Final Results - Year Ended 31 Dec 1999, Part 1

St. James's Place Capital PLC
22 March 2000


PART 1

SJPC Announcement of Preliminary Results - Change of Venue 

Please note that the venue for this morning's analyst meeting has changed.  It
will now be held at 33 Old Broad Street at 09.45am for 10.00am.

SJPC wishes to  draw attention to today's announcement released under separate
cover by Halifax Group plc. 

Details of the Preliminary Results follow.


Announcement of preliminary results
for the year to 31st December 1999

St  James's Place Capital (SJPC) today announces preliminary results  for  the
year ended 31st December 1999.

Highlights include:

*SJPC   pre-tax  profits   totalled   £174.8  million   (1998: £86.3  million)
 made  up  of operating profits of £93.2 million  (up 8 percent)  and    £81.6
 million  profit   from the realisation of the Company's interest  in   Global
 Asset Management (GAM).

*J Rothschild Assurance Group

 -  life  business  pre-tax operating  profits ( before exceptionals)  up  10%
    to  £62.8 million;

 -  unit trust business  pre-tax profits up 14 % to £5.7 million;

 -  new   business   from   The J Rothschild Partnership  up   17%  to  £130.1
    million,  following growth  of  25%  in  the  2nd half, a trend  which has
      continued in the early months of the year 2000;

 -  size of the Partnership up 9% to  972;

 -  assets under management up 46 per cent to £4.6 billion.

*J Rothschild International Assurance

 -  strong new management team creates infrastructure for relaunch in Italy.

*Life Assurance Holding Corporation

 -  pre-tax  profit contribution up from £17.6 million to £27.4 million.

*New  strategy  initiated  for  a  wide  range  of  financial services  to  be
 distributed by the Partnership under joint ventures.

*Final dividend of  1.0p per share  making  a  total dividend  for the year of
 1.75p (1998: 1.5p).

Enquiries

SJPC
Sir Mark Weinberg, Chairman                       0207 514 1909
Mike Wilson, Chief Executive                      0207 514 1909

Brunswick
Alison Hogan / Nitya Bolam / Patrick Meyer        0207 404 5959


Supporting statement

1999  was a year of substantial growth for St James's Place Capital,  in  both
sales and profits.

J Rothschild Assurance Group ('JRA Group')

New  business from The J Rothschild Partnership, the Group's sole UK marketing
arm, was up 17 % for the year 1999. The trend in new business was particularly
encouraging, with new business for the second half of the year up 25% and this
trend has continued in the early months of the year 2000.  Removing classes of
business  not  included in the industry figures  issued by the Association  of
British Insurers ('ABI'), (ISAs, unit trusts and international business) total
new business from The J. Rothschild Partnership was also up 17%, compared with
the  increase  for the industry as a whole of 7%, on a like  for  like  basis,
representing a further increase in the Group's market share.

Of  equal  significance  is the trend in the mix of  new  business.  In  1999,
pension  business  represented  24%  and mortgage  endowments  8%  of  initial
commissions earned by Partners.  In the first  two months of the current year,
these  two  figures have fallen to 18% and 3% respectively. During  that  same
period, investment business was up 57% and protection business up 47%  on  the
corresponding  months  of  1999, confirming -  as  was  pointed  out   in  the
Chairman's  Statement last year - the ability of  the Partners to adapt  their
marketing  patterns and mix of  business to meet changing  conditions  in  the
market   place.  Because  the  Partners  place  all  their  business  with  J.
Rothschild  Assurance  ('JRA')  the Group  has  the  benefit  of  their  total
production, whatever the change in the mix of their business.

The size of the Partnership grew by 9% from 891 up to 972 during the year.  In
the course of March this year, the number passed the 1000 mark.

The  Group  continues  to  report the results of its  life  businesses  on  an
embedded value basis, believing that this gives shareholders the best  measure
of how their business is progressing. The pre-tax basic operating profits from
the  JRA Group's life business rose 10% from £57.3m to £62.8m (see note  10).
The actual profits were affected by a variety of one-off exceptional items:

*Following recent  statements  from  the  Financial Services Authority ('FSA')
 on  the  calculation of redress for Pensions Transfers and Opt-outs, JRA  has
 increased  the  Pensions  Transfers  and Opt-out  reserve  to  £12.4m  (1998:
 £11.4m).This  includes  an  allowance  for  possible  compensation  to  FSAVC
 policyholders. Taking into account payments during the year, this  represents
 an increase of £5.0m pre-tax (£3.5m post tax).

*The Group has  received  a  recovery  of  £9.0m pre-tax (£6.3m post tax) from
 its  professional indemnity insurers in respect of the cost of  the  pensions
 review.

*In  common  with   many   other  companies, premiums  on  mortgage  endowment
 policies issued by JRA prior to 1995 were calculated on the basis of  charges
 set  down  by  the regulators for projections rather than the  company's  own
 charges.   This  has  led  to  the  prospect   of  some  policyholders  being
  potentially disadvantaged and JRA has set aside £4.7m pre-tax (£3.3m post
 tax) to put them in the position they would have been in if the company's own
 charges had been used.

*The  introduction of level  loaded  pension plans  has   had   a  short  term
 impact on the cash flow of members of The J.Rothschild Partnership who  sell
 these  plans.  Recognising the great benefit to JRA of  controlling  its  own
 distribution, the company is  bearing the  cost  of  assisting the transition
 over  a  limited period.  The cost of this  was £4.4m pre-tax during the year
 (£3.1m  post tax).  The cost for 2000 is expected  to  be of a similar level
 with the transitional arrangements being phased out by the end of the year.

*The costs  of  closing  the  international  operations  outside Europe and of
 preparing for the relaunch of the Italian operation amounted to £4.7m pre-tax
 (£3.3m post tax).

Profits  from  the  unit trust group were up 14% to from £5.7m  pre-tax 
(1998: £5.0m).


Investment Management

Following  a  review  conducted  by the Investment  Monitoring  Committee,  in
conjunction with the independent consultancy Stamford Associates, we  replaced
M&G  as  the  investment  manager of a number of our  funds  with  S.G.  Asset
Management,   Global  Asset  Management, Credit Suisse  Asset  Management  and
Newton Investment Management.

We now offer a total of 10 carefully selected  investment managers through our
range  of life, pension, unit trusts and offshore products, giving our clients
a wide choice of respected managers for their funds.

A  number  of  our  funds have performed particularly well over  the  past  12
months,  as  well as over the longer term.  Our flagship £800 million  JRA/St.
James's Place Life Managed Fund was 2nd best performer out of 144 funds in its
class  over 1 year to end February 2000 and 1st out of 108 funds since it  was
formed at the start of 1992.

Our  largest  unit  trust the £500 million St. James's Place Greater  European
Trust grew by a remarkable 83% over the 12 months to end February and by  268%
over  the past 5 years.  £1000 invested in this fund at its inception in  1970
would  today  have grown, with net income reinvested to £196,000,  a  compound
growth rate of 19% per annum,  (Standard & Poors Micropal, offer to bid)

Assets  under management were up 46% during the year to £4.6bn and at the  end
of February 2000 they passed the £5bn mark.

International Operations

1999  was  an  important year for our international business. The  strong  new
management  team,  led  by Paul Bradshaw, closed down our  limited  operations
outside  Europe and set up the infrastructure for relaunching the business  in
continental  Europe,  starting in Italy under the name J. Rothschild  European
Assurance  (SJPC).  We  look forward to this initiative making  a  significant
contribution to the future growth of the Group.

Life Assurance Holding Corporation (23% owned)

As  you  know,  LAHC  is  a  joint venture co-owned with  a  number  of  other
substantial  institutional  investors, including  New  York  Life,  Prudential
Corporation  and  Chase Capital Partners.  You will also  be  aware  that  the
business  of  LAHC  consists of acquiring life companies (or  parts  of  their
operations),   closing  them to new business and running  off   the  resulting
portfolios.

The  shareholders  of  LAHC  have  differing views  on  their  willingness  to
contribute additional capital to acquire further businesses. Discussions  have
therefore  been  taking  place  between  them  on  whether  to  bring  in  new
shareholders or to find a buyer for the whole business.

SJPC's view is that, even if no further acquisitions are made, running off the
existing  portfolio is an attractive investment, yielding an after-tax  return
of  some 8% per annum plus the benefit (currently worth perhaps another 2% per
annum) of the gearing of the company's capital.

On  this  basis,  SJPC  is in no hurry to dispose of its shareholding  and  is
content  to  hold on to it until a buyer or new shareholder is  found  who  is
prepared  to  recognise the value of the corporate finance skills  which  have
been  built  up  within  the  company.  In  any  event,  with  the  amount  of
consolidation and restructuring in the industry, we feel there is  a  valuable
long-term role for a  company with the technology and experience to  run  off
legacy portfolios of business.

Although  there  were  no  acquisitions to boost  the  profits  of  LAHC,  the
company's  contribution  to  SJPC's profits for the  year  was  £27.4m  (1998:
£17.6m), thanks in large part to a change in the basis of calculating embedded
value  adopted by the company, which is now in line with that adopted by other
quoted life companies.

The  investment  in  LAHC is equity accounted by SJPC  on  the  basis  of  the
embedded  value attributable to it, which was £85.4m at the end of 1999.  This
was equivalent to under 10% of the market capitalisation of SJPC at that date.

Global Asset Management

The  sale  of SJPC's holding in GAM to Union Bank of Switzerland was completed
on  17th December 1999, prior to which GAM's contribution to Group profit  was
£5.8m  pre-tax (1998: £4.7m). The consideration receivable by SJPC was  £99.5m
of   which   £18.4m    has   been  retained   as   interest-bearing   deferred
consideration against warranties under the agreement.  It is our view that  no
liability  will  arise under the warranties and accordingly no  provision  has
been  made. This has been an outstandingly successful investment for the Group
and  we  are  most grateful to Gilbert de Botton for the skill with  which  he
built up the business.

Taking  into  account  the  value at which GAM was  being  carried  in  SJPC's
accounts,  the  disposal has given rise to an exceptional  pre-tax  profit  of
£81.6m (£58.9m post tax).

Expanding the range of products and services

As  was  pointed out in the Chairman's Statement last year, we  believe  that,
despite  the major changes flowing from new technology, advice will  remain  a
key  factor in the consumer's decision on where to place business for all  but
the  simplest  services  and the least sophisticated  customers.  JRA  remains
committed  to distributing its products only on an advisory basis  and  solely
through  the  members  of  The  J.  Rothschild Partnership.  Whereas  changing
patterns  of business will mean that IFAs may choose different life  companies
to place business with from one year to the next, JRA has the great benefit of
knowing that the Partners will place their life and unit trust business of all
classes with it.

The  great  leaps in technology in recent years (in particular the development
of the Internet and intranets ) provide the opportunity to achieve significant
improvements  in  the  productivity of the Partnership through  expanding  the
range  of products they are  able to offer their clients beyond those  offered
by  the  JRA  Group  itself.   The key to this is  the  ability,  through  the
Internet,  to bring together information on the various products  held  by  an
individual client and to make that information available to the client on-line
or otherwise.

In  the last quarter of 1999, we introduced a Mortgage Advisory Service, under
which  Partners  are able to offer their clients advice on  mortgages  from  a
panel  of  providers  negotiated by JRA. During the year 2000,  through  joint
ventures,  we will continue the process of extending the range of services  to
include  general  insurance, health insurance, private  portfolio  management,
deposits  and  advice  on  the  creation of trusts,  as  well  as  Stakeholder
pensions, in each case sharing  the resulting revenue between the Partner  and
the Group.

While  we continue to believe that products should always be bought through  a
member  of  the Partnership it is our intention that, by the end of  the  year
all  clients of the JRA Group will be able to access information,  on-line  or
otherwise,  on  the  status of their investments and other services  with  the
Group, as well as being able to implement various changes directly through the
Internet. In this way, the Internet will lead to greater efficiencies and will
add  value  to  our  business, by supporting and enriching  the  provision  of
personal advice, rather than acting as an inferior substitute for it. 

Dividend policy and final dividend

Over  the past three years, SJPC's cash resources have been committed  to  the
expansion  of  the  J.  Rothschild Assurance Group,  and  the  Directors  have
maintained a policy  of  freezing  the dividend. Following  the  sale  of  our
interest in GAM and subject to  the  approval of the Annual General Meeting, a
final dividend of 1p per share  will be paid  to shareholders on  the register
on  7th April. This  would make  a total  of 1.75p per share for the full year
(1998:1.5p per share).


Sir Mark Weinberg

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