 25p at its peak this year to 7p today.