Dr Gerard Lyons, the outspoken economist and erstwhile adviser to Boris Johnson, has signalled an unlikely new career in the emerging world of algorithm-based investing.

The pro-Brexit mayoral aide is joining a group of high-profile City investors who are backing a new website that claims to undercut traditional asset managers.

Netwealth launches tomorrow in a bid to capitalise on the growth of so-called “robo-advice”, the idea that computer programmes can make investing decisions instead of human financial planners.

The minimum investment is £50,000 but the service is hoping to attract the traditional clients of private banks such as Coutts and Brewin Dolphin.

Netwealth’s tiered 0.65pc management fee, falling to 0.35pc for people who put in more than £500,000, represents around a third of the cost of established asset managers.

Chief executive Charlotte Ransom, a former partner at Goldman Sachs, said she founded the company after “it hit me I didn’t want to spend time managing my finances, but didn’t want to hand it over to somebody else to manage with little idea of how it’s performing.”

The service is targeting professionals on six-figure salaries and said its “pedigree team” sets it apart from many online investing platforms, such as Hargeaves Lansdown and Nutmeg, which stop short at providing computerised financial advice.