Choosing a wealth manager becomes increasingly important as your financial affairs become more complex. For high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs), the best wealth manager should do considerably more than simply construct an investment portfolio. They should understand your overall financial position, long-term objectives, tax situation, family circumstances and how your wealth may eventually be transferred to the next generation.
Use our wealth manager finder to compare the best wealth managers for high-net-worth individuals.
How To Choose The Best Wealth Manager For A High-Net-Worth Individual
Here are some of the main things to consider when comparing wealth managers.
Investment approach
Start by understanding how the wealth manager will actually invest your money. Some firms specialise in actively managed portfolios, while others make greater use of passive funds, ETFs or model portfolios.
Ask whether your portfolio will be genuinely bespoke or whether you will effectively be placed into one of several standard risk-rated portfolios. Neither approach is necessarily better, but investors with particularly large or complicated portfolios may benefit from greater flexibility.
You should also consider the range of investments available. Depending on your circumstances, this could extend beyond shares and bonds to private equity, alternative investments, structured products or specialist funds.
Financial planning
For many HNW investors, investment management is only one part of the problem. Tax planning, pensions, trusts, estate planning and inheritance can be equally important.
Some wealth managers provide financial planning alongside investment management, while others concentrate primarily on managing portfolios. The FCA’s 2026 wealth management survey found that around 29% of wealth managers also provide financial advice.
If your affairs are complicated, look at how well the wealth manager can work alongside your accountant, solicitor and other professional advisers.
Fees and charges
Wealth management fees can be complicated, so compare the total cost, rather than focusing solely on the headline management fee.
Depending on the firm and service, costs can include wealth management or advisory fees, underlying fund charges, custody fees and transaction costs. The FCA requires advisers to provide clear information about their charges, including ongoing charges where applicable.
This matters particularly for large portfolios. A seemingly small percentage difference can translate into thousands or tens of thousands of pounds each year.
Performance and risk
Past performance should never be the only reason to choose a wealth manager, but you should still ask to see meaningful long-term performance figures.
More importantly, make sure you understand how those returns were achieved. Compare performance with an appropriate benchmark and look at how portfolios performed during difficult markets, rather than simply focusing on the best years.
A good wealth manager should also spend time establishing your objectives, investment horizon, attitude towards risk and capacity for loss before recommending a portfolio.
Service and personal relationship
For HNW clients, service can be just as important as investment performance.
Find out who will actually manage your relationship. Will you have a dedicated investment manager whom you can contact directly, or will most communication go through a central client-service team? Ask how frequently you will meet, how portfolios are reviewed and what reporting and online access you will receive.
Regulation and reputation
Finally, check that the wealth manager is appropriately regulated and research the firm’s financial strength, history and reputation.
Don’t automatically assume that the largest wealth manager is the best. The FCA says the UK wealth management sector manages almost £1 trillion for retail clients, but notes that smaller specialist firms continue to play an important role in providing tailored services.
For HNW investors, the best wealth manager is ultimately the firm that offers the right combination of investment expertise, financial planning, transparent pricing and personal service for your particular circumstances.