What Flying Colours Finance does

Flying Colours Advice Limited (trading as Flying Colours) is a UK-based independent financial advisory firm offering whole-of-market financial planning and investment advice to individual and family clients. The firm operates from three offices in Bracknell (headquarters), Lincoln, and Liverpool, with a team of advisers and paraplanners providing face-to-face consultations. It is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority under reference 672022 and operates as a fully independent adviser rather than a restricted adviser, meaning it does not receive commission from product providers and considers the entire market when making recommendations.

Flying Colours offers a comprehensive suite of financial planning services spanning pension planning, investment management (both advisory and discretionary), retirement planning, inheritance tax and estate planning, protection and insurance, tax optimisation, and later life/long-term care planning. Its proprietary Personal Value Statement (PVS) is a differentiated client-facing report that quantifies the value of advice across four dimensions: achieving financial goals, eliminating unnecessary costs, reducing tax, and growing lifetime wealth. The firm also operates a specialised Annuity Bureau and maintains a strategic partnership with Which? to access that consumer advocacy organisation's membership base.

The firm operates a subscription/recurring revenue model based on a percentage of assets under advisement, comprising an initial fee plus an ongoing annual fee, with a flat fee alternative available. The GTM motion is sales-led and relationship-driven, relying on direct appointments, referrals, online booking, content marketing (Insights blog, email newsletter), VouchedFor reviews, and the Which? partnership to acquire clients. Flying Colours is privately held, founder/management-owned, with no disclosed external funding or institutional investors.

Name

Flying Colours Finance

Legal name

Flying Colours Advice Limited

Website

https://flyingcolourslife.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Flying Colours Finance is a UK-based independent financial advisory firm offering whole-of-market financial planning, investment management, pension, retirement, and estate planning services to individual and family clients across three UK offices.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Independent Financial Advisory Services

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940), Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (52394)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Comprehensive Financial Planning (FSAEAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Discretionary Portfolio Management (Retail) (FSAAAAAH), Retirement Income Planning & Decumulation Advisory (FSAEABAD)

Keywords

• Independent financial advice
• Financial planning services
• Retirement planning
• Pension advisory
• Wealth management

Headquarters

HQ city

Ascot

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Financial Advisory Fees: Fees charged based on a percentage of assets under advisement, comprising an initial fee and ongoing annual fee for most clients. The firm is also open to working on a flat fee basis for both initial and ongoing advisory services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Flying Colours Advice Limited operates as an FCA-authorised independent financial advisory firm providing personalised, whole-of-market financial planning to UK individuals and families. Core services include pension consolidation and planning, investment advisory and discretionary management, retirement income strategies, inheritance tax and estate planning, protection and insurance, tax optimisation, and later life care planning, delivered through qualified advisers in face-to-face consultations across three UK offices.

Product overview

Flying Colours Advice is an independent financial advisory firm operating as a single unified service offering rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. The core offering centers on personalized financial planning delivered through their team of advisers, with a signature Personal Value Statement (PVS) product that quantifies the value of their advice across four dimensions: achieving financial goals, eliminating costs, reducing tax, and growing wealth. Services span pension planning, investment management (advisory and discretionary), retirement planning, inheritance tax and estate planning, protection/insurance, tax optimisation, and later life planning. The firm also offers specialized services including the Annuity Bureau and a Which? Partnership. Operating from offices in Bracknell, Lincoln, and Liverpool, the company provides both initial and ongoing advisory services on a percentage-based fee or flat fee basis.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Personal Value Statement (PVS) A proprietary, signature report that quantifies how the firm's advice will benefit a client across four key areas: achieving financial goals, eliminating unnecessary costs, reducing tax, and growing lifetime wealth, providing transparent and measurable evidence of advice value.
• Pension Planning Expert guidance on planning for retirement, including consolidating company pensions, annuity selection, and maximising pension funds, targeted at individuals planning their retirement.
• Investment Planning Services Comprehensive investment advisory covering both advisory and discretionary management services to help clients grow their wealth over the long term, delivered as a whole-of-market independent service.
• Retirement Planning and Advice Retirement planning service covering timing decisions, income projections, and lifestyle financial planning to help clients achieve their retirement goals, for individuals approaching or entering retirement.
• Inheritance Tax and Estate Planning Services Strategies to help clients pass on wealth to family members while minimising inheritance tax implications and ensuring legacy intentions are fulfilled, for individuals and families concerned with estate transfer.
• Protection and Insurance Services Insurance solutions including income protection and other protective coverage to safeguard families against unexpected financial circumstances, for individuals and families seeking financial security.
• Tax Optimisation Services Strategies to reduce tax liabilities across various stages of financial planning, including pension contributions and investment decisions, for clients seeking to minimise tax exposure.
• Later Life and Long-Term Care Planning Specialised planning for clients in later life stages, including long-term care funding strategies and retirement income planning, for older individuals and their families.
• Annuity Bureau Specialised annuity advice service helping clients select appropriate annuity products for their retirement income, for individuals at the point of converting pension funds into retirement income.
• Advisory Service (Investment) Investment advisory service where clients receive recommendations based on their financial goals and risk tolerance, with the client retaining execution decision-making.
• Discretionary Service (Investment) Discretionary investment management where the firm manages investments on behalf of clients within agreed parameters, with execution authority delegated to the adviser.
• Which? Partnership Financial Advisory Service Financial advisory service delivered via partnership with Which?, the UK consumer rights and advocacy organisation, providing consumer-facing access to Flying Colours' independent financial advice.

Quantifiable outcome

• Clients have reported retiring earlier than expected through effective financial planning
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Which?minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFlying Colours has a partnership with Which? to provide financial advisory services. Which? is a consumer rights organization and advocacy group in the UK, providing access to trusted consumer advice and financial services recommendations.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Brewin Dolphin (RBC Wealth Management UK): UK-based discretionary wealth manager and financial adviser offering investment management, retirement, and tax planning to private clients. Comparable client segment (HNW individuals, business owners) and advisory disciplines, but operates at materially larger scale under RBC ownership.
• Rathbones Group: UK-listed discretionary wealth manager and investment adviser providing bespoke financial planning, investment management, and tax/estate planning to individuals, families, and trusts. Comparable HNW and advice-led service proposition but at significantly larger scale.
• St. James's Place: UK's largest advice-led wealth manager, with a large partnership of restricted/independent financial advisers offering whole-of-market investment and pension planning. Directly comparable end market (mass-affluent and HNW UK individuals) and breadth of financial planning, though materially larger and a public company rather than a privately owned IFA firm.
• Hargreaves Lansdown: UK's largest direct-to-consumer investment platform with research, pensions, and (through HL Financial Advice) regulated financial advice. Comparable retail-investor client base but routed primarily through a self-directed platform rather than face-to-face advisory.
• Quilter: UK wealth manager with a national network of financial advisers offering pensions, investments, retirement, and protection advice to mass-affluent and HNW clients. Comparable client and product mix, but a public, much larger broad incumbent.
• Tilney (Evelyn Partners): Large UK wealth manager and IFA offering financial planning, investment management, retirement, and estate planning for individuals and business owners. Overlaps in segments (HNW, business owners, later life) but materially larger and broader in scope than Flying Colours.

Direct peers

• Ascot Lloyd: UK independent financial adviser consolidator acquiring IFA firms and serving individuals with pension, investment, and retirement planning across multiple regional offices. Directly comparable as an IFA scaling through recruitment, acquisition, and centralised paraplanning.
• Wren Sterling Financial Group: UK independent financial adviser and wealth manager with regional offices providing pension, investment, retirement, and protection advice. Highly comparable model: independent IFA, multi-office UK regional coverage, % of AUM fee structure.
• True Potential Wealth Management: UK-based, parent-owned wealth manager serving mass-affluent and HNW individuals through financial advisers with whole-of-market pension, investment, and retirement planning. Closest comparable in business model (fee-based, lifestyle financial planning, multi-adviser scale-up).

Emerging players

• LEBC (inc. Suffolk Life and ActiveQuote): UK employee benefits and financial advisory group providing workplace pensions, at-retirement support, and individual financial advice. Comparable whole-of-market advisory stance but more concentrated in corporate/employee benefits than Flying Colours' consumer-led practice.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/flyingcols
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/flyingcolours

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Flying Colours Finance