Financial advice firm St. James Place has hired Vida Homeloans former national intermediary sales manager Andy Alvarez (pictured) as its head of division for partner finance consultancy.
A spokesperson for the company said that Alvarez would cover the London and the South, and that his remit includes “leading a team of consultants to support the key strategies” of the division.
He will report to Adrian Speed, SJP’s partner finance consultancy divisional director.
SJP advises over 868,000 clients on investments and other financial services, ranging from investment advice to pension planning, mortgages, and income protection to later-life care and financial well-being.
It has a 4,693 strong partnership of highly qualified advisers.
Alvarez recently was national intermediary sales manager at Vida Homeloans for around a year.
At the end of last year, Vida said it would combine its relationship and decision-making teams into one hub, following a strategic review of the business.
Diversity and inclusion champion
Alvarez previously worked as Mansfield Building Society as its head of intermediary and direct mortgage sales for nearly a year, and before that worked at Nationwide for just over 12 years.
He held various roles at Nationwide including local director and equality, diversity and inclusion chair.
Alvarez is an advocate for diversity and inclusion, acting as a non-executive director on equality, diversity and inclusion for the Football Association and as an equality, diversity and inclusion business mentor.
He has also had stints at Morgan Stanley, Highstreet Homeloans and Advantage Homes loans to name a few.
Anna is currently the deputy editor for Mortgage Solutions and editor for Specialist Lending Solutions. She has worked as a journalist since 2019, having secured her Gold Standard NCTJ diploma from News Associates in a fast-track six-month course.
She started her career as a report at specialist publication The Insurance Insider covering a wide range of areas before joining Mortgage Solutions and Specialist Lending Solutions in 2021.
In her role, she helps put together and structure the news agenda for the day and writes up press releases, reports, interviews, analyses and exclusives across both titles. She also commissions blogs for Specialist Lending Solutions and hosts online masterclasses and in-person events across the business.
She has been shortlisted for three journalism awards, which include BIBA Journalist and Media Awards Scoop of Year Award in 2020, Headline Money Mortgage Journalist of the Year Award (B2B) in 2022 and 2023.
Prior to being a journalist, Anna worked in ecommerce across Snow + Rock, Cycle Surgery and Runners Need websites, and before that worked at specialist financial PR firm Rostrum.
In her spare time, Anna enjoys reading, seeing live music, and cooking for friends and family. When she gets a chance, she also enjoys hiking, skiing and indoor rock climbing.
