Thomas launched Chadney Bulgin while he was in his 30s in 1995, which offers advice across pensions, investments, protection and mortgages.
After building the company up to around £1bn assets under joint management, the firm was sold to Fairstone in 2021. The acquisition included 27 advisers, 38 support staff and 11,000 wealth and mortgage clients.
During this time, Thomas was also director of the Personal Finance Society between 2011 and 2017, the professional body “dedicated to building trust in the financial planning profession”.
At the risk of getting bored, Thomas also acted as the chair of The Society of Mortgage Professionals between 2019 and 2021 with Carlos Thibaut, formerly chief executive of 360Dotnet, taking over the role thereafter. During Thomas’ time, he helped implement good practice guides.
Thomas stayed on with the firm for six months to ensure a smooth transition, dovetailing his time with his responsibilities at Fairstone’s head office in Newcastle. There he worked with Martyn Griggs, who was joint managing partner of Chadney Bulgin, and is now joint business principal at Fairstone.
Speaking to Mortgage Solutions, Thomas said he was “comfortable hanging up his boots” and was sure the business was in “safe hands”.
Moving into retirement, Thomas plans to fulfil yet further duties, though this time as the elected captain of Hankley Common Golf Club, which is celebrating its 125th anniversary this year. He anticipates this will keep him busy enough in his golden years.
Thomas said there had been many highlights of his career, taking particular pride in his success at building up Chadney Bulgin and executing his roles at the Personal Finance Society and The Society for Mortgage Professionals.
He said there had been many positive changes in the mortgage market during his 43-year career, especially on the regulation front, and added that the sector had become increasingly professional. Thomas also noted that “change is constant” and said he was confident the sector will continue to evolve with future generations.
