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Hargreaves Lansdown draws investor ire over Woodford debacle

Hargreaves Lansdown PLC said its assets under administration for the three months to September-end amounted to £101.8 billion, up from £94.1 billion in the same period a year ago.

In a trading update, the asset manager said it recorded net revenues of £128.1 million for the three month period to Sept. 30, up 6% from £120.8 million in the same quarter a year earlier. The London-based firm took in 35,000 new clients, compared to 29,000 in the year-ago period, while net new business increased on a yearly basis to £1.7 billion from £1.3 billion.

Despite the improved results, the firm still faced investor criticism for its close ties to embattled fund manager Neil Woodford at its annual shareholder meeting, the Financial Times reported.

Some of the shareholders were not impressed with the way Hargreaves Lansdown handled the situation surrounding the Woodford debacle, which left nearly 300,000 Hargreaves Lansdown clients unable to withdraw money from the suspended LF Woodford Equity Income Fund.

One investor questioned the company's slow decision to cut executive bonuses for 2019 and the lack of due diligence the Woodford funds had received, while another shareholder grilled the board for not pushing Woodford to liquidate all his assets immediately, according to the FT.