Benchmark Capital, part of the Schroders Group, has appointed Karan Sejpal as head of wealth management.
In this newly created role, Sejpal will have responsibility for revenue and growth across Benchmark’s employed, self-employed and independent partners’ adviser channels, as well as all advice and wealth activities.
He will also assume regulatory responsibilities for Benchmark’s advice businesses and join the Benchmark Board as an executive director, having previously served as a non-executive director.
Sejpal brings over 20 years’ experience within the wealth management industry having previously held roles at Credit Suisse, Barclays and UBS.
He joins from Cazenove Capital (part of the Schroders Group), where he led the discretionary fund management (DFM) team, entrepreneurs team and regional offices, driving significant growth in the Cazenove Capital high-net-worth business.
Sejpal was also non-executive director on the board of Schroders Personal Wealth.
He will report to Benchmark CEO Ed Dymott and join the executive leadership team.
Speaking about his new role, Sejpal said: “I am excited to join Benchmark at such a pivotal time in its journey. The business has ambitious growth plans, and I look forward to working with Ed, the Board and our talented teams to help realise them.”
Dymott added: “We pride ourselves on our ability to nurture and grow our existing talent across the group, and we are pleased to announce Karan’s appointment.
“As we embark on our next phase of growth, it is essential we have the right leadership to deliver on our plans and achieve the best possible outcomes for our clients.
“Karan has extensive experience and has worked incredibly closely with Benchmark over the last two years as a member of our Board.
“He has a clear understanding of our strategy and is passionate about helping us achieve our goals.
“I am delighted to have attracted someone of Karan’s calibre to the business and look forward to working even more closely with him.”
Dymott said Benchmark has focused on building its leadership team, having recently hired Helen Fitzgerald as chief financial officer and Johnny Hannah as chief operating officer.
He added that the firm will be looking to make additional hires in the coming months.
Earlier this year, Dymott told Money Marketing that Benchmark wanted to take 80% of the friction and cost out of the advice process over the next two to three years.
The aim, he said, is to give advisers more capacity to spend time with clients.
