Our senior adviser, Charles Matthews, has a long list of professional qualifications, is a Fellow of The Chartered Insurance Institute and has been an examiner for The Institute´s Board on many occasions. As a Chartered Insurance Practitioner, Charles is one of only a handful of financial advisers in the UK holding a Chartered status. Charles holds higher level pension transfer and opt out authorisation with the Financial Services Authority as an Associate of the Pensions Management Institute. This was achieved through examinations higher than the more traditional G60 route taken by most advisers.
After graduating with an honours degree in economics at Swansea University, he worked as a broker consultant for General Accident (now part of Norwich Union) for four years. Charles then joined Sage Financial Services (not the software company!) as an Independent Financial Adviser and was latterly until 1995 Senior Pensions Manager for the Sage Group. An opportunity then arose to join forces with David Messer, a long established Independent Financial Adviser in Guildford since 1964. For the last 16 years Charles has been providing expert advice from our offices in Walnut Tree Close, in Guildford.
Charles and his wife Esther are active members of the local church. He is often involved in preaching both at Guildford Park Church and other local churches and running the young teens youth work on a Friday night. As a committed Christian, Charles believes that the highest ethical standard is paramount in his business activities.
He also swims 2 miles each week, runs 4 miles during the week and 8 miles on Saturday morning, after cycling to and from work each day. Charles needs to keep fit, to keep up with his four boys.
Charles (and the boys) are keen supporters of Reading Football Club and can often be seen lending their support to The Royals on a Saturday afternoon.