Brewin Dolphin profit rises but says risks remain

Profit before tax for the half-year to the end of March climbed 37 per cent. Underlying profit, which excludes the impact of elements including redundancy costs and contract renewal payments, rose 21 per cent to 20.3m.

The group, which has 40 offices across the UK including Leeds, said it had seen a jump in staff costs, due to an increased profit share paid out to employees and a 2.2m payment through a contract renewal incentive.

Brewin Dolphin, which said in January it was seeing better market conditions and a continuing upturn, said adverse market movements remained a risk, but saw "every indication that the performance of our business will continue to be resilient".

Funds under management increased by 12.2 per cent to 23bn.