The Novia Foundation, which was formed five years ago by Bath-based wealth management firm Novia Financial to more efficiently channel its fundraising efforts in the city, is to be extended to new areas.
The move follows the appointment of a new chair at the end of last year and nearly two years after Novia was acquired by international private equity firm AnaCap Financial.
New Foundation chair Robert Vaudry is managing director of London-based Copia Capital Management, the investment solutions division of Novia.
Since its launch, the Foundation has concentrated its support on projects benefiting people in and around Bath, including its main beneficiary Mentoring Plus, a charity helping young people who are struggling with school, family or wellbeing.
Now it plans to extend its reach to include initiatives benefiting communities in London and Salisbury, reflecting the locations of Copia and Wealthtime, a fintech firm also owned by AnaCap.
As well as financial donations to selected projects from Novia, the Foundation also encourages employees across the group to volunteer their time to suitable initiatives.
Each year, several Novia employees volunteer in local schools through the Mentoring Plus programme in Bath and North East Somerset, working with students to help build confidence and teach workplace skills.
Robert Vaudry, pictured, one of six Foundation trustees and a member of Novia’s executive team, said: “I’m excited to become chair of the Novia Foundation and build on its history of helping local charities.
“It is incredibly rewarding to see the real difference we can make in the wider community by supporting charitable initiatives both financially and through volunteering.
“We look forward to benefiting even more people by extending the Foundation’s footprint beyond Bath to also include a wide range of diverse local causes in Salisbury and London.”
Novia was launched in 2008 by former chief executive Bill Vasilieff, who built it up to become one of the UK’s leading wealth management platforms capable of competing against the giants of the financial services industry.
It launched Copia in 2013 as a discretionary fund manager, working exclusively with IFAs to construct superior portfolios to meet client needs across the full risk-return spectrum.
Robert Vaudry has more than 30 years’ experience in financial services and has spent much of his multi-award winning career in board and executive level leadership roles at a range of regulated multinational investment banks, wealth management firms and insurance companies.
