Assurance Vie Articles/Blog Client reviews French Tax Guide

The urge to travel came early for Alan. Working as an account manager for advertising agencies in London and then the Middle East, he moved to Bahrain at the age of 24. Engaging with clients such as American Express and The British Bank of the Middle East began to shape his future in financial services.

In 1987 he joined an international financial advisory firm based in Stuttgart, working exclusively for expatriate clients. The timing could have been better, with global stock markets collapsing in October of that year, one month after his arrival.

A move to The Hague followed a year later, to another international advisory firm. Financial training programs were undertaken regularly in this dynamic environment. Living and working amongst one of Europe’s highest concentrations of foreign employees, long term relationships developed with executives of Shell, The European Space Agency, the British Patent office and many embassy staff and entrepreneurs who gravitated to the region.

Having observed the poor standard of financial advice generally available in the market, Alan started his own independent advisory business, Studio Financial, in 1990. Offices and competent teams were established in The Hague and Brussels, delivering professional service and support to a client base which grew quickly, as did the success of the business.

The dream of moving to France became a reality in 2000. Two young sons started at Maternelle, a little reluctantly, and Alan travelled constantly looking after his clients who were now based all over Europe.

With thirty years’ investment and financial planning experience and many long term clients and financial contacts across Europe, Alan travels regularly to Lyon, Grenoble, the French Alps and Geneva, working on behalf of the many foreign residents who call this beautiful region home.

Recent Client reviews

My wife and I have been working with Alan Watson of Spectrum IFA Group for a couple of years now. He provides us with financial planning advice and manages some of our investments here in France. We like the fact that Alan is local and therefore is able to travel and we usually are able to meet face to face. He is always quick to respond, and actively keeps us informed on relevant financial information. Alan has many years of experience, and good knowledge of both UK and French financial markets which has helped clarify and simplify things for us. He is a pleasure to work with.
Nick Saw, Chamonix

We have known Alan for just over a year now, since he advised us to move the British Investments that we have had for some time to Investments that are more tax-efficient in France. We are cautious with our money and have always tended to use do-it-yourself methods for managing our finances. We were therefore not entirely sure about placing ourselves in someone alse’s hands. However, we have absolutely no regrets about using Alan’s services. He explained everything very clearly to us and never pressurised us. He is very friendly and helpful and also super-efficient – the response to an e-mail always arrives within hours. He is happy to travel up to our house in the mountains and this face-to-face contact has made working with Alan a great pleasure.
Chris & Diana Mulcahy

Alan has always listened to our needs rather than pushing products at us, unlike many advisors he has always presented clear competitively priced options in a simple and straightforward way.
Chris Ashton, Lyon

I first contacted Alan must be close to 30 years ago, I heard about him from a colleague in The Hague. My need was to search out a mortgage for my recently divorced daughter, he arranged it in no time, making my local Dutch and long term British Bank contacts look somewhat incompetent. From then on, as they say, the rest became history. Alan managed our investments, which were increased by a rather large inheritance. We never had reason to complain about the results, he actually sold funds before markets fell away to protect our portfolio. He knows his business well, so we have benefited from a long and always aggreable experience. I am glad my old colleague passed on Alan’s card.
David Dale European Space Agency Director – (Ret)