Meet the AJ Bell Investments team

Ryan Hughes: Investments Director

Ryan started his career in 1999 working for an independent financial adviser, progressing to become Head of Portfolio Management at an award-winning advisory firm. Ryan then joined a global asset management firm as a Fund Manager, where he oversaw more than £10bn of multi-asset portfolios and also sat on the investment and global asset allocation committees. After seven years, Ryan joined a small multi-asset boutique managing portfolios for clients all around the world, before joining AJ Bell three years later to help establish our investment capability.

Samantha Andersen: Head of Investment Operations

Samantha joined AJ Bell Investments in 2021, bringing more than 15 years’ operations experience – including 11 years across a variety of financial services sectors. As well as managing departments helping vulnerable customers and investigating retail banking complaints, she’s also headed up the operations of an independent asset finance company. She has a CMI Level 6 Diploma in Management and Leadership.

Paul Angell: Head of Investment Research

Paul began his investment career with a global investment bank in 2010, holding various roles across London and Hong Kong over the following years. In 2016, Paul then joined a UK-based investment consultancy business. Here, he was responsible for selecting investment strategies across asset classes to support the firm’s £2.5 billion managed portfolio service, as well as numerous external clients. Paul joined AJ Bell in 2023 to lead the firm’s investment research offering, ensuring clients across the business have a great selection of investment options to work with.

Richard Slattery-Vickers: Head of Product

Richard started his career in financial services in 2005. He worked for a global custodian for eleven years, primarily providing investment operation and accounting services for asset managers on their UK domiciled fund ranges. He then joined a boutique asset manager, where he helped establish and head up the operations for its Authorised Corporate Director (“ACD”) business, joining its Board in 2020, where it supported a range of UK domiciled funds. He holds the CISI Investment Advice Diploma (IAD), CISI Certificate in Investment Management and CFA ESG Certificate. Richard joined AJ Bell in 2023 with responsibility for leading the investment operations and product governance for AJ Bell’s investment solutions.

James Flintoft: Head of Investment Solutions

James has over a decade of experience running MPS and managed accounts for intermediaries. After graduating from Northumbria University with a first class degree in Finance & Investment Management, James joined a regional DFM, where he most recently served as Head of Investments. He joined AJ Bell Investments in 2023 as a Fund Manager. James is a CFA charterholder.

Terry McGivern: Senior Research Analyst

Terry’s career in financial services began in 2005 on the settlements team at a major bank. He later moved to an investment management company and then a leading provider of financial services. In 2010 he took up a proprietary futures trading role at one of the world’s largest independent global commodities brokers. Prior to joining AJ Bell Terry spent five years on the Investment Management Team at a discretionary investment manager in Liverpool, where he was also a member of the Asset Allocation Committee. Terry holds the CFA-UK Investment Management Certificate (IMC) and is currently studying towards the CFA Level 2 exam.

Tom McGoldrick: Fund Manager

Tom joined AJ Bell in October 2018, after graduating from Durham University with a master’s degree in Mathematics. He is now part of the Investment Management Team at AJ Bell Investments. Tom is a CFA charterholder, and holds the CFA Certificate in ESG Investing.

Alexandra Farrell: Product Manager

Alex first joined AJ Bell Securities in 2020 in the Client Services department and moved to join the Investments team in August 2021. She has a first class degree from the University of Leeds in Philosophy, Politics and Economics (International) and spent a year of this studying in Australia. She holds the Investment Management Certificate (IMC) and the PRINCE2 Practitioner Certificate in project management. Alex is currently studying towards her Level 5 CMI qualification in Management and Leadership."

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Alex Wickham: Research Analyst

Alex initially joined AJ Bell Securities in 2013 as part of the Dealing Team, where he worked as the Fund Dealing Manager prior to joining the AJ Bell Investments Team in 2022. He holds an Investment Advice Diploma (IAD) and is working towards the Investment Management Certificate (IMC).

Ruby Bollington: Product Analyst

Ruby initially joined AJ Bell Investments as an Intern, during which time she helped to produce two whole-of-the-market overview reports on funds and MPSs. Following her internship she permanently joined the Investments Team as a Junior Product Analyst. She graduated from the University of Manchester with a first-class degree in International Business, Finance and Economics and holds the Investment Management Certificate (IMC).

Jack Shorrock: Product Analyst

Jack first joined AJ Bell in March 2021 on the Customer Support Team, after obtaining a second-class degree in Business Economics from Leeds Beckett University. He spent 18 months on the team assisting customers, before joining the AJ Bell Investments Team in September 2022. Jack has completed the CISI Investment Operations Certificate (IOC) and holds the Investment Management Certificate (IMC)

Manan Goyal: Investment Analyst

Manan joined us after completing his Master's degree in Market and Quantitative Finance from Emlyon Business School. He initially joined as an Investments Intern in 2021, moving on to being a Junior Portfolio Analyst in the Investment Management Team, before being promoted to Investment Analyst in 2023. He holds the Investment Management Certificate (IMC).

Hassan Ali: Business Analyst

Hassan joined AJ Bell Investments in 2022 as a Junior Business Analyst, after graduating from the University of Nottingham with a Master’s in Finance and Investment. He supports the Investments Team, ensures the product proposition is maintained and that new proposition ideas are formulated with regards to market and competitor trends. Hassan is currently studying towards the Investment Management Certificate (IMC) and Level II of the CFA Program.