Richard Mein, the founder and chief executive of Parmenion, has died after a short battle with cancer, it has been confirmed this morning.

The 52 year-old, who is survived by a wife and two children, passed away on Saturday, Parmenion told Financial Planning Today.

Parmenion opened for business in 2007, with Mr Mein and a small team, several of whom still work in the firm today.

A Parmenion statement read: "His vision was to harness new technology, supporting the widest possible choice of professional investment proposition, to make life simpler and business more efficient for financial advisers. His vision was to improve the outcome of investing for retail customers.

"The service standards he insisted on achieved a level of recognition and respect among advisers and the wider industry of which Richard was justifiably proud. His drive for the next horizon led him to launch the UK’s first online regulated advice system in July 2014.

"Richard was an entrepreneur, establishing a business that did not fall within the usual boxes of either platform, technology or investment management but instead he vertically integrated all three functions. The industry took some time to appreciate the brilliance and foresight of this move.

"Richard’s inspirational integrity and determination to “do the right thing” means that in his memory, management will continue to take his vision forward. Parmenion will continue to flourish and provide a bespoke service without compromise within the larger Aberdeen group."

Rennie Miller, executive chairman of Parmenion, said: “Richard’s fundamental belief was that financial services should be bought and not sold and he was mindful that the world over, people are looking for more modern and efficient means of buying products and services.”

Dawn Pearce-Herzberg, MD of IFA acquisition advisory business Vines Row, said: "Richard was a considered man, enjoyed a lively debate, never afraid to put his thoughts and opinions forward, but given his knowledge and experience it was always worth listening to. He was passionate when speaking about his family and that is one of the many reasons I am so sad he has gone.

"He can be very proud of what he has left behind and I'm sure the business will go from strength to strength in his honour."

Joss Harwood, CFPCM, director of Eldon Financial Planning in County Durham, paid tribute to Mr Mein.

She said: "I was distressed to hear about the loss of Richard. Tony & I, along with our team, are very much thinking about you and Richard’s family today. When we first came down to Bath to meet with you in 2009, I wanted to use ‘female intuition’( if indeed this is a gender specific trait), to gauge the honesty and integrity of those around the table.

"I felt that you all, and in particular Richard as leader of your group, spoke our language in emphasising the importance of honesty, ethical behaviour and fairness in a world not known for those attributes.

"It was different to the usual financial services dialect and music to our ears. We had always been ‘different’ at Eldon in the uncompromising way that we worked and our requirement was for qualities that we had not, until that day, found in an investment partner. We went home buoyed by the fact that there were indeed others like us and we committed to working with Parmenion."

She said: "Coming up seven years later time has vindicated our faith in each other to do what we said we would do, with the focus firmly on clients. Our mutual trust was well founded and has enabled both businesses to progress. We are well known in the financial planning world and our endorsement of your services helped Parmenion to gain traction in the early days.

"Your accurate and timely service delivery with a personal touch enabled us to provide the first class outcomes that we promised to our longstanding, loyal, clients and ensured that referrals continued to come our way for new clients.

"Sadly, the ‘good guys’ are not given any special treatment by life itself. Richard’s passing reminds us how we can’t take tomorrow for granted but we know that his legacy is a company of which you are immensely proud and we have been pleased to be part of your journey.

"Our own hope is that Richard’s inspirational integrity and determination to ‘’do the right thing” means that in his memory, Parmenion can continue to flourish and provide a bespoke service without compromise within a larger organisation."

Donations can be made to Dorothy House Hospice Care.

Tributes have begun flowing in since the announcement. If you would like to pay your own tributes to Mr Mein please send an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or tweet to @FPTodayNews.

More to come.

Ach, desperately sad news about Richard Mein. RIP.

— Mark Polson (@theactualpolson) January 21, 2016

Sad news about @Parmenionuk's founder Richard Mein. Thoughts with his family and the whole team.

— Abraham Okusanya (@AbrahamOnMoney) January 18, 2016

Terribly sad to learn of Richard Mein's passing. He was needed to help build the future.

— David Ferguson (@david_ferguson) January 21, 2016