I am very excited to announce that we are launching a UK-registered charitable foundation, the deVere Group Charitable Foundation, something I have envisioned for years as being an umbrella organisation for all of the charitable works and philanthropic acts carried out by the individual deVere Group offices around the world.

And what better way to launch the foundation than with £110,000 raised by sponsorship donations for a team of deVere staff and myself who are participating in a back-to-back challenge – Malta and Paris half marathons.

We aim to raise a million pounds a year, to be distributed to various core charities each year.

I believe that more philanthropic activities by the financial planning industry could help to revitalise confidence in the concept of financial planning, and I am certainly hopeful that others will follow our lead.

I believe that global brands like ours have not just a responsibility but an obligation to provide charitable assistance where possible. In fact, our clients expect this.

Indeed, we already continually strive to enhance the communities in which we operate by sharing our time, skills and resources with good causes. And as such, the deVere Charitable Foundation is an extension of this ongoing commitment.

I have worked out a training regime which enables me to stay fit while visiting the company’s 70 offices worldwide and despite a torn muscle– but let’s see just how fit I am after the second event in Paris!

Donations can be made via [email protected]