WBR Group, formerly known as WestBridge, has made two appointments to its senior leadership team.
The firm has appointed David Downie as managing director of Ssas and actuarial, while Peter Collier has been appointed director of marketing and distribution.
Commenting on the appointments, WBR chief operating officer, Martin Tilley said the expansion was needed following the firm’s recent acquisitions, which include the Ssas books of James Hay and Rowanmoor.
“Both David and Peter have experience, expertise and with previous connections to the board, we have shared values and the same vision for our service offering,” Tilley said.
Downie joins with more than 30 years’ experience in the financial services sector, with a primary focus on the pension and Ssas industry.
Most recently he was chief actuary at Rowanmoor, where he worked for 29 years.
Downie is a fellow of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries and chair of the ACA Individual and Pension Savings Committee.
WBR has said as a firm it is “acquisitive for the right books of business” and that Downie will support the firm’s future expansion plans.
Collier, who has more than 25 years in the pensions industry, has held a number of senior roles across marketing, business development and strategy functions within the pensions and wealth management industry.
He joins WBR having most recently been business development director at Hurley Partners (now Mattioli Woods).
Prior to this he was head of marketing strategy at Brown Shipley.
At the end of January, WBR announced its rebrand from WestBridge Group following the completion of its acquisition of Rowanmoor Executive Pensions’ book of 3,500 small, self-administered pension schemes.
This was the second major acquisition by WBR following the purchase of the James Hay Ssas book in 2021.
jane.matthews@ft.com
