City of London Wealth Management Awards 2026: GB News meets the winning firms looking after your money

Patrick O'Donnell
Fri, 01 May 2026 13:35:11 +0000

The City of London Wealth Management Awards (COLWMA) returned to its spiritual home of Guildhall last night, now in its 26th year as the most anticipated social event in the wealth management calendar.

More than 300 guests across the financial sector attended the black-tie dinner, from financial planners to private bankers, for an evening recognising the trailblazers in wealth management under one of the City's most storied medieval roofs.

The awards exist to acknowledge and reward the quality of service provided by wealth managers, and what sets COLWMA apart from many industry accolades is its democratic backbone.

Category winners are determined entirely by an online public vote, giving real weight to the voices of investors themselves.

Individual awards, including categories such as CEO of the Year, sit alongside the firm-level prizes, recognising the leaders shaping the industry as much as the organisations they run.

GB News attended the glamorous ceremony at the City of London's Guildhall to join in the celebrations and speak with some of last night's winners.

Among the COLWMA 2026 winners are:

The Clearstream Award for Best Newcomer - Cardo

Client Service Excellence - St James's Place

The bitarisk Award for Best Discretionary Service - Canaccord

Best SIPP (Self-Invested Personal Pension) Provider - Standard Life

The Standard Life Award for Wealth Management Company of the Year - True Potential

Lifetime Achievement - Judith Ullock

Among the many ascending firms and industry titans celebrated last night was investment firm Cadro, which won the Clearstream Award for Best Newcomer last night.

Recently, the wealth managers celebrated reaching their three-year investment track record, securing returns for Cadro clients every year since the firm's launch.

Speaking to GB News, Cadro co-founders Jordan Buck and Nataša Williams said: "I think one of the challenges is that it's an industry with firms that have a history of hundreds of years.

"We are new, and we're modern, and we're different. We know how to establish yourself credibly in a marketplace as a challenger, which is so dominated by very big established names."

Taking home the bitarisk Award for Best Discretionary Wealth Management was Canaccord Wealth, a testament to the firm's reliability among investors.

The wealth manager's head of UK adviser solution, Lee McDowell, told us: "We just put the client first. I think the most important thing is to recognise, that they trust us with their money, they've earned over a long time, and it's important to us that we look after it for generations to come."

Standard Life won last night's trophy for Best SIPP Provider as the industry and country brace for major changes to the pension regime, including retirement savings becoming liable for inheritance tax (IHT) next year.

On how the firm has been able to successfully navigate and prepare for these reforms, the Standard Life team told us: " An awful lot of change in the past couple of years and still to come.

"I think for advisors, there is an incredible opportunity in terms of clients navigating that IHT landscape. And for us, it's about supporting them with solutions, education, so they can deliver incredible outcomes for their clients."

One of the biggest winners of last night was Judith Allock, who was handed the prestigious COLWMA Life Achievement award in recognition of 41 years within the sector.

Ms Ullock, who serves as a professional standards and development manager at Redmayne Bentley LLP, shared her shock at taking home the top prize.

She said: "I didn't expect this at all, but for over 41 years in industry, I suppose it's the icing on the cake for me. I'm just overwhelmed that I've received this. I've had a brilliant time in the industry. This tops everything."

Her advice for those wanting to enter wealth management?

"The best advice I can give is keep trying. You know you're not going to get to where you want to be straight away. To me, it's building up the whole generic knowledge from the ground upwards if you can get it.

"Networking with peers because they help as well. Um, and it's getting yourself out there. It's about learning every aspect of your business so that you're confident talking to clients and everything that you know exactly what goes on at that firm."