Perspective Financial Group completed two acquisitions before the Christmas break, taking the firm's total to 22 deals in 2023.
The firm bought the client banks of Simon McGechie and Paul Adams, both former Fairstone Financial Management colleagues.
Combined, they bring 265 households as clients and £55mn assets under management to Perspective.
McGechie said: “I have been considering my personal future for a while.
“With a desire to provide continuity of service to clients, I carried out a thorough search to identify the best long term partner who shares and lives my personal values and standards of client service and professionalism. Perspective meets these criteria in full.”
Adams added: “While I am taking this opportunity to relinquish my authorisation with our regulator I, like Simon, will remain with Perspective for a short period to ensure a smooth handover.
"Perspective’s impressive approach to its in-house academy gives me confidence that my clients will be well advised long into the future.”
The second purchase by Perspective was Colchester-based Park Lane Independent Financial Advisers which adds 300 households as clients.
Directors Andrew Frettingham and Paul Southgate said: “We have always put our clients at the forefront of all that we do and over several years have built valued relationships based on trust and sound financial planning.
“It is therefore important that we are able to continue to do this for many years to come whilst also dealing with the ever-increasing burden of regulation.”
Perspective has made a total of 78 acquisitions since it was founded 16 years ago.
Frettingham and Southgate added: “After meeting Ian Wilkinson and David Hesketh, the group’s chief financial officer, it became clear they share our client focused approach whilst retaining the feel of a smaller, local firm.
“They have reassured us on two key considerations which are firstly, no significant changes for our clients; secondly, career security and progression opportunities for our valued and talented long-standing staff."
Perspective now has 500 staff, 38 local offices and 140 financial planners, a third of whom are qualified to chartered level or above.
It manages £8bn of assets on behalf of clients and is three times the size it was five years ago.
Ian Wilkinson, chief executive officer said: “2023 was a pivotal year for us as we took further strategic steps towards our goal of cementing our position as the UK’s best client-centric financial planning firm for both our clients and our people.
“Successfully completing, and importantly, integrating an acquisition almost every two weeks is testament to the professionalism of our team and a reflection of us delivering on our core values on a daily basis.”
Wilkinson said he has spoken to “literally hundreds of IFA firms” and probably thousands in his 35 years in the sector.
“I remain a financial planner myself still advising clients, which means I continue to understand clients’ concerns first hand,” he said.
“I retain my strong belief in the benefits of developing and nurturing talent in-house. That way, people have the right values to be successful with us.”
In November, Perspective bought Chelmsford-based Primera Wealth Management, adding £205mn AUM.
In October, it bought Worthing-based Accord Financial Management and Rotherham-based RPG Financial, adding a total of £390mn AUM.
Wilkinson added: “Given that two of the main motivations for firms in this sector wishing to sell up are the ability for the owners to retire in the near future, or to grow their business further with the resources of a larger group behind them, a strong pipeline of young, motivated talent coming up through our academy is vital to ensure clients can rely on us over the long term.”
Wilkinson said the firm will “grow further at pace and scale in 2024”.
sonia.rach@ft.com
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