National wealth manager and IFA consolidator Bellpenny has continued its expansion after acquiring the advisory arm of Kent-based accountancy practice Foot Davson Financial Services, Kevin Ronaldson has announced.
The chief executive of Bellpenny said the deal for Foot Davson brought with it 850 active clients, and funds under management of £60m. The acquisition has bolstered Bellpenny’s total funds under management to £500m in less than a year since it launched.
Bellpenny now employs 17 advisers and 10 paraplanners in an area located in the Midlands and the south.
Mr Ronaldson claimed the deal for Foot Davson would be augmented by further acquisitions in the coming months.
In addition to facilitating the transition of Foot Davson’s existing wealth management clients across to Bellpenny, the deal will also ensure that future clients of the accountancy firm will continue to have access to a full financial planning service.
Mr Ronaldson said: “Now that the dust has settled on the introduction of the retail distribution review and the realities of a more onerous regulatory framework have sunk in, we expect more professional services firms to follow Foot Davson’s lead.
“For the majority of accountants and solicitors, the business case for operating their own financial planning operations has become far harder to make in the new environment.”
Adviser View
Keith Iles, director of Middlesex-based JHC Partnership, said: “Many accountancy firms would have operated with commission-based introductory business models pre-RDR but I don't see the need to operate in partnership with professional services firms changing that much. The continuity of offering a one-stop shop of advisory, accountancy and legal services can only be mutually beneficial for everyone.”
