Kingswood has made a double acquisition as it continues to ramp up its external growth strategy and expand its presence across the UK. Employee Benefit Solutions (EBS), a Buckinghamshire-based financial planner, and JCH Investment Management, based in Lincoln, will add £240m in assets under management to Kingswood – £105 from JCH, and £240m from EBS.
EBS generated £806k profit in its last results, while JCS reported £906,000.
David Lawrence, UK chief executive at Kingswood, commented: “I’m delighted by the ever expanding footprint of Kingswood into new counties, as well as announcing the acquisition of JCH today, the completion of EBS also takes us into a new county.
“For over 30 years, EBS have had a long-established presence in Buckinghamshire. They have a simple aim; to make complicated financial matters as simple as possible to help clients meet their goals and make their life as easy as possible. This mirrors what we strive for at Kingswood.”
Lawrence added: “We have a strong pipeline of activity, with a further five potential acquisitions in exclusive due diligence. Our near-term target is to build our UK AUA/M in excess of £10bn in the UK and £14bn globally.”
Miles Burr, director at EBS said: “We have invested a huge amount of time in carefully investigating our options for a possible sale, looking to find the most suitable ‘partner’ that would enable us to take our business forward in a way that benefits our clients and staff.
“We have been very impressed with Kingswood’s proposition, their systems and senior management.
“They are a great fit for EBS and we firmly believe we will be able to achieve our ambition of delivering the best possible long-term outcomes for our business, staff and, most importantly, our clients.”
John Hebblethwaite, CEO at JCH said: “This is an exciting development for the business, providing additional expertise, capability, and funding to continue our long-term track record of providing a best-in-class service for our clients.
“Kingswood shares our vision and beliefs of empowering its employees to provide excellent client service and this move gives the perfect outcome for both our clients and team for their future prosperity.”
The double deal comes as Kingswood reveals it has an extensive pipeline of potential acquisitions – with a reported eight deals in advanced talks, and five deals at the due diligence stage.
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Louise Jeffreys is managing director of Gunner & Co, an IFA broker with values based on strong relationships built on trust, credibility and value.
Gunner & Co. specialise in IFA sales, IFA business sales, retiring IFAs and IFA client bank sales.