Understanding the Stellar BR solutions
We are an independent, director-owned investment manager focused on inheritance tax mitigation through Business Relief. We offer three distinct solutions, each built on the same principle: clients retain ownership of and access to their capital while their investment is structured to qualify for relief from inheritance tax.
Our AiM IHT Service invests in a portfolio of carefully selected companies listed on the Alternative Investment Market that are expected to qualify for Business Relief. It suits advisers looking for a public-market equity solution with daily pricing and the potential for growth, within a recognised IHT planning framework.
Our Stellar ITS is a discretionary managed service that invests client capital into private, asset-backed trading businesses across a range of qualifying sectors. A portfolio is established in the client’s name, with the client as beneficial owner throughout. It suits advisers seeking private-market exposure through an established, off-the-shelf structure.
Our Family Trading Companies are our bespoke Business Relief solution, designed for complex and higher-value estates where an individually structured approach is appropriate. FTCs give advisers and their clients a tailored route to relief, with the governance and control that high-stakes, often intergenerational, planning demands.
Which solution fits depends on the client profile, the adviser’s objectives, and the level of bespoke structuring required. Our team can help you match the right solution to the case in front of you.
How business relief works
Business Relief is long-standing government legislation that provides relief from inheritance tax on qualifying business assets. Provided a qualifying investment has been held for the required minimum period and is still held at the point of death, it should fall outside the estate for inheritance tax purposes. This makes Business Relief one of the more efficient tools available to advisers, particularly where speed of planning matters, as the qualifying period is considerably shorter than the timeframes attached to many traditional estate planning routes.
What sets Business Relief apart from many alternatives is that the client retains ownership of and access to their capital throughout. Unlike gifting or many trust-based arrangements, the client does not have to give away their wealth to plan for it. They remain the beneficial owner of their investment and can retain control, which removes one of the most common barriers advisers encounter when introducing estate planning to clients.
The rules governing Business Relief continue to evolve, and recent changes to the regime have refined how relief applies in certain circumstances. We structure every Stellar solution with these developments in mind, and our team and adviser resources can take you through the current position and what it means for your clients in detail.
It is worth noting that the value of investments can fall as well as rise, and that tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and may change in future. Business Relief qualification is assessed by HMRC at the point of death.
Regulations and compliance
We know that recommending a Business Relief solution means standing behind it, to your client, to your compliance team, and to the regulator. Our role is to make that straightforward by giving you clear, well-evidenced documentation and a structure that holds up to scrutiny.
Stellar is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Our solutions are designed with Consumer Duty in mind, and we provide the suitability information, risk summaries and supporting material advisers need to evidence good client outcomes and document their recommendations with confidence.
Our credentials reflect this focus. Stellar is Defaqto five-star rated and ARC-accredited in recognition of our commitment to transparency, and was named Best BR Investment Manager – Listed at the 2025 Growth Investor Awards. For advisers and paraplanners carrying out due diligence, our Adviser Resource Centre holds detailed documentation, including factsheets, due diligence packs, risk summaries and application forms.
Asset strategies
The strength of a Business Relief solution rests on the quality of the underlying assets, and this is where Stellar’s approach is distinctive. Across our private-market solutions, capital preservation is the primary objective, and our investments are genuinely asset-backed: clients own a stake in real, tangible businesses and assets, not financial instruments engineered to look like them.
We invest across a diversified range of qualifying trading activities, including areas such as commercial forestry, renewable energy, hospitality and leisure, care homes, secured lending, and residential and commercial property development. Each sector is run by specialist managers, and diversification across activities is central to how we manage risk and pursue steady, sustainable returns rather than chasing short-term performance.
This asset-backed philosophy is deliberate. Tangible underlying assets support both the Business Relief qualification of the investment and its resilience, giving advisers a clear, defensible story to tell clients about where their money is and why it is invested that way.
Stellar Asset Management in Numbers
Learn more about us
70+
£250m
1500+
22
Our Commitment to You
At Stellar Asset Management, our commitment to you is built on integrity, transparency, and a deep understanding of estate planning. We work closely with advisers to help clients protect and grow their wealth, offering tax-efficient solutions backed by over 30 years of experience. We’re here to support your legacy, delivering exceptional service and long-term value for future generations.