X

Looking after your personal and business financial planning needs

Since 1919

Financial Planning

Our approach establishes your specific goals and objectives that are individual to you. This enables us to draw up a financial plan focused on achieving those aims. Working with you throughout the advice process ensures we are able to truly understand your needs and wants, giving us the ability to construct a firm well-defined financial plan. We can use cashflow modelling techniques to demonstrate your potential future lifestyle. 

You may already have financial plans which need reviewing. Arena are more than happy to go through your existing arrangements with you to help you understand how effectively these are working towards your existing and new objectives. These objectives will not be set in stone and will be regularly reviewed to incorporate any changes in your circumstances. 

We do this by using the following six step process:

Diagram_3
1

Initial Meeting

We begin with an introductory meeting to understand your goals and objectives. We do this through a combination of talking through your aspirations for the future, your personal objectives any other goals you may have.
3

Financial Situation Analysis

Once we have a full understanding of what you would like to achieve, we will assess if you are currently on track to achieve your goals. We undertake a comprehensive analysis of your current plans to ensure they remain suitable for you. If your current plans do not work, we may recommend a new strategy.
5

Implementation

Following your agreement to proceed with a new financial plan, we will manage the transition through any changes. Our administration team will liaise with all the involved parties to ensure your new financial plan is implemented correctly.
2

Fact Finding

We will get to know you by taking you through a comprehensive consultation document. With your written permission, we will contact your existing providers to get full details of any existing arrangements you may have.
4

Plan Development

After analysing your current situation, we will present our recommendations to you. We will discuss our recommendations and any proposed changes to your existing plans in detail. Our team will explain the reasons for any changes and ensure you are happy with the agreed goals.
6

Review and Refine

We like to meet our clients on a regular basis to make sure you are on track  to achieve your goals and objectives in the most effective way. Any changes to your plans and circumstances will be discussed and actioned throughout the review period.

Investment Management

Our team of professionals at Arena will provide you with the advice needed to ensure your investments are working to your best advantage. We use numerous external research companies who provide us with the investment analysis which we require.

If you already have financial plans in place but need further investment advice, a meeting can be arranged to receive professional advice and information from one of our advisors. Some of our clients already have sufficient financial plans in place but need advice regarding their existing investment choices. We are happy to offer advice to clients in this position. We believe our ongoing service is as important as our initial advice.

We believe asset allocation is the best way for investors to diversify and gain from investing money. As nobody knows how markets will perform in the short term, it is incredibly important to ensure you hold a sufficiently wide range of assets to benefit from the capital growth opportunities for the long term. By using an asset allocation model we can determine the funds and sectors to be used for you, dependent upon your attitude to risk.

Our approach to working with you is long term. This is the best approach to investment management, which means Arena are able to invest for growth, income or a mix of the two.

Tax Planning

Tax planning is a complex and detailed subject. It requires us as professionals to have a thorough understanding of your personal or business circumstances and cover in detail the objectives you have in order for us to provide our clients with the best advice possible, to ultimately pay less tax. We understand from years of experience that planning is everything.

We strive to ensure our clients’ portfolios are structured and clear so we are able to understand your tax planning objectives. We ensure that the portfolios are managed in a tax efficient manner, which is incredibly important as rules made by the government are constantly changing.

At Arena we are able to combine your financial planning and tax planning requirements, to ensure you are able to meet your goals and objectives in the most tax efficient manner possible.

Our areas of expertise are income tax, capital gains tax and inheritance tax planning.

We go the extra mile for our clients and are happy to work closely with a number of accountants and solicitors in all areas of tax planning areas to ensure all work which has been carried out is clear and comprehends to our clients.

Case Studies

Financial Planning

Mr and Mrs M

Mr and Mrs M

Retired

These clients came to us as their previous adviser had retired and their portfolios had not been reviewed for some time. They required assistance and were recommended to Arena by an existing client.

They were hoping to gain a greater understanding of their financial position, what it meant for them and whether their investments would continue to provide an income to help maintain their standard of living. The clients had a file of complicated paperwork and were uncertain around the investments they held.

During the meeting, the adviser took time to get to know the clients, understanding their lifestyle, goals and objectives. By going through the paperwork, the clients understood more about their existing arrangements, and how these fitted within their overall circumstances. A final fee was agreed for the preparation of a personalised financial planning report during the meeting.

Our adviser subsequently undertook an in depth analysis of the current position of the portfolio, including investment and tax positions, scheme charges, and the administration quality of the different companies. The adviser then developed a new, more concise and sustainable plan for the clients.

The clients were sent their new financial plan and were invited back for a further meeting. The advisor discussed the new plan in depth with the clients. The new plan was easier to understand, included more risk appropriate investments, benefited from cost-effective charging and was more tax efficient.

The clients were delighted with the new solution, with a much more thorough understanding of their overall position. Arena then restructured the portfolio as agreed with the clients. They now benefit from Arenas ongoing service, where their planning is reviewed on a regular basis.

Investment Management

Miss C
Employed

A client contacted us via our website as she required reassurance that her pension funds were invested correctly and performing well. As someone with a relatively well positioned pension fund for her circumstances, she did not require a full financial planning service and instead wanted to concentrate on the funds within her pension.

Following the meeting where Arena had discussed the client’s attitude to risk and capacity for loss an in depth analysis of the existing funds was undertaken.

We then assessed the fund performance on a relative and accumulative basis and also against its benchmark. We also undertook a thorough ‘look through’, using industry tools such as FE Analytics to assess the fund performance.

Arena found the investment was suitable for the client. The funds had demonstrated they were within the clients risk profile and performed consistently above the sector average. The client left with no recommended changes to the portfolio. An agreement was made to review the funds on a regular basis.